Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 172

Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting

2021

Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting

2021
8
Examining the movement that is ending the use of Native American names, logos, and mascots in the world of sports and beyond.
Art and Pep

2022

Art and Pep

2022
9
Art Johnston and Pepe Peña are civil rights leaders whose life and love is a force behind LGBTQ+ equality in the heart of the country. Their iconic gay bar, Sidetrack, has helped fuel movements and create community for decades in Chicago's queer enclave. But, behind the business and their historic activism exists a love unlike any other.
Fittest on Earth: Next Gen

2022

Fittest on Earth: Next Gen

2022
7
From Rich Froning and Annie Thorisdottir to Mat Fraser and Tia-Clair Toomey - if each new generation of champions sees further than the one before, it's because they stand on the shoulders of giants. When Fraser declared he would retire from competition after the 2020 season, he opened the door to a new wave of challengers. In 2021, new and seasoned competitors marked the 15th year of the Games with 15 events designed to test the limits of human potential and their worthiness to be called the fittest. Amid the surprises, upsets, and staggering displays of incomparable athleticism, Toomey ticked on with consistency and calm like a clock in a thunderstorm, all while shattering records and securing her place as the most unbeatable athlete in CrossFit Games history. At the 2021 Games, we witnessed the return of some of the sport's greats and the rise of the new initiates - those who will carry the mantle of the Fittest on Earth for the next generation.
A Walbiri Fire Ceremony: Ngatjakula

1977

A Walbiri Fire Ceremony: Ngatjakula

1977
10
Originally filmed as an archival record of a Warlpiri (Walbiri) ceremony in 1967 by Roger Sandall, the film footage was re-worked 10 years later by anthropologist Nicolas Peterson and filmmaker, Kim McKenzie, to make this short version for public viewing. Involving large numbers of both men and women, Ngatjakula is one of the most spectacular ceremonies of central Australia, employing fire, and several days of singing and dance, to resolve conflicts and re-affirm social order among the Warlpiri (Walbiri) people. One of Sandall’s many films about ceremonial life, including several of Warlpiri rituals, the film was part of the program of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies to record traditional aspects of Aboriginal life and culture. McKenzie’s collaboration with Peterson (who had been present at the time of the original filming) to edit this public version, is a meticulous representation of the fire ceremony, much of which took place at night.
Senses of Cinema

2022

Senses of Cinema

2022
1
As notions of civil rights transformed across the world, so was the screen landscape reformed by the ascension of grassroots film movements seeking to challenge the mainstream. Some aspired to push form to its limit; others worked to destabilise what they saw as a homogenous industry, or to provoke questions around gender, sexuality, migration and race.
Genocidio

1982

Genocidio

1982
7
Living Without Water

2016

Living Without Water

2016
6
What's it like to live without running water? In Peru's sprawling capital, Lima, this is the everyday reality for 1.5 million children and adults, forced to pay up to a week's salary for just one day's water.
Vertical Freedom

2022

Vertical Freedom

2022
6
Vertical Freedom is an epic, feature-length documentary film highlighting the professional and personal lives of six communications infrastructure workers in the United States who possess diverse backgrounds and compelling stories, on and off the job.
MIAU

2022

MIAU

2022
10
Mariupol. The Chronicles of Hell

2022

Mariupol. The Chronicles of Hell

2022
2
“Mariupol. Chronicles of Hell” is a story about life in the city from the first days of the war until the beginning of April.
Asmara, Eritrea

2008

Asmara, Eritrea

2008
10
Asmara - capitol of the East African nation of Eritrea - is recognized as an architectural gem. In this film Asmarinos from different walks of life guide us through the streets of their city and bring us to places of their choice. In doing so, and by talking about 'their own' Asmara, each person locates personal memories in public spaces investing the urban environment with individual meanings. Through their narrations - a chorus of different experiences embodying the nation - the country's history from colonialism to independence comes to life.
Pelosi's Power

2022

Pelosi's Power

2022
1
An examination of the powerful and polarizing Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, from veteran FRONTLINE filmmaker and chronicler of U.S. politics Michael Kirk and his team. Pelosi’s Power traces Pelosi’s life and legacy, how she has gained and wielded power across three decades, and how she has faced grave challenges to her leadership and to American democracy from Trump and his allies.
A Life's Work

