Documentary Thread #2

[Amazing_Red_Fan]

I will always pimp The Thin Blue Line, Dear Zachary, Crumb, Paradise Lost, Video Nasties and Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy!

 

Watched Easy Riders, Raging Bulls and A Decade Under the Influence the other week as I am studying Film at Uni and the 'New Hollywood' period is probably my personal favourite period in Film History.

 

Got A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies on its way in the post as well! Can't wait.

 

If you're not too hot on Documentaries I would suggest the Michael Moore documentaries. Has anyone seen Zietgeist by the way?

[Poopants the Scrunge]

I will always pimp The Thin Blue Line, Dear Zachary, Crumb, Paradise Lost, Video Nasties and Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy!

 

Watched Easy Riders, Raging Bulls and A Decade Under the Influence the other week as I am studying Film at Uni and the 'New Hollywood' period is probably my personal favourite period in Film History.

 

Got A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies on its way in the post as well! Can't wait.

 

If you're not too hot on Documentaries I would suggest the Michael Moore documentaries. Has anyone seen Zietgeist by the way?

 

Ah, you should check out 'The Kid Stays in the Picture' - book and documentary about Bob Evans Paramount executive and producer (Of The Godfather for example), who featured a lot in that period of Hollywood.

Adds a different (but supportive) perspective to the subjects mentioned in Easy Riders,Ragings bulls.

 

Bob Evans is quite a character too.

[PowerButchi]

Small Potatoes - Who Killed the USFL

 

Absolutely brilliant doc.

 

If you've not seen it, I suggest finding John Shuttleworth's "It's Nice Up North". A really fun watch. It's about people who live on the Shetlands, and studying if people are nicer the more up north you go. It's not exactly The World at War, but it's a really pleasant watch.

[Amazing_Red_Fan]

I will always pimp The Thin Blue Line, Dear Zachary, Crumb, Paradise Lost, Video Nasties and Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy!

 

Watched Easy Riders, Raging Bulls and A Decade Under the Influence the other week as I am studying Film at Uni and the 'New Hollywood' period is probably my personal favourite period in Film History.

 

Got A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies on its way in the post as well! Can't wait.

 

If you're not too hot on Documentaries I would suggest the Michael Moore documentaries. Has anyone seen Zietgeist by the way?

 

Ah, you should check out 'The Kid Stays in the Picture' - book and documentary about Bob Evans Paramount executive and producer (Of The Godfather for example), who featured a lot in that period of Hollywood.

Adds a different (but supportive) perspective to the subjects mentioned in Easy Riders,Ragings bulls.

 

Bob Evans is quite a character too.

 

I was put off buying this because I couldn't find much information on the documentary but always had it sitting in the back of my mind. I will take your recommendation on board and get hold of a copy as soon as I've worked through my current 'to watch' pile. Thanks!

[Joey Joe Joe Jr]

dear zachary made me an emotional wreck

[Kaz Hayashi]

Not emotional by any means, but if you like footy at all, and like the idea of mental managers, watch the Layton orient doc called 'orient for a fiver' it's a short 2 part doc where a young student gets access to the locker room etc during games. Quite an amusing watch.

[Cobra1000]

nobody mention King of Kong or Man on Wire yet?

[WWFChilli]

I went to see Man on Wire in Liverpool when it was released and there was 3 people in there, by the time the mental prick started his walk and Erik Satie began playing the other two people had left and I was stood up applauding him to do it, that's how pathetically drawn in I was to that story.

 

I even wrote a small article on it.

 

The story centers around Philippe Petit, a extremly arrogant yet lovably eccentric frenchman. Petit is quite something to behold, one moment discussing a serious matter concerning his latest caper, the next being enchanted and whimsical about the beauty of his "art", like a sugar rushing child explaining a roller coaster they really like, while stuffing cotton candy at a break neck pace.

