Category
Hot Docs
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07.22.10Canwest-Hot Docs Fund Recipients AnnouncedToday the recipients for this year's Canwest-Hot Docs funding were announced and what makes this especially exciting is that the Documentary Blog's own head honcho Jay Cheel's first feature documentary Beauty Day was among those chosen. For those that don't know about the film yet the synopsis is below: Before there was Tom Green…before there was Jackass…there was Ralph Zavadil. His cable access television show, The Cap’n Video Show, ran from 1990 to 1995, spawning a small but loyal cult following. Each week, Ralph performed a series of idiotic and occasionally dangerous stunts, challenging the sensibilities of Southern Ontario audiences for five seasons. ...
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05.20.10The Documentary Blog’s Hot Docs 2010 RecapHot Docs 2010 is officially over! Okay, so it's been over for two weeks now. Better late than never though! We did manage to get a few reviews up while attending the festival, but as some of you may know, it's tough to manage your time between seeing films and writing up reviews. How do the pros do it? Oh, right...money. Well we here at The Documentary Blog do it for the love of film! Having said that, there's lots of love below the jump where you'll find a shit load of capsule reviews from myself, Sean and Charlotte. But ...
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05.19.10Hot Docs: The People vs. George Lucas ReviewOver the past decade or so, we have been subject to a never ending wave of documentaries about fans and fan culture, largely produced by fans themselves. The majority of them are ultimately self-serving and shoddily produced, but every now and then one of them manages to rise above the rest and prove itself to be something more. The People vs. George Lucas is not one of those films. Don’t get me wrong — a lot of people will definitely be entertained on a surface level, but but as an insightful look at the lasting appeal of Star Wars, the ...
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05.08.10Interview with Nicolas Rossier, co-director of American RadicalAmerican Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein is one of those great films that really frustrates you as it forces you to change your opinion constantly throughout, never really being able to tell how you feel about this controversial character. I came into this documentary with no knowledge of Norman Finkelstein as a figure and left having seen one of my favourite documentaries of the year. Finkelstein is fascinating and the filmmakers allow you to see beyond his public persona and take the story beyond the politics to his experience of speaking his mind about a very volatile subject matter ...
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05.04.10Film Junk’s Hot Docs Audio Reviews: Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage, The People vs. George Lucas, Gasland and More!As some of you may or may not know, myself and Sean also do a podcast together over at Film Junk, a blog -- run by Sean -- that covers general news in the movie world. With Hot Docs in full effect, we had a chance to talk about some of the films we've seen so far on this weeks Film Junk Podcast. I figured it might be a good idea to re-post that piece of the show a here on The Documentary Blog for your listening enjoyment. We actually managed to touch on a good number of films, including ...
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05.03.10Hot Docs: Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage ReviewWhile I wouldn't call myself a Rush fan, the importance of their music isn't totally lost on me. Being Canadian -- and from St.Catharines, childhood home of Rush drummer Neil Peart -- every other person I know claims to have some sort of personal connection to a member of the band. National pride aside, Rush has never really spoken to me on a musical level, and I'm certainly not alone in that regard. They're definitely an acquired taste. Director Sam Dunn examines the loyal fan base the band has accrued over the years, takes us through the history of their ...