Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 204

Piano Dream

2013

Piano Dream

2013
Yin Hong and her husband were born in the 50's. The Cultural Revolution dramatically impacted their youth; there was no place for any artistic expression. Yet they loved music and they have a gifted son, Lu Nan, who today is 15 year's old. "Piano Dream" is a story about parents investing everything they have for their only child's success. It is a dream journey binding two generations. The film brings attention to a woman's choice and fate, probing the impact of her dream on her son's maturation and their relationship. It shows the son's bitterness to a point where one asks oneself if the mother's dream is not becoming her son's nightmare. Filmed over a period of nearly three years, this documentary keeps faithful to real life, but maintains a poetic feel.
Of Mothers and Daughters

2012

Of Mothers and Daughters

2012
There are more than 2,500 pensioners living in a large private retirement home located in a suburb of Canton (Guangzhou), China. As we discover the daily lives of these people, the film focuses on the lives of two elderly ladies: Ms. Kuang and Ms Xie. The documentary reveals how today's urban China can be reflected by the story of these two women, who find themselves away from their families, in a retirement home. Here, in the wake of serious health considerations, they have to build new relationships, define a new rhythm to their daily life and invent new ways to be with others.
Heavy Metal

2009

Heavy Metal

2009
For more then twenty years, tons and tons of metallic and electronic waste from all around the world has been transported to a Chinese town called Fengjang, in the south of Shanghai. Around 50,000 migrant workers have formed a real army to dismantle these metallic wastes. These "green soldiers" decompose, cut, split and recycle, with the most rudimentary means, almost 2 million tons of garbage every year. To remain and assume the minimum materials that is theirs, they work hard, bear an incredible precariousness and put in danger their own health due to the simply unacceptable working conditions. As the recognizable heaps of metal continue to pile up they provide a deeply moving image of a worldwide consumer society.
Hard Old Rock

2013

Hard Old Rock

2013
As a young man, Zheng was a wild boy: he’d rather spend his time gambling and dancing than studying. But his exuberant way of life came to an end when, during the Cultural Revolution, he was charged with counter-revolutionary behavior and sent to prison. Now, he lives in the boarding house of Shuanglin Town, and is a silent witness to the last chapter of his own, lonely Life. Unyielding to his neighbors, to his society, to its History, as well as to the omnipresent Chinese system, he realizes that he is even almost independent of himself. This intimate and respectful portrait of a striking 83-year-old Chinese citizen offers us an inside view into the way China treats its Seniors and gives us the opportunity to better understand China’s contemporary History.
Flavor And Affinity

2012

Flavor And Affinity

2012
The Jin Cheng restaurant in China's Chao region has a reputation for excellence due to its "Chao" specialties. To guarantee the authenticity of "Chao" flavors, the supplying of fish, shellfish and tofu, among others, must come from the original source…where the skills of this ethnic group are still applied in accordance with the ancestral rules and where the quality and freshness of the products is indisputable. Nothing can be properly done if the traditions are not respected. A fascinating documentary on Chinese culture, traditional skills and ethnic belonging.
Man in the Field: The Life and Art of Jim Denevan

2021

Man in the Field: The Life and Art of Jim Denevan

2021
In this graceful study of the balance between solitude and community, artist and chef Jim Denevan roams across the US, transforming landscapes into breathtaking, sustainable dining experiences framed by ephemeral installation art.
Generation War: Fact and Fiction

0000

Generation War: Fact and Fiction

0000
Martha Kearney is joined by a panel including the program makers, historians and cultural commentators, to examine the historical facts behind the German drama Generation War.
Dying for Drugs

2003

Dying for Drugs

2003
Every year many new drugs come to market which offer hope to the sick and dying. This documentary film investigates just how far drug companies are prepared to go to get their drugs approved, what they will do to make sure they get the prices they want, and what happens when profits are put before people.
Sleep Tight (Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite)

2009

Sleep Tight (Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite)

