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integrityandvalues
Reviews
Mr. Angel (2013)
Feel good, persevering, so important, well done
If you are into health—physical, psychic and emotional—being yourself, loving yourself regardless of what the mainstream, misogynistic patriarchy may have to say about your differences from that norm, see this film. Be inspired by Buck Angel's perseverance and ability to remain grateful and positive about his life's calling; which also we can see becomes fluid throughout the documentary. Buck is a survivor and is driven in a way that is true to the best of his abilities.
Buck encourages us to keep learning. To expand from the rigidity of binaries that enslave us in so many ways, but specifically gender fluidity. He reveals through his experience that the world is more complex than we have been conditioned to believe or know for ourselves unless we try.
This film is so well done, from the pacing, the extensive, thorough and beautiful footage, and the control that the 'subject' Buck has over how he is represented is artistic and brilliant. Best piece of cinema I have seen in over a year.
La vie d'Adèle (2013)
She says it so much better than I ever could:
Look up search term "Eileen Myles really hated blue" she says it so much better than I ever could.
But I have to write nine more lines of text for this film, which it does not deserve even that much, much less the three and a half agonizing hours I endured watching girl pornography by and for straight men. I did not do any research but I thought, queer and French, has potential at least. It was not queer on any level. As I sat through the first 12 minutes I had the sinking feeling this film was made by a man, and a straight one. Oh gee, it was. The coloring book mini plots to fill in any old context to shoot another frustrated porn scene of high school girl scissoring (what a straight man might imagine girls having sex do). And apparently the actresses said the director was horrible to work with and he threatened to sue the young actresses. Is that 10 lines yet?
Hannah Arendt (2012)
Brilliant
This film helped me to forget that it was a film. Subtle, intelligent but mostly telling a story imperative to the 21st century. By making links throughout Arendt's personal life and development as not only one of 20th century's most brilliant thinkers and philosophers but a sentient passionate and moral woman, juxtaposed with her work—and the aftermath of—her New Yorker articles on the war crimes trial of Adolf Eichmann, Arendt, without making such a projection, articulates what this current era of humanity suffers from most: "The banality of evil". The film brings this point into sharp focus without as much saying this is what we need, but the timeliness of it is most certainly intentional.
This film also beautifully, and again subtly, captures the state-of-mind of an era: One of calcified righteousness among others who cherished clarity of mind, goodness and intelligence, and a style of humor and affection from which those things flowed freely.
See the film to understand exactly what all this means and why Arendt's topic of the "banality of evil" is so important for today's crises facing humanity.
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks (2013)
a documentary featuring two men that were NEVER interviewed
To begin with the title is ridiculous: So obviously and transparently biased against the Wikileaks endeavor--which is pivotal to the DEMOCRATIC PROCESS and has become a myth in today's United States with the Patriot Act nullifying all rights to privacy; bought "science" to keep business, the war machine, and big oil running as usual, and the mainstream focus ever away from the word CLIMATE.
Secondly, the two characters that are the main feature of the film, Julian Assange and Bradley Manning, are NEVER interviewed for this film, not to mention Assange has publicly denounced the film (as well as director Oliver Stone. Seems like director Alex Gibney was paid a pretty penny to do such a thing and it is a big waste of energy and funds, shame on you Director Alex Gibney.
The Lost City (2005)
excessive
Andy Gracia, Andy Gracia, Andy Gracia, and more Andy Gracia...and so on, and so on. Excessively over indulgent romanticism of the rich and privileged. 20 minutes of the courtship between Fico (short for Frederico which sounds way too much like fecal) and his deceased brother's widow could have been cut and more about the revolution would have made this film more sympathetic to the main characters. Perhaps. If there were more about the reality of the revolution it may not have cast a sympathetic light on the ruling class the movie was featuring. As it is, we see that the revolution simply bursted some privileged dreams and bubbles that were built on the backs of the people who demanded a more equitable society.
Feco's love interest (what was her name anyway?) originally married his brother because she was in love with him and his ideals, that is made clear enough. That he dies for the revolution and she chose (key word: chose) to stay in Cuba and represent makes complete sense. But Andy Garcia makes her out to be a beauty only, his backdrop taken from him by an inequitable revolution, to be taken advantage of by the new powers that be. Garcia does his best to have us sympathize with his character about all this. Although mere eye candy, the heart breaker had me thanking her for her strength.
