Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 199

Tango

1985

Tango

1985
A brief history of the emergence and artistic innovations of tango in 19th-century Argentina and Europe. The film offers a mosaic of tango melodies, art works, dance performances, historical footage, photographs of Buenos Aires at the turn of the 20th century, and texts by Celedonio Flores and Enrique Santos Discépolo.
NEEDTOBREATHE: Into the Mystery

2021

NEEDTOBREATHE: Into the Mystery

2021
Documentary chronicles the making of South Carolina band Needtobreathe's 2021 album, 'Into The Mystery'.
Ngat is Dead: Studying Mortuary Traditions

2007

Ngat is Dead: Studying Mortuary Traditions

2007
What do anthropologists mean when they claim to study the cultural traditions of others by participating in them? This film follows the Dutch anthropologist Ton Otto, who has been adopted by a family on Baluan Island in Papua New Guinea. Due to the death of his adoptive father, he has to take part in mortuary ceremonies, whose form and content are passionately contested by different groups of relatives. Through prolonged negotiations, Ton learns how Baluan people perform and transform their traditions and not least what role he plays himself. The film is part of long-term field research, in which filmmaking has become integrated in the ongoing dialogue and exchange between the islanders and the anthropologist.
Birds & People - Ganz verrückt auf Vögel

2015

Birds & People - Ganz verrückt auf Vögel

2015
When the Snake Bites the Sun

1985

When the Snake Bites the Sun

1985
A compelling account of the return by a group of dispossessed Aboriginal people to their ancient tribal grounds in the Northern outreaches of this continent.
REALFilm

2008

REALFilm

2008
"This multimedia collage, which includes performances by pantomime artist and dancer Fine Kwiatkowski, painter and filmmaker Lutz Dammbeck and musician Robert Linke, is a reflection on the medium of film and its elements: sound, light and movement. Dammbeck’s goal is to cleanse these elements of ideology and commerce and compose a new film out of them. The process is played out in the space in real time." - DEFA Film Library
Madame Pipi

2021

Madame Pipi

2021
Madame Pipi follows the personal journeys of female Haitian bathroom attendants in Miami’s hottest nightclubs and their support to Haiti through their tips.
Aguilucho: Dance of the Harpy Eagle

2021

Aguilucho: Dance of the Harpy Eagle

2021
The indigenous people of the Darién Gap rainforest work with conservationists to use their heritage and traditions to protect the endangered Harpy Eagle and, in turn, protect their community.
Let Me Be Me

2022

Let Me Be Me

2022
This coming-of-age story focuses on Kyle Westphal, an isolated autistic boy who’s fascinated by fabric and emerges from an experimental autism treatment program to become a fashion designer. Westphal’s family looks back on twenty years of his development with candor and humor. The film combines observational footage, archival material, and animation to chronicle how a passion for fashion transformed Kyle and his family.
Equal Playing Field

2022

Equal Playing Field

2022
30 female soccer players from 24 different countries summit Mount Kilimanjaro and descend to the Dead Sea, to play the highest and lowest soccer games ever played.
Malangan Labadama: A Tribute to Buk-Buk

1980

Malangan Labadama: A Tribute to Buk-Buk

1980
For the people of Mandak region, New Ireland,the most dramatic and complex ceremonial events are those surrounding death. The creation and presentation of the Malangan Labadama with its carved figures, masked dancers and feasting is the final tribute by three brothers to a deceased clansman and former leader.
The Path: Evolution

2016

The Path: Evolution

2016
The Path: Evolution is the third film of The Path Series trilogy and explores the theory that human beings are living in a virtual reality system similar to the rules of an assimilated video game. The filmmakers follow former NASA nuclear physicist, Thomas Campbell, as he shares his knowledge and the results of his research of consciousness, physics, metaphysics and morality to explain mind and matter, normal and paranormal, life, death, and purpose, with all of this logically flowing from the concept of reality as information. The Path: Evolution will undoubtedly challenge the viewer's current belief systems and leave a lasting impression on human beings to re-evaluate how they are behaving, treating others, and existing in the world.
Life, Unexpected

2021

Life, Unexpected

2021
Shot over 10 years in intimate, raw home footage by an Oscar-winning filmmaking couple, LIFE UNEXPECTED tells the story of the unforgiving roller coaster of bringing life into this world.
Honor Thy Mother

2021

Honor Thy Mother

2021
The untold story of 36 Aboriginal women from Canada and Native women from tribes in Washington and Alaska who migrated in the 1940s to Bainbridge Island, the traditional territory of the Suquamish people.
The Architecture Of Mud

1999

The Architecture Of Mud

1999
The Hadhramaut region in the south east of Yemen is well known for its mud brick architecture. Throughout the centuries, the population has developed very sophisticated building techniques and created a unique architectural environment. Spectacular structures such as ten-story mud brick tower houses rise up from the valley's floor. In interviews throughout the documentary, the masons describe their working techniques and the challenges they face with the introduction of new, imported building materials. The Architecture of Mud documents the vernacular architecture, the building craft and the society they belong to.
Qudad, Re-Inventing a Tradition

2004

Qudad, Re-Inventing a Tradition

2004
This documentary follows a group of Yemeni masons as they restore the 16th century Amiriya Madrasa using ancient—and uniquely Yemeni—techniques. Through this project they not only renovate and protect a revered landmark, but also ensure that their rare craft will not be lost.
Taliban Takeover

2021

Taliban Takeover

2021
The Taliban take over Afghanistan, and the threat of ISIS and Al Qaeda intensifies. On the ground, reporter Najibullah Quraishi (Leaving Afghanistan, Taliban Country) investigates uncertainty and fear among the Afghan people and revisits the lead-up to the U.S. defeat and the Taliban’s return.
Disenchanted Forest

2002

Disenchanted Forest

2002
We call them o-rang-u-tans, which literally means "forest persons" in the Malay and Indonesian languages. They are the only great apes native to Asia. Of all the apes, they are the closest to man in genetic makeup. And they face extinction. Two years in the making, the film is an intimate portrayal of the world of orangutans, the threats to their survival and the people committed to help them thrive. The film focuses on a recent discovery that orangutans do not rely on animal instinct for survival, but instead have a culture that they have preserved from generation to generation.
The Body Won't Close

2021

The Body Won't Close

2021
Our bodies are semi-permeable. All over the world, stories are being told about heroes who magically “close” their bodies, so as to become invincible. This film follows one such story, as it is told in Santo Amaro, Bahia (Brazil). Besouro Mangangà was a capoeira player, a black hero, who had closed his body. No bullets, no knives or daggers could pierce his skin. Bahian men explain how “closing the body” makes sense in their precarious and violent world, and why, in the end, this closure can never be accomplished. Soon the filmmaker realizes that his film is not only about the people in Bahia. He too is struggling with the porosity of his body, endlessly trying to strike a balance between shutting the world out and letting the world in. Competing for the RAI Film Prize and Basil Wright Film Prize.
The Cannabis Question

2021

The Cannabis Question

2021
NOVA investigates the story of cannabis from the criminalization that has disproportionately harmed communities of color to the latest medical understanding of the plant. What risks does cannabis pose to the developing brain? How much do we know about its potential medical benefits? As cannabis becomes socially accepted, scientists are exploring its long-term health consequences.