Category: Documentary

By Joe Bendel. Taita Yunusova was released a mere nineteen hours after she was abducted. She would know better than most how fortunate she was. Yunusova is one of four middle-aged women independently documenting the horrors of the Chechen Wars and the subsequent human rights violations of Putin’s puppet, Ramzan Kadyrov. Although no longer held captive, you wouldn’t exactly say Yunusova and her colleagues are “safe.” However, by selecting Nicola Bellucci’s Grozny Blues, in which they prominently appear, for their fifteen-film documentary shortlist, the European Film Academy will help spread awareness of the activists and the constant danger they face. Fittingly, Grozny Blues screens this coming Wednesday at the Riga International Film Festival, as one of the ArtDocFest selections programmer Vitaly Mansky doubted he could present in Moscow under the current regime.

Yunusova, Zargan Makhadzhieva, Tais Titieva, and the exiled Zainap Gaishaeva do not look like independent filmmakers, but they document the devastation of their country and the oral history of grieving family members, because someone has to do it. In many ways, they are living in a hostile environment. Like a lord currying favor with his emperor, Kadyrov demands Chechens kowtow to the despised Putin. Increasingly, he uses stringent Islamification policies to maintain control, even while Putin uses the specter of Islamic terror to justify his harsh pacification campaigns. Chechnya is a man’s world, affording little rights to the four citizen archivists, but it is an old man’s world, since most of the younger generations were wiped out in the Chechen Wars.

Frankly, Bellucci’s approach is less authoritative than that of his subjects. Instead of facts and figures, he prefers to give viewers an impressionistic sense of life in Grozny and the surrounding provinces. It was probably quite picturesque once, but the many bombed out buildings and the massive public portraits of Kadyrov and Putin are an ever-present blight on the country.

We also get to meet the Chechen Archive’s neighbor, the Blues Brothers Café. Arguably, the proprietor is just as idealistic and even more impractical than Yunusova and company. After all, he is trying to run a legit, no heavy metal or grunge, blues club in Grozny. Of course, the system is stacked against him too. He has discovered a promising young talent, but as a woman, she cannot perform in his club after five o’clock.

You might say Bellucci’s style is observational and maybe even a little roundabout, but he clearly understands what he is seeing. When you listen to the women explain their trials and tribulations, including a shotgun marriage to avoid legal problems, it exposes Putin’s rhetoric as the propaganda it is. There is definitely terrorism going on, but most of it is conducted by Kayrov’s militias. Likewise, since the dramatic Grozny-City Towers fire seen briefly in the film was attributed to safety violations, it probably can also be traced back to the notoriously corrupt regime.

Instead of a formal indictment, Grozny Blues is like a mastercut of small, telling moments all spliced together. By going micro, we see just how systemically dysfunctional the Chechen Republic has become. As its subjects become more widely known internationally, they will probably be less likely disappear in the dark of night. Therefore, the mesmerizing and alarming Grozny Blues is recommended with considerable urgency when it screens this Wednesday (10/21) during ArtDocFest/Riga.

LFM GRADE: A-

Posted on October 21st, 2015 at 10:54pm.

By Joe Bendel. Mae West practically single-handedly saved Paramount from bankruptcy, while Bette Davis was the first actress to bring a little glamour to the hardboiled Warner Brothers studio. Yet, despite their mutual admiration, it took decades for the two movie stars to finally meet. Optometrist and volunteer bartender Wes Wheadon was a fly on the wall when they did and he has the standard audio cassette recording to prove it. With the help of lip-synching actors, he recreates the lively early 1970s dinner party in the hybrid documentary When Bette Met Mae, which screens during the 2015 NewFest.

Davis had four husbands and West never had a shortage of men, but both became gay icons, in part through drag show impersonations. It was a phenomenon they discussed on that night in 1973, so WBMM is not so out of place at NewFest. Sadly, the movie business had largely forgotten them at this point, but Davis still worked regularly in television, resenting nearly every minute of it. Having invested wisely in real estate, West did not need to work at all. Still, neither was the type to sit about idle.

Despite its obvious artificiality and the disorienting distance between the on-screen figures and their voices, it is rather lovely to hear the real life Davis and West again, in any context. The former was especially her tart-tongued self, venting her spleen against agents, producers, and former SAG president Ronald Reagan. In retrospect, most historians give Reagan credit for standing up to the moguls, but clearly anything less than a May Day storming of the studio barricades would not impress Ms. Davis.

