Top Rated Documentary Movies on Hoopla - Page 38

Blurred Lines: Inside the Art World

2017

Blurred Lines: Inside the Art World

2017
5.7
As one art scene insider proclaims, the contemporary art world can be summed up as “rich people trying to prove how rich they are,” but is that all there is to this billion dollar industry? Well-researched and expertly constructed, Barry Avrich’s eye-opening documentary peels back the layers of the art world economy- from production to circulation, and delineates every integral player in the game of art-making, including curators, gallerists, collectors, donors, auction houses, and … artists. In the process, he unpacks the complex and surprising ecosystem that supports the art world superstars and million-dollar deals that make front-page news. Featuring extraordinary access to industry players and candid statements from prominent artists like Damien Hirst, Julian Schnabel, Taryn Simon, and Marina Abramovic, Blurred Lines collides the two narratives of the art world as both above and beholden to market forces.
The Departure

2017

The Departure

2017
6.8
An intimate character study of the complex figure Ittetsu Nemoto, an aimless and rebellious former punk rocker-turned-Buddhist priest. He is renowned in Japan for saving the lives of countless suicidal men and women through his wise and compassionate counsel. But Nemoto is now approaching middle-age with a wife and young boy of his own, when he learns his life is at risk from heart disease, compounded by the heavy emotional workload of supporting those who no longer want to live. When saving others takes such a toll, can he find the resiliency to save himself?
Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun?

2017

Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun?

2017
6.2
“In 1946, my great-grandfather murdered a black man named Bill Spann and got away with it.” So begins Travis Wilkerson’s critically acclaimed documentary, DID YOU WONDER WHO FIRED THE GUN?, which takes us on a journey through the American South to uncover the truth behind a horrific incident and the societal mores that allowed it to happen. Acting as narrator and guide, Wilkerson spins a strange, frightening tale, incorporating scenes from TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, the music of Janelle Monáe and Phil Ochs, and the story of Rosa Parks’ investigation into the Recy Taylor case, as well as his own family history, for a gripping investigation into our collective past and its echoes into the present day.
Finding Oscar

2016

Finding Oscar

2016
7.7
Thirty years after a forgotten massacre that occurred during the Guatemalan civil war, a forensic scientist and prosecutor search for Oscar, a young boy who survived the horror.
Now More than Ever: The History of Chicago

2016

Now More than Ever: The History of Chicago

2016
7.2
The history of legendary rock band Chicago is chronicled from their inception in 1967 all the way to the present.
Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World

2017

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World

2017
7.7
Documentary about the role of Native Americans in popular music history, a little-known story built around the incredible lives and careers of the some of the greatest music legends.
Angry Inuk

2016

Angry Inuk

2016
7.4
With "sealfies" and social media, a new tech-savvy generation of Inuit is wading into the world of activism, using humour and reason to confront aggressive animal rights vitriol and defend their traditional hunting practices. Director Alethea Arnaquq-Baril joins her fellow Inuit activists as they challenge outdated perceptions of Inuit and present themselves to the world as a modern people in dire need of a sustainable economy.
I Am Sun Mu

2015

I Am Sun Mu

2015
6.6
Operating under a pseudonym which means 'no boundaries' - North Korean defector Sun Mu creates political pop art based on his life, homeland, and hope for a future united Korea. His hidden identity is nearly compromised when a massive historical exhibit in Beijing is shuttered by Chinese and North Korean authorities.
The Bomb

2015

The Bomb

2015
6.4
Using masterfully restored footage from recently declassified images, The Bomb tells a powerful story of the most destructive invention in human history. From the earliest testing stages to its use as the ultimate chess piece in global politics, the program outlines how America developed the bomb, how it changed the world and how it continues to loom large in our lives. The show also includes interviews with prominent historians and government insiders, along with men and women who helped build the weapon piece by piece.
Tashi and the Monk

2015

Tashi and the Monk

2015
7.9
This moving documentary profiles a former Buddhist monk who runs a home for orphaned children in the Himalayas, and his relationship with its newest arrival, troubled five-year-old Tashi.
Death of a Gentleman

