POISON SCOOTER

Volume 2: Best in Documentaries

Deep Blue by Alistair Fothergill
This look at the many life forms inhabiting our planets oceans is exciting, educational and hypnotic. There is a pinnacle scene that unfolds like a war battle that is breathtaking and brutal.

Grizzly Man by Werner Herzog
Nature conservationist spends multiple summers among grizzlies filming himself ala Jeff Corwin but gets a little too close and dies at the hands of the very bears he was adamant about saving. Werner Herzog explores this fascinating character through borderline strange interviews with people involved with the deceased as well as the salvaged video footage the Grizzly Man shot over an 11 year period amongst the bears.

Murderball by Henry Alex Rubin
Rugby is a brutal sport, lots of pushing and punching, a constant fight for possession of the ball. Now imagine rugby without the use of your legs. The Americans vs. Canada, a tale of deceit and courage flesh out this look at a quads playing a tough guy sport. And loving it.

Mad Hot Ballroom by Marilyn Agrelo
Inner city kids are thrust into learning to ballroom dance and get juiced up by the idea after at first being freaked out. Yeah, I know…sounds a lot like that Antonio Banderas movie that was out last year. Trust me, this is the real deal and I became oddly caught up in how these youngsters were able to master the intricacies of some of the dances.

Rock School by Don Argott
Remember School of Rock with Jack Black? Well, this is the guy who was the inspiration for that script in all his inappropriate glory. Based out of Philly, Paul Green has made his life’s work teaching young kids how to bang their head and rock out. Green turns out to be a very interesting character who just wants to inspire kids to appreciate music.


I Am Trying To Break Your Heart by Sam Jones
Wilco is perhaps the best alt-country band of all time. And although the album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot swerved a bit away from this alt-country label, this film by photographer Sam Jones captures a band in turmoil while working on their supposed “breakthrough” record for Reprise Records. Strife with band members and record labels don’t deter Jeff Tweedy from putting his heart into the record and it’s cool to see a band fight for creative freedom in this day and age.

Born Into Brothels by Ross Kauffman/Zana Briski
This film shows us a world that is little discussed, Calcutta's red light district. Inspiring a group of children of the prostitutes of the area are the filmmakers who live among the poor and teach the kids photography. As we watch the kids take amazing photographs the filmmakers are working tirelessly to save the children in an effort to give them a better life. This movie confirmed for me that I’m completely selfish.

Capturing the Frieedmans by Andrew Jarecki
What would you do if your Father and Brother were arrested for child molestation? In the case of the Friedmans, luckily they picked up a video camera and started to record their plight to fight the charges and wound up capturing a family free falling out of control. David Freidman, one of the innocent sons is unforgettable not only for his forethought into filming many of his family’s most intimate discussions during this tragic time but because he is a working performing clown for children’s parties adding a bizarre layer to this already complex work.

Stevie by Steve James
Sometimes documentary filmmakers become a bit of a master of the craft and churn out successful efforts consistently. Errol Morris is a good case in point. (Thin Blue Line; Fast, Cheap and Out of Control; The Fog of War; A Brief History of Time; Mr. Death) Steve James broke out when Hoop Dreams was released in 1994 and instead of basking in the short lived “celebrity” an Oscar nomination brings you for a Documentary, James went right back to work on something completely different than his movie about budding basketball stars. Steve went back to rural Southern Illinois to check on Stevie, a troubled kid that Steve was once a Big Brother to while in college. Four and a half years later, Steve puts together this profile of a poor, uneducated criminal who the filmmaker feels he abandoned and gives us a glimpse into not only Stevie’s world (problems) but Steve’s as well.

posted by Scooter @ 5:54 PM