Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 104

Uksuum Cauyai: The Drums of Winter

1989

Uksuum Cauyai: The Drums of Winter

1989
5.5
This film gives an intimate look at a way of life of which most of us have seen only glimpses. Dance was once at the heart of Yupik Eskimo spiritual and social life. It was the bridge between the ancient and the new, the living and the dead and a person's own power and the greater powers of the unseen world.
How to Make a Book with Steidl

2010

How to Make a Book with Steidl

2010
5.5
For 40 years, Gerhard Steidl has combined the roles of printer and publisher, resolved to personally check each sheet leaving his printing shop in Göttingen. This perfectionism, combined with an unconditional love for books, for the traditional printing craft, and a commitment to the quality standards of manufacturing (in the original sense of the word, made by hand), has gained worldwide attention. The most internationally renowned photographic artists vie for the opportunity to collaborate with Gerhard Steidl, to conceive and produce the perfect publication with him.
Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria

2005

Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria

2005
4.2
The first major uprising against police brutality, harassment, and societal oppression was not at Stonewall in 1969, but at Compton's Cafeteria in San Francisco three years earlier. Those who stood up were trans women and gay men. Now, nearly 40 years on, Susan Stryker and Victor Silverman tell the story of this oft-overlooked event in the history of American civil rights.
Symphony of the Soil

2013

Symphony of the Soil

2013
8.8
Drawing from ancient knowledge and cutting edge science, Symphony of the Soil is an artistic exploration of the miraculous substance soil. By understanding the elaborate relationships and mutuality between soil, water, the atmosphere, plants and animals, we come to appreciate the complex and dynamic nature of this precious resource. The film also examines our human relationship with soil, the use and misuse of soil in agriculture, deforestation and development, and the latest scientific research on soil’s key role in ameliorating the most challenging environmental issues of our time. Filmed on four continents, featuring esteemed scientists and working farmers and ranchers, Symphony of the Soil is an intriguing presentation that highlights possibilities of healthy soil creating healthy plants creating healthy humans living on a healthy planet.
Reportero

2012

Reportero

2012
6.5
On the road with experienced journalist Sergio Haro from the Mexican magazine Zeta. Risking his own life, the reporter of the Mexican weekly magazine tirelessly fights corruption and the drug cartels.
Beauty and the Breast

2012

Beauty and the Breast

2012
4.5
A first time documentary filmmaker offers a compelling insight into a devastating reality of breast cancer, as seen through the eyes of several female patients helping demystify the disease while painting poignant and often humorous intimate portraits of survival.
Bending Steel

2013

Bending Steel

2013
6
The Cyclone, The Freakshow, The Mermaid Parade: all Coney Island icons. But Chris “Wonder” Schoeck has always preferred the Coney Island Strongman. Bending Steel follows the sweet, unassuming Schoeck as he parlays his extraordinary strength into the pursuit of his lifelong dream. Training with an elite group of men whose hands bend, drag, twist and shred metal, he tackles an enormous physical and mental challenge, taking a surprisingly emotional journey as a result.
Black Indians: An American Story

2004

Black Indians: An American Story

2004
6.3
James Earl Jones narrates this examination of the historical relationship between American Indians and African-Americans, who often merged their cultures to work and live together while mainstream white society shunned them. Through illuminating anecdotes and interviews, descendants of fused black and Indian families discuss the complications of their mixed heritage and how their culture was largely erased on official documents.
Metamorphoses

2013

Metamorphoses

2013
6.5
Documentary about one of the most severely contaminated regions in the world, located in the southern Ural Mountains
Sound of Heimat - Deutschland singt

2012

Sound of Heimat - Deutschland singt

2012
8.5
Whisky: The Islay Edition

2010

Whisky: The Islay Edition

2010
5.2
“WHISKY: the Islay edition” yearns for a chesterfield and a glass of whisky as it transports the viewer to a sanctum of the Scottish gold. It doesn’t just inform us about whisky, it evokes the finesses of the liquor, the art of tasting, the craft of distillation, the history of the distilleries and the richness of the isle of Islay itself. The documentary takes us to a small Scottish island called Islay. It is the home of 8 world famous whisky distilleries. The complete process of making whisky is divided in 8 parts. The 8 distilleries represent each a part of this process, in order of appearance: Ardbeg, Kilchoman, Bowmore, Bunnahabhain, Caol Ila, Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Bruichladdich.
Gut Renovation

