TV or Not TV?

If you were expecting a report on the 2012 Oscar movies, then you are obviously not a regular reader of this blog. Unless I give Redbox a try, I won’t be seeing any of those films until they get to Netflix instant play or become available through the library. Of most interest are The Artist, The Descendants and The Help. John from Phoenix picks up the slack by hitting the theaters and reporting here on the new films he has seen. Thanks for that John.

I watch a lot of good documentaries on PBS (usually first on TV then online), and I rate at Netflix to help me remember that I have already seen them, though Netflix often does not have them listed until later when they are released on DVD. But now I find that I am watching some documentaries on Netflix instant view and then realizing I have seen them before on TV. Writing about them on this blog provides a place for me to refresh myself about what the program covered and what I thought of it. But I have wondered whether my ratings of programs from TV are appropriate to publish in what is titled as a movie blog, so I have not written about many of them here. As a memory jog and in the spirit of using an open definition of movie media, and  with the belief that it is better to maybe have too many listings than too few, I will now be including most such documentaries. However, basic travelogues, classroom type educational films and many news documentaries will probably not be posted here.

I’m also continuing to catch some Netflix instant play movies before their availability on Netflix expires. These are usually films I expect to be marginal, but there is an occasional pleasant surprise.

Here is what I have watched since I posted my last list. [The ratings I give are on my own number system which is explained at the link on the sidebar].

Downton Abbey (Season Two) – 2011 (3.7). The Masterpiece miniseries evoking Upstairs Downstairs in its British social and political themes continues from where it left off, taking the characters into and out of WWI with the profound changes that made in British life being shown through the microcosm of the Downton household family, friends and servants. As well done as the first season, the added knowledge of the characters and their backgrounds makes this second season even a little better. Once again, we are left with cliffhangers to entice us to watch the third season to come – as if any enticement is necessary.

More Than a Month – 2012 (3.3). Shown on PBS, this documentary by Shukree Hassan Tilghman questions whether Black History Month is a bad idea, because it relegates the history to a limited time of year, instead of fully integrating it year round. Starting with an engagingly clever humor, the film intelligently pursues its topic with effective interviews, introspective analysis and even a short public survey. Societal history is told by those in power in the way they want to tell it. American society was dominated by whites which is why Black History Week and then Month was developed by African American scholars. As African Americans become more integrated into the American power structure, the need for Black History Month will start to diminish, but are we there yet?

The Wonder Years (Season Three) – 1989 (3.2). Continuing in the vein of the previous seasons, as “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, the kids deal with becoming teenagers and finishing eighth grade, while an eclectic mix of issues are touched upon involving students, teachers and parents. Most all episodes are nostalgic and some tug at deeper emotions.

Amish, The – 2012 (3.0). From American Experience on PBS, this documentary about the religious sect includes a little background material but mostly contemporary footage and audio interviews with sect members, academics and a few former members. Complicating the effort is the fact that the Amish do not want their pictures taken, so there are no face to face interviews. In lieu of narration, graphic titles set out pertinent facts at appropriate spots. While the film answered many questions, there were noticeable omissions, such as the Amish attitude toward birth control, teen pregnancy, modern medical practice and medical insurance.

Hey, Boo: Harper Lee & To Kill a Mockingbird – 2010 (3.0). We should all know what a great book and movie Mockingbird is, and most of us know Harper Lee never wrote another novel and does not give interviews. This documentary uses archival footage, interviews with contemporaries of Lee, audio from her last radio interview in 1964, and further interviews from other writers about the effect Mockingbird had on them, all to reverently but in an entertaining manner renew our appreciation of this modern masterpiece and fill in some knowledge gaps about Lee for those of us who are less informed.

Slavery by Another Name – 2012 (3.0). This PBS documentary tells the story of mistreatment of African Americans in the South during the Reconstruction years after the Civil War and on into the 20^th Century, focusing primarily on the use of the criminal justice system to produce convict labor to replace the slaves and secondarily on the abusive sharecropping system. The expose of the perversion of the law to produce convict labor is particularly revealing and the fact convicts whose labor was being leased from the State were treated even more terribly than slaves is astounding. The production used dramatic simulations, historic photos and interviews with historians and told the specific stories of a few individual victims, interwoven throughout the film. I realize interweaving the stories with the various topics as they are developed allows a continuous progression, but I find it hard to keep track of each story when I am only getting them piecemeal and mixed with all the others. I prefer to have the story of each person told as separate chapters, perhaps after some general introductory material and the after the stories the film can end with some general conclusions.