2009
A video diary of the things a Vancouver household had to do dealing with bed bugs.
American Gadfly

2021

American Gadfly

2021
A decade since his last campaign, 89-year-old former senator and 2008 presidential candidate Mike Gravel comes out of retirement when a group of teenagers convinces him to run for president one last time. Through the senator’s official Twitter account, the “Gravel teens” embark on an unlikely adventure to qualify him for the Democratic debates in order to advance an anti-war, anti-corruption, and direct democracy agenda in the 2020 presidential race. Working together, the young activists and the experienced politician confuse and amaze the generations between them.
My Transgender Life: Paul Wears Dresses

2017

My Transgender Life: Paul Wears Dresses

2017
Follows the struggles of Stefonknee Wolscht, a trans woman trying to rebuild her life. Losing her home and her family, Stefonknee gives a first hand account of the many challenges trans people face. In her hometown, Stefonknee was known as a loving husband and father, a really good mechanic and a staunch Catholic but only she knew the truth; that she had been assigned to the wrong gender.
My Transgender Life: Male or Female?

2016

My Transgender Life: Male or Female?

2016
The documentary covers what it's like to grow up in the wrong gender and eventually transition. The decision to transition from one gender to another is a life changing one not just for the transgender person themselves but also for their family and friends. Here are the Stories of Tien, Pina, James, Sandy-Leo, Kinnon, Evan and Gayle.
Beauty Mark

2008

Beauty Mark

2008
Diane Israel, a former world-class triathlete, becomes a psychotherapist after battling anorexia. She shares her story while interviewing champion athletes, body builders and models about self-image.
Ladyboys, Another Landscape

2017

Ladyboys, Another Landscape

2017
If you think all transgender stories are the same - sex, transformation, mutilation, mental illness,... - you can't be more wrong! This tells the story of four very different people in rural Thailand. Four humble ladyboys working in the rubber tree forests at night, in the rice fields during the day, looking for a way to survive, exist and have the others accept them with their difference.
Cecil Balmond: Visionary Engineer and Architect

2009

Cecil Balmond: Visionary Engineer and Architect

2009
"Cecil Balmond: Visionary Engineer and Architect" is a compelling documentation of a unique thinker and practitioner at the height of his architectural career. Through his conversation with architecture theorist and critic, Sanford Kwinter, Balmond reveals his vision and talent while the two tour his retrospective exhibition at the Graham Foundation in Chicago. Since the early 1980s Balmond has collaborated with many of today's important contemporary architects such as Toyo Ito, Rem Koolhaas and Daniel Libeskind. With his astounding aesthetic algorithms, Balmond has introduced innovative structural concepts that have resulted in some of the most challenging buildings in the canon of contemporary architecture.
The Body Fights Back

2020

The Body Fights Back

2020
A feature documentary about five people navigating the paradoxes of diet culture. While promises of happiness, desirability and perfection are irresistible, joy and contentment remain out of reach. Personal stories from vastly different backgrounds quickly merge into a shockingly similar experience of battling one’s body. Self-starvation and compulsive exercise bring temporary satisfaction, only to be replaced with binging and purging soon after. Surprisingly, none of it has much to do with food.
Emily @ the Edge of Chaos

2021

Emily @ the Edge of Chaos

2021
Emily @ the Edge of Chaos interweaves Emily Levine’s live performance with animation, appearances by scientists, and animated characters. The film uses physics, which explains how the universe works, to explain our metaphysics – the story of our values, our institutions, our interactions. Using her own experience and a custom blend of insight and humor, provocation and inspiration, personal story and social commentary, Emily takes her audience through its own paradigm shift: from the Fear of Change to the Edge of Chaos.
A New Spirit in Painting: 6 Painters of the 1980's

1984

A New Spirit in Painting: 6 Painters of the 1980's

1984
Explores the paths being forged by six modern artists, giving us rare insight into the minds behind this rousing new wave of painting.
Unmarked

2020

Unmarked

2020
African-American gravesites and burial grounds for enslaved persons have been lost or are disappearing throughout the South, through neglect and nature reclaiming the solemn tombstones and markers. Restoration and preservation of these forgotten sites by those with a personal connection or appreciation of their historical significance is on the rise, but much work remains to be done.
The Virus That Shook the World

2021

The Virus That Shook the World

2021
The epic story of how people around the world lived through the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, from lockdowns to funerals to protests. Filming across the globe and using extensive personal video and local footage, FRONTLINE documented how people and countries responded to COVID-19 across cultures, races, faiths and privilege.