Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 163

Slaughter Nick for President

2013

Slaughter Nick for President

2013
9
A little-known actor discovers that he is hugely popular in Serbia.
American Commune

2013

American Commune

2013
6.5
In 1970, hundreds of hippies followed Stephen Gaskin on a journey from San Francisco to Tennessee, where they founded a legendary commune known as the Farm. Within this self-sustaining society based on non-violence, vegetarianism and respect for the earth, members willingly took a vow of poverty, lived in converted buses, grew their own food and home-delivered babies. Born and raised in this alternative community, filmmakers and sisters Rena and Nadine return for the first time since leaving in 1985. Finally ready to face the past after years of hiding their upbringing, they chart the rise and fall of America’s largest utopian socialist experiment and their own family tree. The nascent idealism of a community destroyed, in part, by its own success is reflected in the personal story of a family unit split apart by differences. American Commune finds inspiration in failure, humour in deprivation and, most surprisingly, that communal values are alive and well in the next generation.
Erroll Garner: No One Can Hear You Read

2013

Erroll Garner: No One Can Hear You Read

2013
7
In a triumphant career that lasted forty years Erroll Garner pushed the playability of the piano to its limits, developed an international reputation, and made an indelible mark on the jazz world. And yet, his story has never been told. Until now. The film explores Erroll's childhood in Pittsburgh; his meteoric rise in popularity while playing on 52nd street, New York's famed jazz epicenter; the origins of his most famous album (Concert By The Sea) and his most famous composition (Misty); his singular, virtuosic piano style; and his dynamic personality, both on and off the stage.
The First Year

2001

The First Year

2001
7
This fascinating documentary chronicles the emotional turmoil of five Los Angeles schoolteachers charged with educating inner-city youth, making it clear that the teachers helping these disadvantaged children are real heroes.
The Grace Lee Project

2005

The Grace Lee Project

2005
1
Filmmaker Grace Lee leaves her Missouri home to travel the country and talk with an array of women who share her name.
One Track Heart: The Story of Krishna Das

2013

One Track Heart: The Story of Krishna Das

2013
7.5
Krishna Das is on a journey to India to discover legendary spiritual teacher Neem Karoli Baba, through drug addiction and depression, to his eventual emergence as a world-famous Kirtan singer.
First Person Plural

2000

First Person Plural

2000
6.5
In 1966, Deann Borshay Liem was adopted by an American family and sent from Korea to her new home in California. There, the memory of her birth family was nearly obliterated, until recurring dreams led her to investigate her own past, and she discovered that her Korean mother was very much alive. Bravely uniting her biological and adoptive families, Borshay Liem embarks on a heartfelt journey in this acclaimed film that first premiered on POV in 2000. First Person Plural is a poignant essay on family, loss and the reconciling of two identities.
American Winter

2013

American Winter

2013
7
Documentary feature film that follows the personal stories of families struggling in the aftermath of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Filmed over the course of one winter in one American city, the film presents an intimate snapshot of the state of the nation's economy as it is playing out in millions of American families, and highlights the human consequences of the decline of the middle class and the fracturing of the American Dream
Militainment, Inc.: Militarism & Pop Culture

2007

Militainment, Inc.: Militarism & Pop Culture

2007
7.8
Militainment, Inc. offers a fascinating, disturbing, and timely glimpse into the militarization of American popular culture, examining how U.S. news coverage has come to resemble Hollywood film, video games, and "reality television" in its glamorization of war. Mobilizing an astonishing range of media examples - from news anchors' idolatry of military machinery to the impact of government propaganda on war reporting - the film asks: How has war taken its place in the culture as an entertainment spectacle? And how does presenting war as entertainment affect the ability of citizens to evaluate the necessity and real human costs of military action?
Klunkerz

