Documentaries (3 Viewers)

[Chicken Rob]

Watched this one recently...though it was pretty entertaining.

+1 on this one. I thought it was pretty good. Make a great double bill with Anvil!

 

[guinness]

I watched this one a few weeks ago on Netflix. It was sweet and touching and really made me want to get over to Ireland and spend some time in these places before they are gone.

They wont be gone in our lifetime. There are soooo many and they are all like this.

Thor looks awesome! Im loving these music resurrection themed docs that are getting pumped out.

 

[tommythecat]

A few I watched on Netflix recently...

I really enjoyed Bayou Maharajah. I was not familiar with James Booker or his music in the least bit. His style of playing is incredible and if you like piano music at all you will enjoy this one.

I decided to watch Sneakerheads today since I went with a buddy to pick up Kanye's new release this morning (he needed some more people to get extra pairs (limit 1) for his collection). I was surprised by the doc since I am not a sneakerhead in the least. It brought back a lot of memories from growing up and seeing all of those shoes in school and on TV as well as memories of my first pair of Nikes and the reaction they got. Was really surprised how much I liked it.

The Barkley Marathons I threw on my list based on the description. I finally got around to watching it after a friend told me how good it was. I am not a runner nor have I completed a marathon, but still found this one quite excellent. This race is absolutely insane. I have messed around on those mountains and they are no joke. I couldn't even begin to imagine doing a race in them.

 

[bergs]

A few I watched on Netflix recently...

I really enjoyed Bayou Maharajah. I was not familiar with James Booker or his music in the least bit. His style of playing is incredible and if you like piano music at all you will enjoy this one.

I decided to watch Sneakerheads today since I went with a buddy to pick up Kanye's new release this morning (he needed some more people to get extra pairs (limit 1) for his collection). I was surprised by the doc since I am not a sneakerhead in the least. It brought back a lot of memories from growing up and seeing all of those shoes in school and on TV as well as memories of my first pair of Nikes and the reaction they got. Was really surprised how much I liked it.

The Barkley Marathons I threw on my list based on the description. I finally got around to watching it after a friend told me how good it was. I am not a runner nor have I completed a marathon, but still found this one quite excellent. This race is absolutely insane. I have messed around on those mountains and they are no joke. I couldn't even begin to imagine doing a race in them.

For the guys that play in my game, Christian is a YUUUUUGE sneakerhead. I've seen him leave extremely juicy 2/5 games because he had to get internet access and get sneakers that were being released overseas. Crazy stuff.

 

[Chicken Rob]

A few I watched on Netflix recently...

I really enjoyed Bayou Maharajah. I was not familiar with James Booker or his music in the least bit. His style of playing is incredible and if you like piano music at all you will enjoy this one.

I decided to watch Sneakerheads today since I went with a buddy to pick up Kanye's new release this morning (he needed some more people to get extra pairs (limit 1) for his collection). I was surprised by the doc since I am not a sneakerhead in the least. It brought back a lot of memories from growing up and seeing all of those shoes in school and on TV as well as memories of my first pair of Nikes and the reaction they got. Was really surprised how much I liked it.

The Barkley Marathons I threw on my list based on the description. I finally got around to watching it after a friend told me how good it was. I am not a runner nor have I completed a marathon, but still found this one quite excellent. This race is absolutely insane. I have messed around on those mountains and they are no joke. I couldn't even begin to imagine doing a race in them.

+1 on Barkley marathons. Loved that doc. Looking forward to the other 2.

 

[tommythecat]

I forgot about this one...

This one is worth watching for the visuals alone. It was interesting for a bunch of different reasons, especially the filming done in the DPRK.

 

[tommythecat]

I knocked another one off my Netflix list...

This was another doc worth watching just for the visuals. I wasn't familiar with Cai Guo-Qiang's art but really dig some of the explosion paintings and the fireworks displays are excellent.

 

[tommythecat]

Another one from Netflix...

I freaking loved this doc. Great personal stories and kept me on the edge of my seat at some points watching these people solo climbing. I used to do gym climbing but that was years ago. I really enjoy docs that can capture the feeling of a point in time and this one does so quite well IMO.

 

[jbutler]

FWIW, I enjoyed Kid Poker. If I had the opportunity to play with one pro at the table, I would choose DN. I'm sure I'd lose, but I'd be in stitches the entire time.

