While waiting for some library DVDs to become available, Netflix continues to be a source of documentaries and a few other types to stream.
Hell on Wheels (Season 2)– 2012 (3.0). The second season of this AMC series continues the central story arc of building the transcontinental railroad, while developing the central characters and their various relationships in more depth. As is typical, new characters of varying importance are introduced and some old ones move along, with or without the violent acts of others. One villain combines a wry sense of humor with menacing creepiness resulting in a perverse comic relief. As we begin to understand characters better, we become more involved with plot developments involving them. The first season revenge seeking by the hero is over and characters are scrambling to see not just what they can do for the railroad, but what the railroad can do for them. Meanwhile the Sioux decide they have had enough of this whole business.
Virunga – 2014
(2.9). More evocative than informative, this Oscar nominated documentary
follows rangers in Virunga National Park in the eastern Congo as they strive to
protect the park from poachers, militant rebels and predatory international oil
and mineral exploiters. Home to the last of the Mountain Gorillas, the movie
shows rangers caring for four orphaned animals and watching over others in the
wild. But most of the time is spent showing the Belgian man in charge of the
rangers and his Congolese assistants as they contend with threats from the
approaching rebels and try to document attempts by a British oil company to
bribe local officials. A young Frenchwoman journalist uses undercover filming
to work on a story about the corruption. The footage is recorded well and the
music score is very good, but what is lacking is a context of the political
situation and an understanding of the extent to which the government actually
supports the Park. UN Peacekeepers are in the area but we do not know if they
have any involvement with protecting the Park which is a world heritage site.
The Belgian and all the rangers are heroes (around 130 have died in the line of
duty), but we learn little about them personally.
Hell on Wheels (Season
1)– 2011 (2.9). This AMC series is named after the rambunctious town that
followed the Union Pacific work crews as they built the transcontinental
railroad in the 1860s. The central character is a former Rebel who is seeking
vengeance on the Yankee soldiers who killed his wife and child near the end of
the war. Other primary characters include Thomas Durant who is the unethical
man in charge, an English widow whose surveyor husband was killed by Indians, a
former slave who has high personal ambition, a Scandinavian in charge of
security, a preacher who rode with John Brown, an Indian who has found the
Lord, a white whore who had been enslaved by Indians, Irish brothers who are
merchants, and lots of others of varying degrees of importance. Though a few
scenes border on cliché and the hero is a little too much like Clint Eastwood,
the series does a fairly good job of capturing the mixture of lawless chaos and
goal seeking sense of destiny, with constantly evolving personal stories. True
to the time and place, characters often re-invent themselves as they try to
cope with their circumstances.
30 for 30: Brian andthe Boz – 2014 (2.8). From the ESPN series, this documentary shows football
player Brian Bosworth and his teenage son closing out the storage unit of the
father of Brian after his death. While going through the memorabilia of his
career, Brian essentially narrates the movie which includes archival footage of
his play from high school, Oklahoma U and the Seattle Seahawks and interviews
with family and former players and coaches. What emerges is a man who is
embarrassed by the hype he created about himself at the expense of his college
and pro teams, an overachiever pushed by his obsessed father.
Limited Partnership
– 2014 (2.8). In Boulder Colorado in 1975 the County Clerk decided it was OK to
issue marriage licenses to gay couples. Before the State Attorney General
jumped in to stop it, a handful of couples had gotten married, including the
two men whose relationship is documented in this movie. One was a Filipino
American and the other an Aussie, who applied for US citizenship based on the
marriage. The INS famously denied the application, with a written decision
that, "You have failed to establish that a bona fide marital relationship
can exist between two faggots". For forty years the men remained in a
loving relationship all the while trying to establish legal citizenship for the
Aussie. Interviews with the men through the years are combined with footage of
family members and attorneys and archival footage of the changes that have
taken place in public and legal opinion toward same gender marriage during that
time.
Love Me – 2014
(2.8). Loveless American men and one Aussie seeking mail order brides in
Ukraine are the subject of this documentary. The internet matching service they
use and the women who make themselves available are a bit eyebrow raising – the
pictures of the women look like those featured in escort service ads in tourist
newspapers. Lots of money is paid to the service for correspondence
translations and there is an expensive tour to Ukraine to meet the women. Of
course most men want a woman much better looking than they should expect and
our subjects zero in on their targets with what appears to be realistically
mixed results. After a slightly shaky start, the movie settles down and we get
to know the key couples and see what happens, including supplemental follow ups
a few months later.
