Top Rated Documentary Movies on Hoopla - Page 68

The Price of Honor

2014

The Price of Honor

2014
7
The Price of Honor is a documentary about the murders of Sarah and Amina Said, two teenage sisters from Texas who were killed in a premeditated Honor Killing planned and executed by their father Yaser Said back in 2008.
Scorpions - Forever and a Day

2015

Scorpions - Forever and a Day

2015
6.8
A documentary on the acclaimed rock band Scorpions
Mind of a Rampage Killer

2013

Mind of a Rampage Killer

2013
4.3
Can science help us understand these crimes?
Evolution's Achilles' Heels

2014

Evolution's Achilles' Heels

2014
5.8
15 Ph.D. scientists expose devastating weaknesses in modern evolutionary theory. Subject areas covered include the fields of genetics, radiometric dating, natural selection, the geologic column, the fossil record, the origin of life, cosmology, and ethics. 3D animations and dramatic footage help to show how the theory's supposed strengths are, in fact, its fatal flaws-Evolution's Achilles' Heels. - Written by Carter, Robert (XXII)
Master of the Rings: The Unauthorized Story Behind J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings"

2001

Master of the Rings: The Unauthorized Story Behind J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings"

2001
8
This documentary examines the social and cultural underpinnings of the trilogy of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, in an attempt to understand the work's phenomenal success and influence. The program looks for answers in the author's sources of inspiration, from the folk legends of Norway to the field of linguistics of which Tolkien was a lifelong student. It finds that the deep chord the story strikes owes its resonance to the author's use of archetypal imagery and language. Many examples of these recurrent themes and images are given, with readings from the work and other literature. Interviews with the book's illustrators, the brothers Hildebrandt, speak to the power of the imagery in the classic story. Scholars, Tolkien's children, and the author himself provide insight into the mythic themes and the spell they have cast over the vast readership of The Lord of the Rings.
Carb-Loaded: A Culture Dying to Eat

2014

Carb-Loaded: A Culture Dying to Eat

2014
6.9
One in three Americans is pre-diabetic. A huge percentage of them do not know that they are sick. Adult onset diabetes is no longer an illness for the obese and elderly. Millions of Americans who regularly exercise and eat a diet recommended by the USDA are classified as "skinny-fat". The connection between the standard American diet and numerous metabolic disorders is now an unspoken fact in most medical circles
Forbidden Films

2014

Forbidden Films

2014
6.5
Between 1933 and 1945 roughly 1200 films were made in Germany, of which 300 were banned by the Allied forces. Today, around 40 films, called "Vorbehaltsfilme", are locked away from the public with an uncertain future. Should they be re-released, destroyed, or continue to be neglected? Verbotene Filme takes a closer look at some of these forbidden films.
Promised Lands

1974

Promised Lands

1974
5.3
Susan Sontag scrutinizes the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict and the growing divisions within Jewish thought over the question of Palestinian sovereignty. Shot in Israel during the final days of the Yom Kippur War. Promised Lands is less straight documentary than visual collage. There are images of combat zones and soldiers, but also everyday street life, desert landscapes, funerals, supermarkets, the Wailing Wall. The soundtrack is snatches of radio, bursts of church bells and gunfire, and an extended voiceover from two politically opposed Israeli thinkers.
Spanish Lake

2014

Spanish Lake

2014
5.7
A bold and unflinching documentary on 'white flight' in the area of Spanish Lake, Missouri, a post WW2 suburb. The town experiences rapid economic decline and population turnover due to racism and governmental policies which support the white exodus. The themes of the film parallel America's growing political divide, racial tension, and rise of anti-government sentiment.
Uncle Bob

2010

Uncle Bob

2010
4.3
Robert Oppel's documentary about the life and murder of his uncle and namesake, Robert Opel, the man who streaked the Academy Awards in 1974.
Out of Mind, Out of Sight

2014

Out of Mind, Out of Sight

2014
5.7
Four-time Emmy winner John Kastner was granted unprecedented access to the Brockville facility for 18 months, allowing 46 patients and 75 staff to share their experiences with stunning frankness. The result is two remarkable documentaries: the first, NCR: Not Criminally Responsible, premiered at Hot Docs in the spring of 2013 and follows the story of a violent patient released into the community. The second film, Out of Mind, Out of Sight, returns to the Brockville Mental Health Centre to profile four patients, two men and two women, as they struggle to gain control over their lives so they can return to a society that often fears and demonizes them.
Garnet’s Gold