2013

Gut Renovation

2013
4.5
Su Friedrich's personal essay charting the destruction of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. After living in the neighborhood for 20 years, the filmmaker was one of many who were forced out after the city passed a rezoning plan allowing developers to build luxury condos where there were once thriving industries, working-class families, and artists. Filmed over many years, it is a scathing portrait of one neighborhood's demolition and transformation.
Earth from Space

2012

Earth from Space

2012
7.9
Earth from Space takes you on an epic quest to discover the invisible forces and processes that sustain life on our planet and, for the first time, see them in action in their natural environment in vivid detail. These truly unique images will explore the deepest mysteries of its existence, raising profound questions and challenging the old assumptions of how Earth's system works.
Waiting for Fidel

1975

Waiting for Fidel

1975
5.8
This feature-length documentary from 1974 takes viewers inside Fidel Castro's Cuba. A movie-making threesome hope that Fidel himself will star in their film. The unusual crew consists of former Newfoundland premier Joseph Smallwood, radio and TV owner Geoff Stirling and NFB film director Michael Rubbo. What happens while the crew awaits its star shows a good deal of the new Cuba, and also of the three Canadians who chose to film the island. (NFB)
Mammy Water

1953

Mammy Water

1953
5.8
"Mammy Water" is mother sea, source of food. Jean Rouch filmed this short documentary in the Gulf of Guinea, in Ghana, where is held a colorful festival, the Chama, in which the participants offer cassava, gin and tobacco to the spirits of water and sacrifice a white ox to thank them and express their gratitude and respect.
The Revolutionary

2011

The Revolutionary

2011
5
Documentary about the life of Sidney Rittenberg, an American who spent over 30 years in China and was an active participant in the Chinese communist revolution.
Bible Quiz

2013

Bible Quiz

2013
6.8
Mikayla hopes to win the National Bible Quiz championship and the heart of her team captain.
Virgin Tales

2012

Virgin Tales

2012
5
Evangelical Christians are calling out for a second sexual revolution: chastity. As a counter-movement of the attitudes and practices of today's culture, one in six girls in the US has vowed to remain 'unsoiled' until marriage. But the seven children of the Wilson family, founders of the Purity Ball, take this concept of purity of body and mind one step further; even their first kiss will be at the altar. For two years, the filmmakers follow the Wilson offspring as they prepare for their fairytale vision of romance and marriage and seek out their own prince and princess spouses. In the process, a broader theme emerges: how the religious right is grooming a young generation of virgins to embody an Evangelically-grounded Utopia in America.
Strand, Under the Dark Cloth

1989

Strand, Under the Dark Cloth

1989
6.2
This documentary studies the life and artwork of photographer Paul Strand, using his own compelling photography as well as interviews with his friends, acquaintances and third wife. Documentarian John Walker explores the various influences Strand encountered throughout his life that helped him to develop as an artist. His personal life and relationships are examined and shed light on the inner working of this man who achieved great renown while hiding "under the dark cloth."
Changing Our Minds: The Story of Dr. Evelyn Hooker

1992

Changing Our Minds: The Story of Dr. Evelyn Hooker

1992
4.2
The life and work of the woman described as "The Rosa Parks of Gay Rights". During the repressive 1950's, Dr. Evelyn Hooker undertook ground breaking research that led to a radical discovery: homosexuals were not, by definition, "sick." Dr. Hooker's finding sent shock waves through the psychiatric community and culminated in a major victory for gay rights: in 1974 the weight of her studies, along with gay activism, forced the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its official manual of mental disorders. Startling archival footage of the medical procedure used to "cure" homosexuality, images from the underground gay world of the McCarthy era, and home movies of literary icon Christopher Isherwood bring to life history which we must never forget.