Tough Love – 2014
(2.8). A man in Seattle and a woman in Brooklyn both come from broken homes,
have led troubled lives and are working through the child protective court
system to try to have their full parental rights restored. This documentary
follows their efforts to navigate the system and make improvements in their personal
lives. The movie flips back and forth between the two parents, showing their
interactions with their children and with the various advocates, judges and
others involved in the process. A brief glimpse at their early lives is
postponed, perhaps to allow our prejudices to kick in before we know the back
story. Quality of parenting is a matter of degree and all parents have room for
improvement. This film seems to conclude that society does need to protect
children from dangerous parents, but the justice system should not be in the
business of policing quality when the danger has passed.
AmericanRevolutionary – 2013 (2.8). Grace Lee was born in NY in 1915. Her father
was a prosperous Chinese restaurateur which afforded her a Barnard college
education. Setting out on her own she encountered discrimination based on
gender and race and then in Chicago became personally involved with African
Americans leading to her evolution into a philosophical radical activist. She
settled in Detroit and married James Boggs, a black activist. This documentary
was made by an unrelated young Grace Lee who followed the older Grace for about
a decade. Archival footage, interviews with other activist and conversations
between the two Graces reveal an upbeat woman dedicated to encouraging people
to think for themselves and keep their ideas developing through challenging
conversation.
Blood Brother –
2013 (2.8). A young American man without family ties takes a trip to India and
surprises himself by being strongly drawn to the HIV/AIDS orphans in a refuge
facility in this documentary. His best friend travels to film him working as a
volunteer with the children and we see that he is very genuinely called to the
work. The children are quite appealing and bonded with the young man who is not
deterred by their pain and suffering. Dwelling on the volunteer, the film does
not tell us much at all about the facility and those responsible for running
it. While it is inspiring to see such dedication it is also discouraging to see
the children suffer.
Magical Universe
– 2013 (2.8). While on a trip to Maine, a NYC documentary film maker stumbles
upon an octogenarian reclusive artist who specializes in photographing dioramas
of Barbie dolls. Over the next few years the young man and his girlfriend, whom
the artist says looks like a Barbie, become friends with the old man and start
making a movie about him. The resulting film captures the eccentricities of the
artist and ultimately shows his work actually has artistic merit, but we never
get to know enough about how the man evolved from a professionally trained
artist and gainfully employed photographer into the man we see in the film.
Winnebago Man –
2009 (2.8). VHS tapes of outtakes from what appear to be motor home sales
videos from the late 1980s began circulating around in the 90s and went viral
once they hit the Internet. The featured salesman in the outtakes was so
frustrated and angry that he unleashed a steady stream of profanities that were
thoroughly enjoyed by his fans. A Texas filmmaker decided to track him down to
provide some context and follow up; however the man seemed to have disappeared.
Many thought he had probably died of an angry heart attack years ago, but the
man was found leading a reclusive life and he agreed to let this documentary be
made. Underlying the anger is an acerbic sense of humor and the film helps us
see that blowing our top and then laughing at our anger can defuse it.
Keep On Keepin' On
– 2014 (2.7). Trumpeter Clark Terry played with all the great bands in a career
spanning over 70 years. He even had a ten year gig as the featured trumpeter on
the Tonight Show band. His role as a mentor to young musicians is less known
outside musical circles. This documentary follows Terry as he enters his
nineties and experiences severe health issues, but nevertheless continues his
teaching with a young piano man who is sightless. The movie jumps back and
forth a little too much and could have been better with more of a story
arc.
The Black Power MixTape 1967-1975 – 2011 (2.7). Swedish TV reporters came to the US decades
ago to film stories about the rising black power movement. The newly discovered
footage is combined with contemporary comments by African Americans to make
this documentary. The movie comes across as a quick refresher course on
historical events, a nostalgic look back at the young leaders of the movement
and a unique point of view by detached Scandinavians. Americans today do not
remember that gun control laws were first pushed not by liberals, but rather by
conservatives fearing an armed Black Power movement.
The movies on this list streamed via Netflix were (though
some of the streaming rights may now have expired):
Hell on Wheels (Season 2)Virunga
Hell on Wheels (Season 1)
30 for 30: Brian and the Boz
Love Me
American Revolutionary
Blood Brother
Magical Universe
Winnebago Man
Keep On Keepin' On
The Black Power Mix Tape 1967-1975