Wheadon, who had already been pulled into Bette Davis’s orbit through mutual friends at the dinner party, serves as an easy-going and informative host. He augments the gossipy conversation with some intriguing background and context on the often overlooked later years of the two stars’ lives. It is particularly amusing to hear New York publicist Gary Springer (whom those of us who cover film and theater know and respect quite well) speak of an evening at Town Hall his father produced. Conceived as a sort of 92Y-style Q&A, it became a command appearance for the royal Davis to receive her adoring fans (who were apparently 99% gay men). Nevertheless, since the breezy forty five minute dish session constitutes the core of the film, Wheadon can barely stretch it past sixty minutes.

Karen Teliha and Victoria Mills are both the respective spitting images of Davis and West, but Teliha also shows a command of the former’s instantly recognizable mannerisms. She seems comfortable in Davis’s skin, whereas Mills does not. However, the night was largely Ms. Davis’s show, so we can just watch and listen to her do her thing.

The graphics and Jack Anderson’s cinematography have a retro vibe that look like they might have been produced in 1973, along with the muffled audio. Yet, there is something appealing about its throwback grunginess. It is also a NewFest selection that could draw a lot of straight fans, because Mae West was Mae West and Bette Davis was smoking hot in The Letter and The Man Who Came to Dinner. Recommended for fans of Golden Age Hollywood, When Bette Met Mae screens Thursday afternoon (10/22) with the short film, Who Stole the Ruby Slippers, during this year’s NewFest.

LFM GRADE: B

Posted on October 21st, 2015 at 10:54pm.

By Joe Bendel. She was an icon of the black power and feminist movements, but Nina Simone had also married a white husband and appeared on Playboy After Dark. Few artists better represented the complexity and tempestuousness of the 1960s better than her. Classically trained but adopted by the jazz world, she eventually found crossover popularity with soul audiences. To use Ellington’s words, she was truly beyond category. Simone’s life, music, and cultural significance are surveyed in Jeff L. Lieberman’s independent documentary The Amazing Nina, which opens this Friday in New York.

Yes, Liz Garbus’s high profile Netflix documentary recently started streaming, but there is always room for a new film on an artist of her stature. Ironically, her fiercer fans might just appreciate Lieberman’s film more than the earlier release, even though Garbus’s film had the backing of Simone’s family, whereas Lieberman’s did not. What Happened, Miss Simone? boasts a number of revelations regarding Simone’s mental health problems and her alleged emotional abuse of her daughter. It is eye-opening stuff, but maybe not the way her fans want to remember her.

In contrast, Amazing is a more balanced chronicle in nearly every sense. There is a good deal of material on her early life that will be mostly new to viewers of the earlier doc, especially her first marriage to the white hipster Don Ross, who turned out to be a lazy ne’er do well. We also hear how her defiant spirit manifested itself during her early childhood years. Clearly, Lieberman did his research, delving deeper into the circumstances surrounding her unsuccessful audition for the Curtis Institute of Music.

While daughter Lisa Simone threw her chips in with Garbus and Netflix, Lieberman’s production was not without its own Simone/Waymon family support. Most notably, Simone’s brother, band member, and former manager Sam Waymon is an enthusiastic participant, guiding viewers through the highs and lows of Simone’s life. He is a lively and engaging screen presence, who seems to be quite forthright in his reminiscences.

Simone’s longtime guitarist-musical director Al Schackman again offers his memories of the pianist-vocalist, which are always welcome. However, Amazing is further enriched and diversified by interview segments with Chinese Canadian guitarist Henry Young, whose stint in Simone’s band was relatively short but undeniably eventful. He might just deserve his own doc treatment.

Wisely, Lieberman never loses sight of the music, because for Nina Simone fans that is really what it is all about. If you think you knew her from previous documentaries or the infamous Montreux performance, it turns out there is even more to her story. It is richer and considerably more complicated. Briskly paced but appropriately sensitive when addressing delicate subjects, The Amazing Nina Simone should please the fans who were left somewhat cold by the previous film. In fact, the two documentaries supplement each other quite nicely. Recommended for all fans of jazz-soul-folk crossover music, The Amazing Nina Simone opens this Friday (10/16) in New York, at the AMC Empire.

LFM GRADE: B+

Posted on October 13th, 2015 at 9:55pm.

