I don't have to tell you about the San Francisco Silent Film Festival; I already have. But here are two other festivals coming up next month. SF DocFest (June 2-16) If you prefer your cinema without fiction, this is the festival for you. Here you'll find documentaries about East LA, LSD, two-dollar bills, Internet sex workers, … Continue reading June Film Festivals
Category: Documentaries
Thursday: The last day at this year’s San Francisco International Film Festival
I saw two movies on the last day of this year's San Francisco International Film Festival. The first one was directed by someone named Ross. The second by someone named Moss. Neither of them was a loss. Frank & Lola I saw this at the New Mission, and thankfully, it was in the big, downstairs … Continue reading Thursday: The last day at this year’s San Francisco International Film Festival
Visiting North Korea and Afghanistan: Wednesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
I've really come to hate the upstairs theaters at the New Mission. The number of decent seats are in the single digits--and for the festival, most of them are reserved. The front row is so close it can induce headaches--even for me. If you don't want to sit that close, and you weren't one of … Continue reading Visiting North Korea and Afghanistan: Wednesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
Salt Flats and Music: Tuesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
I saw two films, both documentaries, at the San Francisco International Film Festival on Tuesday. One was about the world coming to a previously isolated stretch of Bolivia. The other was about music of the world. B+ Salero Before the screening, Director Mike Plunkett told us that the film was "a passion project of mine. It … Continue reading Salt Flats and Music: Tuesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
Sunday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
I caught two movies Sunday at the San Francisco International Film Festival. B Cameraperson I caught this one at the Victoria Theatre. Cinematographer Kirsten Johnson has been shooting documentaries for decades. The films she's lensed include Citizenfour and Farenheit 911. Now she's gathered much of what she shot, including home movies, into a montage of … Continue reading Sunday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
Wednesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
I saw two movies Wednesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival. The first was pretty good, the second fantastic. Both were screened at the New Mission's huge and beautiful Theater 1. Both films are on the festival's Hold Review List, which means that at this point in time, I have to review the films … Continue reading Wednesday at the San Francisco International Film Festival
Where to invade next
C- Comedy, documentary, mockumentary Written and directed by Michael Moore The press material for Where to Invade Next insists on calling Michael Moore's latest agitprop movie a comedy, and not a documentary. This is odd because, although it's for the most part non-fiction, it's not all that funny. It has its comic moments. A few … Continue reading Where to invade next
Hitchcock/Truffaut: From film to book to film
B+ Documentary Directed by Kent Jones We start with narrative, fiction film--not one film, but the body of work from one of cinema's great masters. Then a brilliant young filmmaker, influenced by the master, turns that body of work into a book--a study of filmmaking. It becomes a classic. Decades later, long after both filmmakers … Continue reading Hitchcock/Truffaut: From film to book to film
New Janis Joplin doc captures a little piece of her heart
A Music documentary Written and Directed by Amy Berg I'm giving Janis: Little Girl Blue an A, but I'm not sure if I'm praising filmmaker Amy Berg or the subject of her documentary, Janis Joplin. I think it's a little of both. If nothing else, Berg should be praised for concentrating on a great artistic and … Continue reading New Janis Joplin doc captures a little piece of her heart
Dont Look Back Blu-ray Review
You have to be a very hardcore Bob Dylan fan to really enjoy D.A. Pennebaker's groundbreaking documentary, Dont Look Back (yes, that's the correct spelling). Not only would you have to know and love his songs, but you would have to know something about Dylan as a person and a phenomenon, and about what was … Continue reading Dont Look Back Blu-ray Review
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