2015

Death of a Gentleman

2015
6.2
Two cricket journalists set off on a journey to the heart of the game they love, only to stumble upon one of the biggest sporting scandals ever. This is a film about passion, greed, power - and standing up for what you care about.
I Am Somebody

1970

I Am Somebody

1970
6.6
Madeline Anderson’s documentary brings viewers to the front lines of the civil rights movement during the 1969 Charleston hospital workers’ strike, when 400 poorly paid Black women went on strike to demand union recognition and a wage increase, only to find themselves in confrontation with the National Guard and the state government. Anderson personally participated in the strike, along with such notable figures as Coretta Scott King, Ralph Abernathy and Andrew Young, all affiliated with Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Anderson’s film shows the courage and resiliency of the strikers and the support they received from the local black community. It is an essential filmed record of this important moment in the history of civil and women’s rights. The film is also notable as arguably the first televised documentary on civil rights directed by a woman of color, solidifying its place in American film history.
Chronic-Con, Episode 420: A New Dope

2015

Chronic-Con, Episode 420: A New Dope

2015
4.7
In response to Morgan Spurlock's COMIC-CON: A FAN'S HOPE, comedian Doug Benson (SUPER HIGH ME) stars in this doc that looks at San Diego Comic-Con from his hazy perspective. Featuring fellow pot and film fanatics Kevin Smith, Brian Posehn, Joe Rogan and even Spurlock himself, it's a fun look at a rapidly growing cultural event.
Speed Sisters

2015

Speed Sisters

2015
6.3
The Speed Sisters are the first all-woman race car driving team in the Middle East. Grabbing headlines and turning heads at improvised tracks across the West Bank, these five women have sped their way into the heart of the gritty, male-dominated Palestinian street car-racing scene. Weaving together their lives on and off the track, SPEED SISTERS takes you on a surprising journey into the drive to go further and faster than anyone thought you could.
Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

2013

Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

2013
6.5
"Plastic Paradise" is an independent documentary film that chronicles Angela Sun's personal journey of discovery to one of the most remote places on Earth, Midway Atoll, to uncover the truth behind the mystery of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Along the way she encounters scientists, celebrities, legislators and activists who shed light on what our society's vast consumption of disposable plastic is doing to our oceans -- and what it may be doing to our health.
Freeheld

2007

Freeheld

2007
5.8
Lieutenant Laurel Hester is dying. All she wants to do is leave her pension benefits to her life partner - Stacie, so Stacie can afford to keep their house. Laurel is told no; they are not husband and wife. After spending a lifetime fighting for justice for other people, Laurel - a veteran New Jersey detective - launches a final battle for justice. Knuckle-biting, dramatic Freeheld chronicles a dying policewoman's bitter fight to provide for the love of her life.
Michael Jackson: Life, Death and Legacy

2012

Michael Jackson: Life, Death and Legacy

2012
6.7
Following the recent imprisonment of Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray for involuntary manslaughter, we are taken on a journey through the extraordinary life of Michael Jackson from his debut in the Jackson 5 to his untimely death in 2009.
Fifi Howls from Happiness

2013

Fifi Howls from Happiness

2013
6.8
Bahman Mohassess was a celebrated artist at the time of the Shah. Trained in Italy, he created sculptures and paintings in his homeland. But audiences often took offence at the pronounced phalli on his mostly naked bronze figures and his work was regularly censored. All traces of him were lost after the revolution. It was said he destroyed his remaining paintings and disappeared.
Speed: In Search of Lost Time

2012

Speed: In Search of Lost Time

2012
7.8
It’s a paradox. Never before in history we have worked more efficiently. Never before we have saved time with more sophisticated technologies. Anyway, nearly all of us are feeling an increasing pressure of time. It seems that the same technology that has been invented to make our life better and easier, is now enslaving us. Why?
Jobriath A.D.

2012

Jobriath A.D.

2012
7.1
Called "The American Bowie," "The True Fairy of Rock & Roll" and "Hype of the Year," Jobriath's reign as the first openly gay rock star was brief and over by 1975. Now, 35 years later, "Jobriath A.D." spotlights his life, music, groundbreaking influence and the new generations of fans slowly re-discovering him.