Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 68

The End of Poverty?

2008

The End of Poverty?

2008
7.9
The End of Poverty? asks if the true causes of poverty today stem from a deliberate orchestration since colonial times which has evolved into our modern system whereby wealthy nations exploit the poor. People living and fighting against poverty answer condemning colonialism and its consequences; land grab, exploitation of natural resources, debt, free markets, demand for corporate profits and the evolution of an economic system in in which 25% of the world's population consumes 85% of its wealth. Featuring Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen and Joseph Stiglitz, authors/activist Susan George, Eric Toussaint, Bolivian Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera and more.
The Singing Revolution

2006

The Singing Revolution

2006
6
Most people don't think about singing when they think about revolutions. But song was the weapon of choice when, between 1986 and 1991, Estonians sought to free themselves from decades of Soviet occupation. During those years, hundreds of thousands gathered in public to sing forbidden patriotic songs and to rally for independence. "The young people, without any political party, and without any politicians, just came together ... not only tens of thousands but hundreds of thousands ... to gather and to sing and to give this nation a new spirit," remarks Mart Laar, a Singing Revolution leader featured in the film and the first post-Soviet Prime Minister of Estonia. "This was the idea of the Singing Revolution." James Tusty and Maureen Castle Tusty's "The Singing Revolution" tells the moving story of how the Estonian people peacefully regained their freedom--and helped topple an empire along the way.
Top Fighter

1995

Top Fighter

1995
6.4
Welcome to the world of the martial arts. A voyage for the times of the martial arts cinema, from the beginning in China in the 6th Century A.C. by a Buddhist monk, Bodhidharma, until the actual time and the influence in the world, with interviews to actors and historians, and a review to the most important movies of all times and to the most famous action movies actors. A magnificent jewel of this genre what nobody wouldn't lose.
Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields

2011

Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields

2011
6.7
Ten years in the making, Strange Powers is an intimate documentary portrait of songwriter Stephin Merritt and his band the Magnetic Fields. With his unique gift for memorable melodies, lovelorn lyrics and wry musical stylings that blend classic Tin Pan Alley with modern sounds, Stephin Merritt has distinguished himself as one of contemporary pop's most beloved and influential artists.
Henson's Place: The Man Behind the Muppets

1984

Henson's Place: The Man Behind the Muppets

1984
6.7
Trace the life and career of visionary puppeteer Jim Henson through this fascinating documentary, which profiles the creative genius's early endeavors in college, his incredible contributions to "Sesame Street" and the creation of "The Muppet Show." In addition to interviews with Henson, his wife, Jane, and close collaborator Frank Oz, this in-depth special also offers viewers a peek inside the magical Henson Workshop.
Best Boy

1979

Best Boy

1979
6.4
In this documentary, the director follows the day-to-day activities of his retarded, middle-aged cousin Philly, over a three-year period.
A Place Called Chiapas

1998

A Place Called Chiapas

1998
7
In 1994, the Zapatista National Liberation Army, made up of impoverished Mayan Indians from the state of Chiapas, took over five towns and 500 ranches in southern Mexico. The government deployed its troops and at least 145 people died in the ensuing battle. Filmmaker Nettie Wild travelled to the country's jungle canyons to film the elusive and fragile life of this uprising.
Berkeley in the Sixties

1990

Berkeley in the Sixties

1990
5.8
A documentary about militant student political activity at the University of California, Berkeley in the 1960s.
The Horse Boy

2009

The Horse Boy

2009
6.5
Filmmaker Michel Orion Scott captures a magical journey into a little-known world, in a documentary which chronicles Rupert Isaacson and Kristin Neff's personal odyssey to make sense of their child's autism, and find healing for him and themselves in the unlikeliest of places.
Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus

2006

Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus

2006
6.5
Filmmaker and evolutionary biologist Randy Olson tries to figure out if it is the Darwinists or Intelligent Design supporters who will become a flock of dodos.
Pencils vs Pixels

2023

Pencils vs Pixels

2023
8.6
A documentary told from the voices of the "second golden age" of animation in the 1990s and 2000s about the rise, fall and rise again of hand-drawn animation. They were trained by animation masters that created the principles of animation, they took animation to heights no one dreamed of - and then came the computer.
Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg

2024

Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg

2024
7.1
An exploration of the life of Anita Pallenberg, European actress and rock ’n’ roll muse. Told in Anita’s own words, from her unpublished memoir, and in the words of her family, this bittersweet film is a never-seen-before look at life with The Rolling Stones.
William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill

2024

William Shatner: You Can Call Me Bill

2024
6.3
Captain Kirk. T.J. Hooker. Denny Crane. Big Giant Head. Alexander the Great. Henry V. Priceline’s Negotiator. These are but a handful of the innumerable masks worn by William Shatner over seven extraordinary decades onstage and in front of the camera. A peerless maverick thespian, electrifying performer, and international cultural treasure, Bill (as he prefers to be called), now 91 years young, is the living embodiment of his classic line “to boldly go where no man has gone before.” In unprecedented fashion, You Can Call Me Bill strips away all the masks he has worn to embody countless characters, revealing the man behind it all.
My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock

2023

My Name Is Alfred Hitchcock

2023
6.9
Directed by Mark Cousins, My Name is Alfred Hitchcock re-examines the vast filmography and legacy of one of the 20th century’s greatest filmmakers, Alfred Hitchcock, through a new lens: through the auteur’s own voice.
Casa Susanna

2022

Casa Susanna

2022
8
In the 50s and 60s, deep in the American countryside at the foot of the Catskills, a small wooden house with a barn behind it was home to the first clandestine network of cross-dressers. Diane and Kate are now 80 years old. At the time, they were men and part of this secret organization. Today, they relate this forgotten but essential chapter of the early days of trans-identity. It is a story full of noise and fury, rich in extraordinary characters, including the famous Susanna, who had the courage to create this refuge that came to be known as Casa Susanna.
Girl Gang

2022

Girl Gang

2022
6.3
A contemporary fairy tale about a 14-year-old influencer from Berlin and her biggest fan. But life as a social media star has a shadow side that the adrenaline, fame and free sneakers can’t make up for.
The Thief Collector

2022

The Thief Collector

2022
6.9
In 1985, Willem de Kooning’s “Woman-Ochre,” one of the most valuable paintings of the 20th century, vanished into the Arizona desert after being cut from its frame at the University of Arizona Museum of Art. 32 years later, the $160 million painting was found hanging in the home of Jerry and Rita Alter in rural New Mexico.
AllSeasons

2021

AllSeasons

2021
7.2
Once you get hooked, the way you feel changes your world forever. Learn more about a sport where each season brings a small revolution, in which you can progress in so many ways. In #Allseasons we will show you how love for the wind drives kitesurfers to live their passion all year round. You will meet people who plan their week following wind forecast no matter if it is hot Summer or cold Winter.
Dreaming Walls

2022

Dreaming Walls

2022
5.9
The end of an eight-year upmarket renovation of the legendary Chelsea Hotel is partly longed for and partly dreaded by the artists who still live there. The film grants us access to their apartments and interweaves the past with the present.
The Last Tourist

2021

The Last Tourist

2021
6.2
Travel is at a tipping point. From Carribean beaches to remote villages in Kenya, forgotten voices reveal the real conditions and consequences of one of the largest industries in the world. The role of the modern tourist is on trial.