Documentaries, OR, Some Weird Things Caught On Tape That Only Real Life Could Produce

[Lumenskir]

So I just sort of realized I've been going through a documentary intake bender recently, and this forum is getting lousy with threads gushing over comic byproducts, so I thought it time to inject a little refined nerdery into this nerd forum.

Documentaries! Thousands of hours of real life condensed and edited into a watchable and hopefully thought provoking viewing experience!! What are some of your choice picks‽

In no particular order-

American Teen: Caught a sneak peek of this at my school. Basically, a sort of deconstruction (if real life can be considered deconstructing(?)) of high school movie tropes, it follows a few easily grouped high schoolers in Bumfuck, Indiana (Nerd, Jock, Bitchy Popular Girl, Arty Loner Girl) for a year to see what their lives are actually like. Pretty great, especially if you're not too far removed from the high school experience.

Protocols of Zion: A bore. The guy takes a potentially interesting topic (why antisemitism still persists in the modern day) and executes it in the most uninteresting and vain way possible. Let me summarize about 93% of the movie-
Documentarian: So, how do you feel about Jews?
Neo-nazi or Palestinian or some guy who runs a website devoted to hating Jews: I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of Jews.
Documentarian: Well, what if I told you that the Protocols of Zion were actually false, how do you feel about Jews then?
Neo-nazi or Palestinian or some guy who runs a website devoted to hating Jews: Hmm...I'm gonna say I still kinda hate Jews.

The other 7% is when he goes to an all Jewish banquet where Matisyahu performs and you have sit through pained interviews where 63 year old men insist through clenched teeth that they enjoy the reggae-rap stylings of Matisyahu. This is the comedic relief part of the movie.

The Bridge: The filmmaker set up a camera near the Golden Gate Bridge for a year, captured 19 people jumping off the side to commit suicide, and then interviewed the family and friends of the jumpers. The movie is...kind of a weird experience. I was never really sure what they were trying to get across, except for the obviously distressed mental state of those devoted to suicide. I'd still recommend watching it.

Carrier: Actually a documentary series on PBS, but still a pretty fascinating watch. I've got a natural inclination to watch the inner workings of massive endeavors, and the documentary is basically 10 hours exploring all the myriad people who keep a small city on the sea going. Also, I'm very surprised that television has been around for so long without making a soap opera set aboard an aircraft carrier, because between the secret homosexuals, the obvious but not admitted homosexuals, random hookups, married couples, engaged couples, long distance relationships, the anti-rape psychologist apparently raping someone...it just seems like a vast untapped plot source, and that's before you add in the requisite long lost (at sea?) twins and magic midgets.

[Bells]

Just to benchmark it so we wont digress.

Michael Moore, is he allowed in this here thread?

[Lumenskir]

Just to benchmark it so we wont digress.

Michael Moore, is he allowed in this here thread?

I believe he makes documentaries, so I'm going to say it probably falls under the purview of the topic.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

I'm always torn about documentaries. I mean they have to by their very nature simplify and compress issues and often distort them completely (I'm looking at you Moore) but I still love watching them.

I quite like the Corporation. Examination of the role of the corporation in modern society. Some bits are a bit iffy but it very entertaining and a good watch.

[Bells]

Oooooookey then

Fahrenheit 9/11 : REALLY biased. Depending on how you take it, the film can be seen as racist, fanatistic-patriot, truthfull and even logicly twisted. I'm always amazed by some of Moore's work. As how he can sometimes portrait true situatons and truths, but in a way that makes him a complete jackass on doing so. It's liek the guy cant tell the facts without shooting himself in the foot a couple of times in the process. The documentary itself is well made and it's facts are well placed. There are situations and facts and news that when put together pull the point through just fine (The point being that Bush really sucks as president).