Freedom Writers (2007)
Hilary Swank was not the actor for the film
Great story, poor casting. Hilary Swank has been one of my all time favorite actors. But as a teacher in San Francisco Unified, I saw her acting as lacking authenticity and insight into how her character would have had to adjust her attitude as well as the way she spoke to her students. Her acting was just not appropriate for the sensitivity and insight needed to get through to kids that are struggling as much as those kids were. She was a bit too assuming and sing-song, (which might work in other demographics) but in that context her character appeared patronizing. Kids can smell that from a mile away and there is no way that character would have had such successes. Her acting just lacked authenticity.
Unknown White Male (2005)
in complete agreement with "Strains credibility"
Please read the first user's review, "Strains credibility."
My first question started with this: How is it that Bruce knows about police...why not at least explain his process of understanding that the police would be the most likely place to seek help?
In addition to "Strains credibility's" observant review I would like to add that Rupert Murray interviews a philosopher in order to address some of the deeper questions about person-hood, but never is the issue of the development of a person's morality addressed--not to mention Bruce's. Yet Bruce himself says that he feels an obligation "morally" to visit and reacquaint himself with his "lads" back in England. Where did this sense of moral character come from? ...if Bruce has suffered such a memory loss that he cannot recall anything from the people who raised him to any of the defining moments of his life? Also what of that morality when he finds himself in one of the most divided cities of haves and have-nots in the western hemisphere? Would Bruce not take any notice of, even for a moment identify with homelessness as he was wandering the streets aimlessly trying to find himself and a home? Would he not eventually contrast the homelessness that he witnessed (with his new acutely aware sensibility) to his princely lifestyle? I suppose in today's morally bankrupt existence Murray figured no one would notice such an oversight; or rather it did not occur to Murray himself to ponder the issue of where morality comes from to begin with--not to mention Bruce's heightened sense of it.
Way, way, way too many holes in this oversimplified, flagrantly over-romanticized attempt at a documentary.
By the end of the film I felt that my sense of compassion (and Bruce's condition if it were real) were Murray's vehicles of exploitation in order to show off some his "cool scavenged footage" and editing skills which were completely irrelevant to the film. Murray insults the viewer's intelligence as a completely privileged subjective prankster who goes unquestioned by the subjects in the film.
Freedomland (2006)
Stay with it, and it will all make very important sense.
FREEDOMLAND Freedomland is such an important film. Sam Jackson, Julianne Moore
Don't see it as a thriller, it will bore. Don't see it for suspense...it will frustrate. While I was watching it I first thought, dang...so much melodrama. Get on with it. Filler! I was even fast forwarding it. Then, okay now some meat. Bad racial history rearing its ugly head, repeating itself again. Okay. Important content. That was the hook for me. So I started to pay closer attention to what seemed like filler earlier in the film, wondering how the Sam Jackson character could be tolerant of this woman as long as he was.
Well.
This movie is very HEVEY with racial politics. But racial politics is merely the backdrop for this film. It is about an issue that has never really gotten this kind of attention before. Sublime. Intelligent. Extremely well thought out. Most importantly Freedomland gets the attention of those who need to think about the issue the most--and on both sides of it.
See it and tell me what you think it's all about.
ATL (2006)
Its about time a film for Black youth that says do the right thing
Not only Black youth, but all youth who are numbed by the spell of the glam of gangstadom. This film is intelligent, beautifully filmed and takes the edge off of the mainstreamed comodification of the urban gangsta that youth are spoon fed through every venue it can be sold. It makes making the right decision cool; doing the right thing for yourself the way to go, to get out.
Filmed on location in the ATL, local superheros, Bog Boi and various members of the Dungeon Family make this movie authentic and an inspiration, not to mention that it was co-written by THE Antwane Fisher who was born in a women's prison where his mother was an inmate, and Tina Gordon Chism.
Thank you Anwane, Ms. Chism, and director Chris Robinson for your vision and setting an example.