Great Documentaries... (1 Viewer)

[SaintArchieManning]

Some of the ESPN "30" documentaries arent very good.........

But 2 i really liked were:

1) the one where Vlade Divac goes back to Serbia and Croatia to meet w/ Drazen Petrovic's family was AWESOME and heartbreaking

2) the one where 1960/70's's pitcher Luis Tiant goes back to Cuba for the first time since he defected in the 1960's and visits aunts and cousins who havent seen him in 45 years

 

[A.D.Rock]

Watched "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" on Netflix the other day. It's brilliant. Never seen someone so dedicated. A true master of his craft that won't be around too much longer. You'll like it whether you eat sushi or not I promise.

 

[Sun Wukong]

Watched "shut up little man" and loved it. I have watched quite a few docs lately. I need to do a better job keeping this up to date.

Shut Up, Little Man is great.

I haven't read this whole thread, so some of these may have been mentioned, but I've recently watched:

-Confessions of a Superhero, which follows four people who dress as superheroes and panhandle for money on Hollywood Blvd via pictures with tourists. It's a pretty fascinating look at some truly broken people, but by the end I felt it was kind of in danger of going into exploitation territory. The guys that play Superman and Batman truly have mental issues that become very apparent as the movie unfolds. The other two were more normal, but still had their own share of troubles.

- Winnebago Man, which is about the guy from that old viral video of a Winnebago salesman filming an ad, but screwing up and cursing frequently. Very fascinating look at the person behind a viral video, as well as an examination of the nature of viral videos.

-Ghost Bird. Remember years ago when they announced they had re-discovered the thought-extinct Ivory Billed Woodpecker in Arkansas? They essentially didn't, and this documentary traces that whole story from the bird's extinction, it's alleged rediscovery, then skepticism in the scientific community, as well as the economic impact the initial Ivory Billed boom had on the area, and the eventual decline when it became apparent the "discovery" was wrong.

-I Think We're Alone Now. This one is kind of a cult flick and has been for years, but it's the truly bizarre story of a middle aged guy with Asperger's, a hermaphrodite, and their shared stalker-level obsession with 80's pop star Tiffany.

-Trek Nation, which is Eugene Roddenberry's (son of Gene) attempt at figuring out why Star Trek is as popular as it is. In reality it's more about him trying to discover more about his father, who he was never that close to and died when he was a teenager. I enjoyed it quite a bit and liked seeming him come to terms with his father's flaws as a human being while also finally realizing just how much Star Trek means to some people.

 

[Zack Lee]

Watched "Jiro Dreams of Sushi" on Netflix the other day. It's brilliant. Never seen someone so dedicated. A true master of his craft that won't be around too much longer. You'll like it whether you eat sushi or not I promise.

next on my list. Thank you.

 

[crosswatt]

Some of the ESPN "30" documentaries arent very good.........

But 2 i really liked were:

1) the one where Vlade Divac goes back to Serbia and Croatia to meet w/ Drazen Petrovic's family was AWESOME and heartbreaking

2) the one where 1960/70's's pitcher Luis Tiant goes back to Cuba for the first time since he defected in the 1960's and visits aunts and cousins who havent seen him in 45 years

Actually, I've enjoyed all of them. Also liked the "SEC Storied" ones ESPN has been doing.

 

[Sun Wukong]

I thought the Len Bias one was pretty sloppy. Didn't seem to have a lot of focus and to many of his friends/family refused to acknowledge him as anything other than a saint who had one bad night. Not saying he wasn't a good dude, but there are plenty of people out there who insist it wasn't his first rodeo.

The Steve Bartman 30 for 30 was fantastic. Really a terrific look into the maliciousness of sports fans. I also thought the Todd Marinovich one was pretty interesting.

 

[Waymer]

Finally got around to watching King of Kong. Excellent piece.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi was also solid.

 

[dajmno]

The elephant one on HBO[GO] is a good one.

 

[rockoo]

Which Way Is the Front Line From Here?

On HBO was good

 

[where yat brah]

There's documentaries showing on ESPN classic that are really great.

One on Roberto Clemente and the other on Luis Tiant.

Watch 'em, you'll like 'em.

 

[pugweiler]

These might not be great, but they passed time adequately for me recently.

"Last Days Here" (My buddy is "Pellet's" brother.)
Last Days Here follows Bobby Liebling, lead singer of Pentagram, an Alexandria, Virginia-based heavy metal group founded in 1971 and active sporadically throughout the following four decades. At the film's outset, Liebling is in his 50s, living in his parents' basement, and addicted to drugs. After Pentagram's music is rediscovered by the heavy metal underground scene, Liebling begins to recover from his lifestyle. His friend and manager Sean "Pellet" Pelletier attempts to help Liebling overcome his drug addiction and escape his old life. (From Wiki)

"The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill"
In San Francisco, there are at least two flocks of largely wild parrots who flock around the city. This film focuses on the flock of cherry-headed conures (and a lonely blue-headed one named Connor) who flock around the Telegraph Hill region of the city and their closest human companion, Mark Bittner . Through his own words, we learn of his life as a frustrated, homeless musician and how he came to live in the area where he decided to explore the nature around him. That lead him to discovering the parrot flock and the individual personalities of it. In a cinematic portrait, we are introduced to his colorful companions and the relationship they share as well as the realities of urban wild life that would change Bittner's life forever. Written by Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)(From IMDb)

"One Nation Under Dog"
The passionate and complex relationship that Americans have with their dogs. From a Florida couple who spend hundreds of thousands to clone a beloved dog, to rescuers who find homes for abandoned dogs in rural shelters in Tennessee and Alabama where hundreds of thousands are destroyed each year - many in gas chambers. A look at how far some dog lovers will go for the animals they revere and how far they will go as a nation to treat their companion animals humanely. Written by Anonymous (IMDb)

 

[Waymer]

Just watched Marley (available free here: Marley | Watch Documentary Online Free). Really enjoyed it. A bit disjointed from time to time in the start, but it helps get an understanding of Bob, etc -- and the final 30 minutes or so are really gripping quite frankly.

 

[Twyst]

Finally got around to watching "Searching for Sugarman" last week. Amazing film that definitely deserved the oscar it won.


Watch it ASAP, you wont be disappointed!

In a nutshell, it's about a little known US singer/songwriter who was "bigger then the beatles" in South Africa, but news of his fame never reached the US and stories circulate about how he committed suicide during a performance etc. Thats all introduced in the first 10 minutes, you have to watch to see what happens after that!


I really can't recommend this movie enough.

 

[Hopeless]

Ive watched a few over the past couple months.

"Kevorkian" and "Indie Game: The Movie" are a couple that i thoroughly enjoyed.

 

[Zack Lee]

These might not be great, but they passed time adequately for me recently.

Your not in Sales are you? Thanks for the info though, I will look into them.

Thank you Waymer and Twyst, I have Marley to watch and will be looking for Searching for Sugarman on your recommendations. Wanted to watch Marley already and had heard a little about Sugarman so I am looking forward to them.