I watched it last week and thought it was ok. B- or C in my book. It was amazing they review the poker boom but Moneymaker isn't mentioned. Was cool to learn more of Daniel's bio though.

Watched this one last night and enjoyed it as well. Not groundbreaking obviously, but if you go in knowing what you're getting into it's a lot of fun and pretty inspirational in its own way. Kind of a coup to get Ivey on camera and speaking openly like that nowadays.

 

[tommythecat]

I guess I am in a documentary kind of mood lately...

I forgot that I watched this one a little while back. Off the top of my head I can't remember exactly what I liked about it, but it was well done.

I finally got around to watching this one this evening. I listened to the Shep Gordon WTF episode week before last and though there were a few overlapping stories they both go well together (order shouldn't matter). I only vaguely knew Shep was a manager so seeing what this guy has accomplished in his life from essentially nothing is inspiring. I don't think this one does quite as good of a job at capturing the feel of the time periods as Valley Uprising does, but I think it's becuase of the differences in structure between the two. Highly recommend

 

[Chicken Rob]

I guess I am in a documentary kind of mood lately...

I forgot that I watched this one a little while back. Off the top of my head I can't remember exactly what I liked about it, but it was well done.

I finally got around to watching this one this evening. I listened to the Shep Gordon WTF episode week before last and though there were a few overlapping stories they both go well together (order shouldn't matter). I only vaguely knew Shep was a manager so seeing what this guy has accomplished in his life from essentially nothing is inspiring. I don't think this one does quite as good of a job at capturing the feel of the time periods as Valley Uprising does, but I think it's becuase of the differences in structure between the two. Highly recommend

I saw both of these during my convalescence earlier this year. As a good double feature with Jiro, I recommend:

The film maker is from the town I was living in while recovering.

 

[tommythecat]

General Tso has been in my list for quite a while now. I will have to check it out soon.

 

[jbutler]

Cross posting my thoughts on Zero Days in case people who only watch docs only check this thread. Very good.

Watched Zero Days, Alex Gibney's doc about the stuxnet virus, last night:

Alex Gibney is one of the better documentarians working, but sometimes I think his prolific nature works against him. He puts stuff out at such a pace that I usually don't even try to keep up. Partly as a consequence of that, I didn't see this until last night though it's been available for months.

I couldn't recommend it highly enough. The best political/espionage thriller of last year. Where the new Jason Bourne movie failed, this succeeds in keeping you dying to know how the underlying machinations will allow us to get out of so many tight spots. Unfortunately, the tension is real and is based on the actual risks of nuclear proliferation and the risks of war posed not only by our adversaries, but our allies as well.

If you know the whole story of the stuxnet virus, then you will still enjoy seeing I laid out so cleanly, but if you, like me, knew little, you will find the entire thing insane. I can't promise you'll feel more optimistic after the movie, but it's very much worth watching.

As a final recommendation, I'd suggest putting on the subtitles. There are a lot of different accents among the contributors, so I found it easier to read than to listen to.

 

[brains613]

If you have Netflix, or access to other (ahem) sources, I'd check out the Ava Duvernay doc from last year called 13TH. I enjoyed it, though admittedly, It's a subject I'm already sensitive to. (My father, brother, two of three uncles, one of my three best friends from high school, and several cousins all did or are doing significant jail time...)

 

[tommythecat]

Watched this one on Netflix last night...

They heyday of The National Lampoon was a little before my time and it was in decline when I was at the age when one would really start to pay attention to it. I never read the magazine, but the movies were on heavy rotation when I was a younger. My dad ran my grandpa's bowling alley/bar when I was growing up so we had a metric fuckton of bootleg movies around the house. There was always someone coming in with something to sell and I frequently reaped the benefits when it came to movies. Watching the movies was always great and it was cool to see the story behind all that great stuff.

 

[tommythecat]

Watched this one on Netflix today...

 

[kirchhausen]

Watched "The Keepers" over the last week, a seven part documentary that explores the unsolved murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik in 1969 Baltimore. Any "Making a Murderer" or "Serial" fans should give this a shot!

 

[rowlin]

Long Strange Trip is available on Amazon Prime for those so inclined.

I enjoyed it, and the reviews seem positive so far from Heads and non-Heads alike. It runs about four hours and is split into six episodes.