USA

  • Vincente Minnelli – Tea and Sympathy (1956)

    1951-1960ClassicsDramaQueer Cinema(s)USAVincente Minnelli

    Homosexuality was a taboo subject in 1956 Hollywood. So it was a challenge for screenwriter Robert Anderson to adapt his hit Broadway play about a sensitive prepschooler called “sister boy” by his peers, and the lovely housemaster’s wife who realizes she must offer more than tea and sympathy to help the boy prove his manhood. The frankness may be muted but the power remains in this stellar film. Under Vincente Minnelli’s direction, Deborah Kerr and John Kerr reprise their Broadway roles as older woman and younger man in poignant performances that reveal the compassion and the torment of being human. Their stage costar Leif Erickson joins them in counterpoint as the emotionally clenched housemaster.Read More »

  • Spike Lee – Kobe Doin’ Work (2009)

    2001-2010DocumentarySpike LeeUSA

    A documentary following Kobe Bryant during one day during a game against the San Antonio Spurs.Read More »

  • Arthur Davis – Brutes and Savages (1978)

    1971-1980Arthur DavisCultDocumentaryUSA

    Quote:
    Brutes and Savages is a typical entry in the bizarre subgenre of mondo films. In it, narrator and explorer Arthur Davis visits Africa and South America in search of weird ceremonies and cultures. The film is basically trying to educate the viewer with a “partial” look at the locals’ everyday activities and beliefs and it tries to make everything look authentic and real. It clearly isn’t. Numerous camera angles and ridiculously staged events kill the illusion early on.Read More »

  • Frederick Wiseman – Deaf (1986)

    1981-1990DocumentaryFrederick WisemanUSA

    Quote:
    The School for the Deaf at the Alabama Institute is organized around a theory of total communication i.e. the use of signs and finger spelling in conjunction with speech, hearing aids, lip reading, gestures and the written word. The film shows sequences dealing with various aspects of this comprehensive training such as teaching students and parents to sign; speech therapy; psychological counseling; regular academic courses; vocational training; disciplinary problems; parents visits; sports and recreational activity; training in living and working independently; and developing skills in home and money management.Read More »

  • Jonas Mekas – Lost, Lost, Lost (1976)

    1971-1980DocumentaryExperimentalJonas MekasUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Quote:
    These six reels of my film diaries come from the years 1949-1963. They begin with my arrival in New York in November 1949. The first and second reels deal with my life as a Young Poet and a Displaced Person in Brooklyn. It shows the Lithuanian immigrant community, their attempts to adapt themselves to a new land and their tragic efforts to regain independance for their native country. It shows my own frustrations and anxieties and the decision to leave Brooklyn and move to Manhattan. Reel three and reel four deal with my life in Manhattan on Orchard Street and East 13th St. First contacts with New York poetry and filmmaking communities. Robert Frank shooting The Sin of Jesus. LeRoy Jones, Ginsberg, Frank O’Hara reading at The Living Theatre.Read More »

  • Charles Lane – Sidewalk Stories (1989)

    1981-1990Charles LaneComedySilentUSA

    Quote:
    A 1989 American low-budget, nearly silent movie directed by and starring Charles Lane. The film was shot in black and white and tells the story of a young African American man raising a small child after her father is murdered. The film is inspired by “Tiger Bay“ (1959) and partly Charlie Chaplin`s 1921 feature “The Kid“. The film was televised by PBS as well as saw limited exposure on VHS and cable television in the 1990sRead More »

  • Blake Edwards – Darling Lili (1970)

    Drama1961-1970Blake EdwardsMusicalUSAWorld War One

    Darling Lili is a 1970 American musical film.

    Set during World War I, it centers on Lili Smith, a popular British music hall performer who is regarded as a femme fatale. She’s actually a German spy, and the uncle she dotes upon is really Col. Kurt Von Ruger, a fellow espionage agent and her contact for the Huns. In hopes of gaining valuable information, Lili begins using her feminine wiles on Maj. William Larrabee, a top American pilot. However, Lili soon discovers that she’s falling in love with Larrabee and can’t find the courage to betray him, and when Larrabee discovers Lili’s secret, he refuses to turn her in.Read More »

  • Frederick Wiseman – Racetrack (1986)

    1981-1990DocumentaryFrederick WisemanUSA

    Synopsis:
    RACETRACK is about the Belmont Race Track, one of the world’s leading race tracks for thoroughbred racing. The film highlights the training, maintaining and racing of thoroughbred horses. Everyday occurrences are shown: in the backstretch — the grooming, feeding, shoeing, and caring for horses and the preparation for races; at the practice track the various aspects of training, exercising, and timing the horses; at the paddock — the pre-race presentation of the horses; and in the grandstand — betting and watching the races. The film also has sequences showing the variety of work done by trainers, jockeys, jockey agents, grooms, hot walkers, stable hands, and veterinarians.Read More »

  • Alex Gibney – Finding Fela! (2014)

    Documentary2021-2030Alex GibneyUSA

    29f7c043f76a2bde437fd0d52a185152

    Finding Fela tells the story of Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s life, his music, his social and political importance. He created a new musical movement, Afrobeat, using that forum to express his revolutionary political opinions against the dictatorial Nigerian government of the 1970s and 1980s. His influence helped bring a change towards democracy in Nigeria and promoted Pan Africanist politics to the world.Read More »

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