2020

A Life's Work

2020
7
What’s it like to dedicate your life to work that won’t be completed in your lifetime? Fifteen years ago, filmmaker David Licata focused on four projects and the people behind them in an effort to answer this universal question.
Deconstructing Karen

2022

Deconstructing Karen

2022
6
Galvanized by the number of white women who voted for Donald Trump, two women of colour envision what unity looks in the United States. But instead of marching through the streets, they take a different approach. Race2Dinner was born, an afternoon of wining, dining and honest conversations about white supremacy and unconscious biases that white women live by. Navigating everyday privileges and cultural differences, the bold intervention changes minds and opens eyes for some, while others turn away because it is too hard. Everything is on the table to eat and unpack, but there is only one rule: no crying at the dinner table.
Zero Position

2022

Zero Position

2022
8
From its shocking opening image of a bridge snapped in two, Zero Position crosses an eerie landscape fractured by dueling Russian separatist and Ukrainian forces. On this cinematic journey, there are no interviews or extensive explanations of the conflict between the opposing sides. Accompanied by an evocative soundscape, the film moves like a ghostly presence through a troubled region, pausing at heavily armed checkpoints and competing front lines. As the camera captures people scurrying past the aftermath of conflict, carrying plastic bags bulging with items gleaned from abandoned homes, we see the stark reality of a people caught in a borderland between East and West. Director Louie Palu's expressive, sparse and poetically delivered voiceover adds context to places the nightly news cameras don't take us, including an old coal mine and a family's home. Through its mood and atmosphere, Zero Position offers us an experiential look at a region on the brink of all-out war.
Buffalo Soldiers Fighting On Two Fronts

2022

Buffalo Soldiers Fighting On Two Fronts

2022
6
Interviews, reenactments, animations, and more tell the story of the Black army regiments, formed after the Civil War, who played vital roles (from railroad builders to park rangers) in the American settling of the West.
Strength

2021

Strength

2021
2
In the rugged mountains of Oaxaca, young basketball players Bernabé, Tobías, and Aniceto battle systemic barriers to redefine their futures. Pushed by the demanding leadership of Sergio Zúñiga, they tackle every challenge head-on. With rising star Gustavo and the strategic guidance of trainer Sebastián, these determined athletes prove that grit, teamwork, and the power of dreams can transform not only their lives, but their entire community.
Breaking the Sound Barrier

2020

Breaking the Sound Barrier

2020
8
On October 14, 1947, Captain Chuck Yeager accomplished what many thought was impossible: he broke the sound barrier and in doing so, changed aviation history forever. Behind this remarkable achievement was a dedicated team of rocket scientists and engineers, and one incredible plane, a Bell X-1 named "Glamorous Glennis." This is the story of the plane and the people who dared to travel faster than the speed of sound, pushing flight science forward and proving that no matter the barrier, humanity can find a way to break through.
A Taste of Whale

2022

A Taste of Whale

2022
9
In the Faroe Islands, hundreds of pilot whales are slaughtered each year in a hunt known as the “Grind.” This gruesome tradition has drawn outrage from activists, most notably the international conservation group Sea Shepherd, who routinely sail to the islands to try to block whaling boats. Yet the Faroese are equally determined to maintain their tradition, defending the practice as more sustainable and less cruel than getting meat from slaughterhouses. Director Vincent Kelner spends time with both Faroese hunters and Sea Shepherd crusaders, building to a nuanced look at a disturbing event with much larger implications for the way humans relate to other creatures.
Every Family's Nightmare

2009

Every Family's Nightmare

2009
10
This is the shocking inside story of a family’s fight to free their 15-year-old son after he is wrongly accused of rape. A horrifying tale of lies, deception and the high cost of justice, Every Family’s Nightmare raises questions about systemic, procedural and cultural flaws in Australia’s criminal justice system by investigating the case of Perth schoolboy Patrick Waring. Patrick was jailed for a year while his family battled to prove his innocence. From the time he was accused of raping a teenage girl on 30 March 2006, the Western Australian police were convinced Patrick Waring was guilty. His family knew they were wrong. Over the next year, the Waring family assembled an international team of experts to help defend their son, exposing deep flaws in the police investigation and the legal battle that followed. Alarmingly, experts say that the same situation could arise at any time, involving any family, in any Australian state.