 

Petit's art is of course that he is a highwire walker, and by that I don't mean of the circus variety, this man illegaly performs high wire acts in some of the most important landmarks of the world. Astonishing pictures show him lying in the middle of his cable between Notre Dame, then there is footage of him performing an illegal work across Sidney Harbour Bridge, the walk itself is so fascinating you can't help but find yourself concentrating with interest to how he does it. The walk is accompanied by "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac, making the walk seem like an insane rejected idea for the "M&S Mental French Suicidal" clothing range.

 

Petit and his gang of misfits big idea (or the "coup") as it's refered to is an illegal walk between the as yet fully finished towers of the World Trade Center. ONE THOUSAND FEET in the air. The doc then looks at there frequent trips to NYC featuring pictures they taken while in the towers on espionage missions, the pictures of Petit literally starring over the edge into a metropolitan abyss will make almost anyone shake there head in head shaking fear. What's far more fascinating is how this was even possible to pull off; the documentary keeps cutting occasionally to some well needed and enjoyable reconstrutions while the voiceovers carry along all the tension they felt while hiding in the world's biggest buildings ready to potentially kill there friend by helping him, it's nail biting.

 

Incredibly (and not smoothly, I won't spoil the info for you) they DO somehow get a cable across the buildings, it's 200 feet, an incredible acheivement, but the Wire isn't there best one and almost a bit flimsy, I wouldn't want to hear that about my hair dryer cable never the less a cable I am going to walk on, but Petit isn't like me, he's an oddball, he's French and he doesn't give a shit. So at 7am that morning, Petit braved the abyss and somehow, he starts walking.

 

The pictures of Petit walking along the wire literally walking on the sky, it's both disturbing in a mind bending way as they are absolutely beautiful, the pangs of Erik Satie play us along and the moment drags you in, you are so damn proud of this band of luncatics yet the pictures make you feel all melancholy and wondering, it's truly a beautiful site to see, especially when I got to see it via a massive cinema screen, just stunning.

 

Petit caused such a coverage outbrust through his walk it was impossible to jail him, indeed the day he walked, Richard Nixon stepped down from power. In the grimness of it all Petit walked amongst the clouds and did something that no one else (sadly due to the buildings demise, not mentioned but nudge and winked in the film) will EVER do. Man on Wire can be bought in shops. I wouldn't advise you miss it, it's just breathtaking.

Edited March 12, 2011 by Chilli_Dog

[Fatty Facesitter]

I went to see Man on Wire in Liverpool when it was released and there was 3 people in there, by the time the mental prick started his walk and Erik Satie began playing the other two people had left and I was stood up applauding him to do it, that's how pathetically drawn in I was to that story.

 

I even wrote a small article on it.

 

The story centers around Philippe Petit, a extremly arrogant yet lovably eccentric frenchman. Petit is quite something to behold, one moment discussing a serious matter concerning his latest caper, the next being enchanted and whimsical about the beauty of his "art", like a sugar rushing child explaining a roller coaster they really like, while stuffing cotton candy at a break neck pace.

 

Petit's art is of course that he is a highwire walker, and by that I don't mean of the circus variety, this man illegaly performs high wire acts in some of the most important landmarks of the world. Astonishing pictures show him lying in the middle of his cable between Notre Dame, then there is footage of him performing an illegal work across Sidney Harbour Bridge, the walk itself is so fascinating you can't help but find yourself concentrating with interest to how he does it. The walk is accompanied by "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac, making the walk seem like an insane rejected idea for the "M&S Mental French Suicidal" clothing range.

 

Petit and his gang of misfits big idea (or the "coup") as it's refered to is an illegal walk between the as yet fully finished towers of the World Trade Center. ONE THOUSAND FEET in the air. The doc then looks at there frequent trips to NYC featuring pictures they taken while in the towers on espionage missions, the pictures of Petit literally starring over the edge into a metropolitan abyss will make almost anyone shake there head in head shaking fear. What's far more fascinating is how this was even possible to pull off; the documentary keeps cutting occasionally to some well needed and enjoyable reconstrutions while the voiceovers carry along all the tension they felt while hiding in the world's biggest buildings ready to potentially kill there friend by helping him, it's nail biting.