2006

Klunkerz

2006
8
Long before the mountain bike entered our global consciousness, the cycling enthusiasts of Northern California's Marin County rode modified pre-WWII bicycles down the slopes of Mount Tamalpais. They developed their bikes through rigorous field-testing, often risking life and limb to do so. Some of these cyclists were Category-1 road racers looking for a new way to train during the off-season. Others were simply fun-loving hippies looking for a new way to commune with nature. Their early bikes were scavenged from dumpsters and junkyards. It was from these humble beginnings that a multi-billion dollar industry, a form of recreation for the masses, and an Olympic event, were born. These hefty steeds were affectionately known as Klunkerz.
The Rock

2011

The Rock

2011
3
La Roca is an epic Romeo and Juliet love story between the massive Rock of Gibraltar and its neighboring Spanish city of La Linea. Despite being declared enemies by their countries, they used to be inseparable. But in 1969, Francisco Franco, the fascist dictator of Spain, closed the entrance to the British territory of Gibraltar, isolating 30,000 people without food, water, or telephone lines. According to him, The Rock would fall like ripe fruit. Indoctrination on both sides eventually forced the separation of thousands of mixed families, who for over 13 years would meet at the border every Sunday to look through binoculars at their estranged lovers, brothers, parents and babies, screaming messages from a distance. La Roca tells the emotional tale of this important chapter of world history.
Ghost Bird

2009

Ghost Bird

2009
7
This documentary chronicles the obsession that overtook bird watchers after a kayaker reported seeing a thought-to-be-extinct ivory-billed woodpecker.
Strip

1966

Strip

1966
1
The work of strippers in the Phoenix Club of Old Compton Street, Soho. Includes interviews with the girls, the stage show and backstage scenes.
Breath Made Visible: Anna Halprin

2009

Breath Made Visible: Anna Halprin

2009
7.2
BREATH MADE VISIBLE is the first feature length film about the life and career of Anna Halprin, the American dance pioneer who has helped redefine our notion of modern art with her belief in dance's power to teach, heal, and transform at all ages of life. This cinematic portrait blends recent interviews with counterparts such as the late Merce Cunningham, archival footage, including her establishment of the first multiracial dance company in the U.S., and excerpts of current performances such as "Parades and Changes" at the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris, to weave a stunning, inspiring account of one of the most important cultural icons in modern dance.
Money and Medicine

2012

Money and Medicine

2012
5.5
Examines the reasons behind the rising costs of health care in the United States. Looks at the dangers of over-diagnosis and over-treatment and investigates how waste pervades our medical system. Also looks at how some hospitals are working to create less expensive and high quality alternatives to the present system.
Last Will. & Testament

2012

Last Will. & Testament

2012
7
It's the greatest mystery of all time; who wrote the works of Shakespeare? DEREK JACOBI leads an impressive cast on a quest to uncover the truth behind the world's most elusive author and discovers a forgotten nobleman whose story could rewrite history.
The List

2012

The List

2012
4.8
A modern day Oskar Schindler story that focuses on Kirk Johnson, a young American fighting to save thousands of Iraqis whose lives are in danger because they worked for the U.S. to help rebuild Iraq. After leading reconstruction teams in Baghdad and Fallujah, Kirk returns home only to discover that many of his former Iraqi colleagues are being killed, kidnapped or forced into exile by radical militias. Frustrated by a stagnating government bureaucracy in the U.S. that has failed to protect its 'Iraqi allies,' Kirk begins compiling a list of their names and helps them find refuge and a new life in America.
People of a Feather

2012

People of a Feather

2012
7.5
The Inuit of Belcher Islands struggle to adapt as their environment changes.
The Camden 28

2007

The Camden 28

2007
7
The Camden 28 explores how and why 28 individuals intentionally placed themselves at risk of arrest and imprisonment while protesting the war in Vietnam. Featuring a treasure of archival materials and current interviews with former FBI agents involved in the case and scholars such as Howard Zinn, The Camden 28 is a story about a potent form of dissent that has special relevance to our current political climate.
Choosing Children

1984

Choosing Children

1984
1
CHOOSING CHILDREN is a pioneering film about parenting in non-traditional families and helped to open dialogue about the meaning and reality of the "modern family." This film takes an intimate look at the issues faced by lesbians and gay men who decide to become parents after coming out.