If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front – 2011 (3.0). This documentary does a good job of conveying the frustration that young environmental activists felt when efforts to use the political process, letter writing and picketing failed to stop corporate assaults on the environment. After peaceful protests met with excessive police force, some protesters decided to take it up a notch and start torching the property of the violators, giving birth to the ELF, which was labeled an eco-terrorist organization. Following primarily one man facing prosecution for his involvement, the movie, in a sensitive and balanced way, uses filmed footage, some reenactments, interviews with other ELF members, the man’s family and law enforcement officials to explain how the movement came to be, how it ended up splintering as some began to realize it had gone too far and how law enforcement finally was able to find and prosecute the members.

Waste Land – 2010 (3.0). Brazilian artist Vik Muniz, himself of humble origins, decides to apply his photographic skills to capturing images of the piecework pickers who glean recyclables from a Rio garbage dump, the largest in the world, in this engaging documentary. In the process, Muniz also applies his people skills and is surprised to find how attached he becomes to his subjects and how deeply sympathetic he is to their personal plights. Reworking his photos by incorporating found materials from the dump, the artist brings the workers into the process as assistants, changing their lives and also his.

Still Bill – 2009 (3.0). Though we are close in age, I have to say I don’t remember songwriter and singer Bill Withers. But I do remember many of his songs, which he is shown performing in archival footage in this easy going and appealing documentary. So many talented entertainers let their careers mess up their lives, I often wonder why they don’t see it coming and ditch the career before it does them in. Bill Withers is a guy who did just that, and when you follow him through this documentary as he imparts his life philosophy while interfacing with family and friends, you know by the character of the man that he made a wise choice. But we can also see that his talent has endured and he has been thinking about whether to let some of it be publicly expressed again.

The Interrupters – 2012 (2.9). Former gang members who have done prison time and become wiser with age work the streets to intervene, mediate and interrupt the cycle of youthful gang violence in Chicago in this documentary shown on PBS. Not much for talking head commentators, this movie concentrates on showing the interaction between these older mentors and the young people they are trying to save. Even knowing the bad hand these kids have been dealt, it is hard for those of us who have been more fortunate to sympathize with these kids and to understand why they cannot see other options than gang banging. The interrupters have been in the shoes of these kids and understand them, which also gives them street cred with the kids. My sympathies were most aroused by the tears of the very young kids who are so afraid of the violence and by the emotional impact the crimes of violence have on the lives of the victims and their families.

The Glass Virgin – 1995 (2.9). I watched this BBC production of a Catherine Cookson novel three years ago and gave it 3.1. The drop to my current rating is a reflection of my becoming less impressed by seeing the same kinds of movies several times. The Cookson stories are all watchable plots and decent productions, but the themes of British 18^th Century class structure and male chauvinism interfering with true love get repetitious. This time an upper class young lady learns she is actually ill bred and must make her way in the world without privilege. As usual she meets two kinds of people, good and bad. Melodramas do not have room for areas of gray.

Clinton – 2012 (2.8). From PBS American Experience this documentary about Bill Clinton tells the story of the Clinton Presidency as part of his personal biography, concentrating primarily on his eight years in the White House, but unfortunately spending almost half of the nearly four hours on the Lewinsky scandal and impeachment. There is no new ground here, but plenty of historical footage and current reflective reminiscences of many of the people who interacted with him during his Presidency.

Marion Bridge – 2003 (2.8). This well-acted Canadian movie from Film Movement tells about three adult sisters whose mother is dying, forcing them to face a future without her, but more significantly to come to grips with the past that has made them who they are. Not overly long, the film nevertheless spends the first third not letting us learn much about these people, which when the story turns out to be fairly good by the end makes us wish more had been done with the beginning.

Blind Faith – 1998 (2.8). In this Showtime movie the well-bred 18 year old son a black cop in the Bronx in 1957 confesses to robbing and strangling a white boy. His uncle, a lawyer who handles minor criminal cases cannot find anyone to take the defense of the case, so he ends up doing it himself, not believing the confession, even though the boy will not recant. Uneven at times and suffering some of the usual legal technical faults of courtroom scripts, the film is still an effective commentary, not just on racial relations of the era, but also on other prejudice.

The Wingless Bird – 1997 (2.8). Yet another Brit three part TV melodrama of a Catherine Cookson story, this time about a sensible but plain and unappreciated daughter who helps run the family sweet shop where a romantic upper crust gentleman takes a shine to her. Nothing new here, but if you like the Dame’s stories, this one is well enough done to hold your attention.

The Naked Spur – 1953 (2.7). The best thing this western has going for it is the fantastic Colorado scenery around Durango where it was filmed. The story of Jimmy Stewart bringing Robert Ryan in for a reward starts with interest as Ryan has young Janet Leigh along with him and Stewart ends up reluctantly accepting two men he encounters on the trail as helpers to share the reward. One of the men is an old prospector who is not too sharp and the other is an Army office dishonorably discharged. Ryan cleverly plays the men against each other but the opportunities for drama get cut short.