By Joe Bendel. An optimist might argue that Tibetan Buddhism has already defeated Maoist Communism, because it continues to rapidly gain converts around the world, while nobody believes in the CCP, not even the Politburo. His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, is globally revered, whereas those who know of Premier Li Kequiang are generally not favorably disposed towards him. However, pessimists will counter that nonviolence is doomed to fail against a government that ruthlessly massacred its own people at Tiananmen Square. Traditional Tibetan musician and activist Loten Namling is definitely a glass-is-half-empty sort of person, but he continues to do his part to advance the cause of Tibetan freedom through nonviolent means. However, the increasingly oppressive situation in occupied Tibet and the alarming reports of self-immolation protest-suicides escalates the urgency of his efforts in Dodo Hunziker’s documentary Tibetan Warrior, which released last week on DVD and VOD.

Namling is Tibetan, but he has never set foot in his country. He was raised in Dharamsala, but Switzerland has been his home for many years. Namling has achieved some prominence popularizing Tibetan music, even performing for His Holiness. Not surprisingly, music will play a role in his latest campaign, but that will be the easy part. First he will make a pilgrimage from Bern to Geneva, on foot, dragging a coffin to raise awareness of Tibet’s plight. Once he has completed his journey, he will play in a consciousness-raising concert, co-organized by Franz Treichler of the New Gods.

When Namling set off on his trek, thirty-some Tibetans had self-immolated. In a relatively short period of time, the number rises above one hundred thirty. Maddeningly, the only media outlet reporting on the phenomenon is the Chinese propaganda media, which blames the “Dalai Clique.” Ironically though, His Holiness advocates a non-confrontational policy of coexistence known as the Middle Way Approach. Namling is losing confidence in the Middle Way and his is deeply disappointed in the Swiss government’s proposed free trade agreement with Beijing. Nevertheless, he is only too aware of the Chinese government’s overwhelming military and economic power.

This is a grim conundrum viewers will grapple with, along with the frustrated Namling. He might be an activist, but Namling is not an idiot. In fact, he is refreshingly down to earth. He never claims to have all the answers, but he is certainly eloquent explaining the problems. His concern for the long-term survival of Tibetan culture and the health of the country’s once pristine environment are entirely justifiable.

One can immediately see why Hunziker focused in on Namling as his subject. He is a charismatic, interesting looking figure who really fills the screen. He is not a poseur chanting slogans. His life has been shaped by the occupation, fragmenting his family. It is a sobering and timely film that gives audiences a fuller perspective on the Tibetan exile experience. Respectfully recommended for everyone concerned about human rights in Tibetan and the predatory destruction of ethnic cultures, Tibetan Warrior is now available on DVD and VOD, from Garden Thieves Pictures.

LFM GRADE: B+

Posted on October 12th, 2015 at 12:55pm.

The Prime Ministers: Soldiers and Peacemakers – TRAILER from Richard Trank on Vimeo.

By Joe Bendel. Israel is the only state in the Middle East that grants freedom of religion, equal rights under law to women and gays and lesbians, and maintains strong environmental protection laws. Ironically, former soldiers have often led this progressive state as its Prime Minister. Yet, in the tradition of Nixon going to China, it was Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Rabin who negotiated some of the region’s most significant peace treaties. Former Ambassador Yehuda Avner served them both. His history of Israel’s highest political office continues to serve as the roadmap of Richard Trank’s The Prime Ministers: Soldiers and Peacemakers, which opens this Friday in New York.

Throughout the follow-up to The Prime Ministers: the Pioneers, Trank continues to draw on Avner’s insider knowledge, but he starts with a telling incident that predated the diplomat’s government service. In the so-called Altalena Affair, Rabin-led Haganah-IDF forces and Begin’s Irgun found themselves clashing in a very public and embarrassing manner. However, they would soon settle into political roles as leaders of the majority Labor government and the Likud minority, respectively.

As trusted aide to Golda Meir and Levi Eshkol, the British-born Avner’s services were retained by the newly elected Rabin, who was determined to forge stronger ties with the United States, but dealing with Kissinger was a complicated task. Yet, they made headway, including a grand state dinner at the Ford White House, which supplies one of the best anecdotes of the doc duology.

The surprise election of Menachem Begin, the first transfer of power in Israel’s history, coupled with the less surprising election of Jimmy Carter ushered in an even trickier era. It was not a good personality match, but Begin was more committed to the peace process than most political commentators realized. Despite the naïve bungling of the Carter Administration (Avner duly provides more than enough examples), Sadat was also ready to deal. While most viewers have seen the familiar Camp David video, the archival footage of Sadat’s earlier visit to Israel really puts the Accords in a whole new context.