 

Incredibly (and not smoothly, I won't spoil the info for you) they DO somehow get a cable across the buildings, it's 200 feet, an incredible acheivement, but the Wire isn't there best one and almost a bit flimsy, I wouldn't want to hear that about my hair dryer cable never the less a cable I am going to walk on, but Petit isn't like me, he's an oddball, he's French and he doesn't give a shit. So at 7am that morning, Petit braved the abyss and somehow, he starts walking.

 

The pictures of Petit walking along the wire literally walking on the sky, it's both disturbing in a mind bending way as they are absolutely beautiful, the pangs of Erik Satie play us along and the moment drags you in, you are so damn proud of this band of luncatics yet the pictures make you feel all melancholy and wondering, it's truly a beautiful site to see, especially when I got to see it via a massive cinema screen, just stunning.

 

Petit caused such a coverage outbrust through his walk it was impossible to jail him, indeed the day he walked, Richard Nixon stepped down from power. In the grimness of it all Petit walked amongst the clouds and did something that no one else (sadly due to the buildings demise, not mentioned but nudge and winked in the film) will EVER do. Man on Wire can be bought in shops. I wouldn't advise you miss it, it's just breathtaking.

 

Good article chilli. I wrote in the films thread about watching this for the first time about a month ago and echo the positive stuff about it, just an absolutely blinding story wrapped up into a neat film package. Phillipe is such a likeable and infections guy which just made it all the more watchable as he described his adventure.

 

Having watched Touching the Void again, another top documentary, a question for those of you who have seen it...would you have done the same thing?

[bAzTNM#1]

Any from the "John's Not Mad" guy. He made a new one a few years ago. Here are some of the highlights..

 

(Language people!)

 

Some of the World Cup documentries are decent too, "Hero: 1986" and "Soccer Shootout: 1990" being the stand-out ones for me.

Edited March 12, 2011 by bAzTNM#1

[Chest Rockwell]

I finally got around to seeing Exit Through the Gift Shop.

 

I enjoyed it, but it didn't really live up to the hype. It had been hyped hugely to me though.

 

MBW is clearly a totally delusional bellend, but a fascinating character. It's a shame he has all that brilliant footage that has mostly just gone to waste.

[Magnum]

Not emotional by any means, but if you like footy at all, and like the idea of mental managers, watch the Layton orient doc called 'orient for a fiver' it's a short 2 part doc where a young student gets access to the locker room etc during games. Quite an amusing watch.

 

To add to that, I recently found out every episode of the old BBC documentary series Premier Passions is available for free online here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A42489417

 

Obviously I loved it because it features my own club, Sunderland, but I think it's worth a watch for neutral fans as well. Loads of unintentionally funny stuff (watch out for Reidy's ever-present can of Budweiser on his office desk, and Bobby Saxton's 'MINGING!' rant during a team talk), and it gives a good, pull-no-punches insight into every level of the football club - manager, players, directors and fans. I realise it was quite well-publicised at the time, but it's over a decade old now and many people on here might not have come across it before.

[Dead Mike]

Suppose this is the right place for this

[JNLister]

Nice blog that posts rare documentaries from YouTube and the like: http://thedocumentarian.tumblr.com/

[Gladstones Bitch]

I will always pimp The Thin Blue Line, Dear Zachary, Crumb, Paradise Lost, Video Nasties and Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy!

 

Watched Easy Riders, Raging Bulls and A Decade Under the Influence the other week as I am studying Film at Uni and the 'New Hollywood' period is probably my personal favourite period in Film History.

 

Got A Personal Journey With Martin Scorsese Through American Movies on its way in the post as well! Can't wait.

 

If you're not too hot on Documentaries I would suggest the Michael Moore documentaries. Has anyone seen Zietgeist by the way?

 

Cheers for mentioning that I never knew it existed, just finished watching it there and it's awesome. Runs at 4 hours and covers all the films up to Freddy Vs Jason with interviews with all the cast from the films except a couple like Depp & Arquette.