2014

Garnet’s Gold

2014
5.2
Twenty years ago, Garnet Frost nearly lost his life hiking near Scotland’s Loch Arkaig. The near-death experience still haunts him to this day, and, in particular, a peculiar wooden stick he discovered serendipitously right before he was rescued. Believing the staff (as he calls it) is actually a marker for a fortune hidden nearly 300 years ago, Garnet embarks on a treasure hunt to search for the lost riches. But beneath the search for gold lies a poignant pursuit for life’s meaning and inspiration.
The Case of the Three Sided Dream

2014

The Case of the Three Sided Dream

2014
6.8
The documentary film on the life and legacy of Rahsaan Roland Kirk – a one of a kind musician, personality, activist and windmill slayer who despite being blind, becoming paralyzed, and facing America’s racial injustices - did not relent.
We Are the Giant

2014

We Are the Giant

2014
5.8
We Are the Giant tells the stories of ordinary individuals who are transformed by the moral and personal challenges they encounter when standing up for what they believe is right. Powerful and tragic, yet inspirational, their struggles for freedom echo across history and offer hope against seemingly impossible odds.
American Courtesans

2013

American Courtesans

2013
4.2
American Courtesans is a feature documentary that takes you into the lives of American Sex Workers. These women candidly discuss what brought them to the doors of the sex trade, what they found when they got there and why they stayed. Follow eleven Sex Workers through the streets, massage parlors, brothels and strip clubs to New York high rises and the bell captains in Vegas. This is a story, a different kind of American Story, that will leave you speechless.
Hollywoodism: Jews, Movies and the American Dream

1998

Hollywoodism: Jews, Movies and the American Dream

1998
7
This film discusses the effect on how major American films in Hollywood were influenced by the Eastern European Jewish culture that most of the major movie moguls who controlled the studios shared. Through clips of various films, the filmmakers illustrate the dominant themes like that of the outsider, the outspoken American patriotism, and rooting for the underdog in society.
The Castle Project

2013

The Castle Project

2013
4.5
As an architect begins renovations to convert an old castle to a hotel, he uncovers more than he was expecting. He and his team of contractors experience hauntings and find what could be a portal to the afterlife.
A.K.A. Doc Pomus

2012

A.K.A. Doc Pomus

2012
5.1
Doc Pomus’ dramatic life is one of American music’s great untold stories. Paralyzed with polio as a child, Brooklyn-born Jerome Felder reinvented himself as a blues singer, renaming himself Doc Pomus, then emerged as one of the most brilliant songwriters of the early rock and roll era, writing “Save the Last Dance for Me,” “This Magic Moment,” “A Teenager in Love,” “Viva Las Vegas,” and dozens of other hits. Spearheaded and co-produced by his daughter, Sharyn Felder, and packed with incomparable music and rare archival imagery, this documentary features interviews with collaborators and friends including Dr. John, Ben E. King, Joan Osborne, Shawn Colvin, Dion, Leiber and Stoller, and B.B. King, as well as passages from Doc’s private journals read by his close friend Lou Reed.
Sign Painters

2014

Sign Painters

2014
6.8
There was a time, as recently as the 1980s, when storefronts, murals, banners, barn signs, billboards and even street signs were all hand-lettered with brush and paint. Today, the proliferation of computer-designed, die-cut vinyl lettering and inkjet printers has ushered a creeping sameness into our landscape. Fortunately, there is a growing trend to seek out traditional sign painters and a renaissance in the trade. SIGN PAINTERS is a history of the craft and features the stories of more than two dozen sign painters working in cities throughout the United States.
Free the Mind

2013

Free the Mind

2013
6.4
Brain scientist Professor Richard Davidson sets up his mind to conduct an unusual experiment: He will teach American war veterans and children meditation and yoga. Can veterans through meditation and yoga ease their pain and nervous system, find happiness and be more peaceful and get back to a life more like the one they had before the war?