Indeed, providing fuller, richer historical background and context is exactly the mission of Trank and Moriah Films. You can trust them to give the entire story of Israel’s triumphs, as well as its failures (such as the shelling of the Altalena). There is a great deal of important history in both Prime Ministers that will give students and concerned citizens a better understanding of Israeli and Middle Eastern history.

The late Avner was also a wonderfully eloquent and engaging guide through Israel’s momentous Twentieth Century history. He is so lively and forceful in the film, it is hard to believe he is no longer with us. At least he left quite a testament. Like the previous installment, Soldiers and Peacemakers is also unusually well crafted by documentary standards, featuring a classy symphonic score composed by Emmy winner Lee Holdridge and the dramatic narration of Michael Douglas and Christoph Waltz, giving voice to Rabin and Begin, respectively.

Watching Soldiers and Peacemakers will help viewers clearly understand where we are now with respects to Israel and the Middle East. Yet, thanks to Avner’s wit and insights, it is never dry or stodgy. Highly recommended for students and general audiences, The Prime Ministers: Soldiers and Peacemakers opens this Friday (10/9) in New York, at the AMC Empire.

LFM GRADE: A-

Posted on October 6th, 2015 at 11:33pm.

By Joe Bendel. It is to believe now what a scandalous figure Ingrid Bergman was in 1950. The Kristen Stewarts and Lindsay Lohans of today should bow down to Bergman, both in recognition of her vastly superior talent and in gratitude for all the heat she took, helping normalize their chaotic private lives in the years to come. It was a profoundly difficult time for Bergman, but she never stopped being a grand movie star. To commemorate her centennial, Bergman tells her own story through home movies, private letters, and the diaries she kept nearly her entire life in Stig Björkman’s Ingrid Bergman in Her Own Words, which screens as part of the Spotlight on Documentary section of the 53rd New York Film Festival.

Björkman immediately establishes how deeply unhappy Bergman’s early childhood years truly were. Her mother died before she ever really knew her and her beloved father passed away when she was only twelve. Subsequently, her caretaker maiden aunt also died not long after taking her in. Although Björkman and some of Bergman’s children speculate Bergman sought to find the love and acceptance she longed for as a child through her acting career, many viewers will just figure she deserved a break during the Rossellini-Magnani “War of the Volcanoes” feeding frenzy.

Björkman chronicles her career as an extra beaming out crowd scenes, her initial Swedish success, the Hollywood glory years, her difficult collaborations with her second husband Roberto Rossellini, and her triumphant return to American cinema. She may well be the only screen thesp who worked with Alfred Hitchcock, Ingmar Bergman, Jean Renoir, George Cukor, and of course, Rossellini. It also shows how some films appreciate over time, whereas others depreciate critically. Bergman won an Oscar for Sidney Lumet’s Murder on the Orient Express (her third), but it gets scant mention here.

While Björkman worked closely with Isabella, Ingrid, and Roberto Rossellini, Bergman’s three adoring grown children with Rossellini père, he still assembles a remarkably balanced profile. Arguably, the most revealing interview segments are with Bergman’s eldest daughter, former New York arts correspondent Pia Lindström. It is not that she is critical or resentful, but she clearly has a more complex and nuanced perspective on the mother she rarely saw during her formative years.

Much of the archival photos and video of Bergman is quite stunning. This is Ingrid Bergman, the woman millions of people start each New Year with as part of the annual Casablanca re-watching tradition, enjoying family celebrations in their Italian villa or jockeying for the camera’s attention as a young drama student in Stockholm. Yet, she has the same look that tormented Bogart and seduced Cary Grant.

Somehow Björkman nimbly walks the fine line, crafting a balanced enough portrait to avoid charges of white-wash, while sufficiently capturing his subject’s charm and warmth to satisfy her family. It is also worth noting that Alicia Vikander, the current Swedish toast of Hollywood, narrates the extracts from Bergman’s journals and correspondence, which probably resonate with tremendous meaning and irony for her. Regardless, Ingrid Bergman in Her Own Words is an intimate but classy doc that should well please her fans when it screens this coming Monday (10/5) at the Walter Reade and Tuesday (10/6) at the Gilman, as part of this year’s NYFF.

LFM GRADE: B+

Posted on October 4th, 2015 at 9:03pm.