Popular Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 146

Pick It Up!: Ska in the '90s

2019

Pick It Up!: Ska in the '90s

2019
8
Pick It Up! is an independent documentary film about the rise in popularity of ska music in the 1990s and the subsequent return to the underground. The film features members of Reel Big Fish, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, No Doubt, Sublime, Save Ferris, Goldfinger, The Specials, Less Than Jake, Hepcat and many more.
The Decline of Western Civilization

1981

The Decline of Western Civilization

1981
7.1
The Los Angeles punk music scene circa 1980 is the focus of this film. With Alice Bag Band, Black Flag, Catholic Discipline, Circle Jerks, Fear, Germs, and X.
Sometime, Somewhere

2024

Sometime, Somewhere

2024
Sometime, Somewhere sheds light on the challenges faced by Latino communities in Charlottesville, Virginia against the backdrop of immigration driven by factors like climate change, poverty, and drug-related violence.
I Am (Not) a Monster

2019

I Am (Not) a Monster

2019
7
A journey to find the origins of knowledge.
Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?

2010

Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?

2010
Bees have existed in the world for 150 million years. They are essential helpers for the growth of plants and crops that serve as food for other animals. During their development, people realized the importance of bees and have been involved in beekeeping since ancient times. Recently, however, bees have begun to die excessively for no apparent reason. The film addresses the dramatically deteriorating health of bee colonies and the unforeseeable consequences that bee mortality can have for our very existence. It seeks answers to the questions of what bees actually want to tell us and what significance bees have in the broader context of sustainability of life on Earth. To prevent such a catastrophe, our approach to beekeeping must be fundamentally changed. In this regard, the film offers many stimuli and inspiring examples from around the world.
Los que buscamos

2019

Los que buscamos

2019
7
Enrique was separated from his mother at birth, Ascension was forced to give up her daughter after giving birth. Both are victims of the "stolen babies" plot, a slippery ground for Spanish justice. While they continue with the legal battle, they continue with their searches, living with guilt, rejection and the construction of their own identity.
Eurocrime! The Italian Cop and Gangster Films That Ruled the '70s

2012

Eurocrime! The Italian Cop and Gangster Films That Ruled the '70s

2012
7.7
A documentary concerning the violent Italian 'poliziotteschi' cinematic movement of the 1970s which, at first glance, seem to be rip-offs of American crime films like DIRTY HARRY or THE GODFATHER, but which really address Italian issues like the Sicilian Mafia and red terrorism. Perhaps even more interesting than the films themselves were the rushed methods of production (stars performing their own stunts, stealing shots, no live sound) and the bleed-over between real-life crime and movie crime.
The First Movie

2009

The First Movie

2009
7.3
Filmmaker Mark Cousins, who was brought up in a Northern Irish war zone, travels to Goptapa, a Kurdish-Iraqi village of just seven hundred people on a tributary of the Tigris river, and tries to make a dream film about a place that is normally only portrayed in current affairs programmes. He gives the kids cameras, and they make their own little movies about war, love, a fish that goes to a magical place, and a chicken who debates justice.
Butch Jamie

2008

Butch Jamie

2008
3.4
The film follows the story of Jamie, a struggling butch lesbian actress who gets cast as a man in a film. The main plot is a romantic comedy between Jamie's male alter-ego, "Male Jamie," and Jill, a heterosexual woman on set. The film's subplots include Jamie's bisexual roommate Lola and her cat actor Howard, Lola's abrasive butch German girlfriend Andi, and Jamie's gay Asian friend David.
Released

2013

Released

2013
In “Released,” drawn from an Off Broadway play, four New Yorkers recount their criminal pasts and their struggles to stay out of jail.
Maxine Sullivan: Love to Be in Love

1990

Maxine Sullivan: Love to Be in Love

1990
A lyrical film portrait of the once famous, and now, largely forgotten jazz vocalist Maxine Sullivan.
United in Anger: A History of ACT UP

2012

United in Anger: A History of ACT UP

2012
6.9
United in Anger: A History of ACT UP is an inspiring documentary about the birth and life of the AIDS activist movement from the perspective of the people in the trenches fighting the epidemic. Utilizing oral histories of members of ACT UP, as well as rare archival footage, the film depicts the efforts of ACT UP as it battles corporate greed, social indifference, and government negligence.
Facing the Music

2001

Facing the Music

2001
6.8
Anne Boyd, one of Australia's leading contemporary composers, teaches music at the publicly funded University of Sydney. This documentary chronicles a year in the life of an academic department that's under the financial gun.
The Good Wife of Tokyo

1993

The Good Wife of Tokyo

1993
6
Kazuko Hohki goes back to Tokyo with her band, the ‘Frank Chickens’, after living in England for 15 years. This wry and delightful film records her re-experiencing of Japan after a long absence, examining traditional attitudes to women and those of Kazuko’s friends who are trying to live differently.
War Photographer

2001

War Photographer

2001
7.6
Documentary about war photographer James Nachtwey, considered by many the greatest war photographer ever.
Mr Neal Is Entitled to Be an Agitator

1991

Mr Neal Is Entitled to Be an Agitator

1991
In the last four years of his life, Lionel Murphy was at the centre of an historic battle to retain his position on the High Court in Australia. While the film concentrates on this period and the events leading up to it, in a wider sense, it uses the dramatic story of Murphy as a vehicle to consider some more fundamental issues about law. The film tackles the problem of police and security surveillance of the individual in Australian society and in particular, of prominent political and legal figures.
The Youth Governor

2022

The Youth Governor

2022
4,000 teenagers of a YMCA run a mock government complete with elections, legislators, lobbyists, and political party bosses.
Dim Sum (A Little Bit of Heart)

2002

Dim Sum (A Little Bit of Heart)

2002
Documentarist Jane Wong films her mother and two Chinese friends as they discuss their lives and experiences as émigrés living in Liverpool.
Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story

2018

Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story

2018
6.9
The life and career of the hailed Hollywood movie star and underappreciated genius inventor, Hedy Lamarr.
Performing the Border

1999

Performing the Border

1999
A video essay set in the Mexican-U.S. border town of Ciudad Juarez, where U.S. multinational corporations assemble electronic and digital equipment just across from El Paso, Texas. This imaginative, experimental work investigates the growing feminization of the global economy and its impact on Mexican women living and working in the area. Looking at the border as both a discursive and material space, the video explores the sexualization of the border region through labor division, prostitution, the expression of female desires in the entertainment industry, and sexual violence in the public sphere.