But the entire production is very USA-centric. And even though, 9/11 is fully Usa-centric, there is a big picture that connects the whole world. and that big picture is not really in there. So, as a documentary, it fails on that part. Plus, instead of Videoclips of Bush with bad songs in the background, they could add much more regarding the kids and overall, the people that are actually going to war, like it or not, since they are already there, you mght as well remember that they are the ones being fired at. Exposing more of that enviroment and the "Heritage" of that, could be much more elightening to the cause of the film.

[Aerozord]

this may sound odd, but something about having documentaries in theaters bugs me. Feels more like it will either be over-hyped money grubbing propoganda, or needlessly critizied and objectified. I do not think documentaries should be presented in such a fashion. They should merely be an alternate method to aquiring information, a teaching tool. The information contained being as factual as possible with information based on theory or assumption clearly stated as such.

Such a form of media I think is better funnelled for private use through TV and DVD.

I dont know, I am not a fan of documentaries that try to get out 'a message' as opposed to ones that simply try and teach you and really wish they wouldn't be lumped together. Those that try to change the world are often bias and colored according to current situations lacking the advantages of hind-sight.

Besides, honestly did anyone need to go to a movie theater to know our (US) healthcare system is garbage?

[Lumenskir]

I quite like the Corporation. Examination of the role of the corporation in modern society. Some bits are a bit iffy but it very entertaining and a good watch.

Added to my Netflix queue.

They should merely be an alternate method to aquiring information, a teaching tool. The information contained being as factual as possible with information based on theory or assumption clearly stated as such....
I dont know, I am not a fan of documentaries that try to get out 'a message' as opposed to ones that simply try and teach you and really wish they wouldn't be lumped together. Those that try to change the world are often bias and colored according to current situations lacking the advantages of hind-sight.

But all documentaries are inherently biased and trying to spread a message. Somebody has to decide which parts of the mound of collected film are included in the movie, somebody has to decide how to edit those selected parts together, somebody has to decide what music or other cinematic tools are used...these are all subjective and biased choices to be made. The nature of the medium demands a human hand, and that hand is usually connected to a mind with its own viewpoints and goals and, yes, a message. It's unavoidable.

Also, what would be your criteria for a movie based solely on 'teaching'? Just a library full of Planet Earth and How it's Made knockoffs? Would the Fast, Cheap and Out of Controls and Man on Wires of the cinematic world get a pass?

[greed]

I like science and history based documentaries mainly. News and big issues I prefer to read about, visuals, and sound bites seem to dilute or skew the facts behind it too much. Basically I agree with Aerozord.

Also David Attenborough is awesome, has possibly the best job ever and his documentaries are one of the major reasons I'm doing an Environmental degree. Particularly The Blue Planet. That deep sea episode was just art from nature.

[Azisien]

I see documentaries as a sort of visual and audio Wikipedia. If it's not good for eye candy it's informative on a general or tidbit level. But to actually truly delve into a subject you have to do some independent research of your own.

And I don't say that as a bad thing really, because I just spent half an hour on Wikipedia reading about particle accelerators.

Greed: Seen his "Life in the Undergrowth" series? I thought it was awesome. Might lead you to an Entomology degree. :p

[greed]

Originally Posted by Azisien

I see documentaries as a sort of visual and audio Wikipedia. If it's not good for eye candy it's informative on a general or tidbit level. But to actually truly delve into a subject you have to do some independent research of your own.

And I don't say that as a bad thing really, because I just spent half an hour on Wikipedia reading about particle accelerators.

Greed: Seen his "Life in the Undergrowth" series? I thought it was awesome. Might lead you to an Entomology degree. :p

Nah, it was on at a bad time for me, what I saw was great though. I'll probably catch it when Animal Planet picks it up. They always repeat his new stuff a ton. They had Life of Mammals(I think) on today, the one with the elephants who trek deep into caves looking for salt, ever see a bull elephant try to sneak? It's damned funny. Wish they'd run his classics more though. Also totally agree with your wikipedia analogy.