Netflix offers interesting documentary options
After my review of indie films in issue 37.6, I couldn’t help but want to delve into a film genre that I feel is of great interest to our generation. That genre is documentaries.
The documentaries you’ll read about in this review go beyond the usual mainstream political fare (such as the more popular Morgan Spurlock or Michael Moore films) to look more closely at people themselves and their unique lives. These are films I believe are well worth checking out. Better yet, they are all on Netflix.
“My Kid Could Paint That” (2007)
When you think gallery-worthy art, often you don’t think about the paintings of a toddler. However, this isn’t the case with Marla Olmstead, who began taking the art scene by storm back in 2005 when she was four years old. The documentary takes a look at a child who is considered a modern art prodigy.
Though this is all fine and great, there is controversy involved: Marla’s father happens to also be an artist, and because of this some believe that these paintings are a little too good to have been painted by someone so young. As the film progresses, we see the documentarian make several attempts to find the truth behind Marla’s paintings.
The film is solid in structure, but it is by no means the greatest documentary of all time. However, if you’re interested in art and the industry, this film might be worth your while. The film does leave a lot of questions unanswered, but I feel it is done in the spirit that the audience members are allowed to make up their minds not just about Marla, but also about the relationship between art and attention.
“American Movie” (1999)
Mark Borchardt is a filmmaker. Mark is a man from Wisconsin with a dream. However, he lacks the need and, in many cases, the abilities to achieve that dream. What he does have is passion.
The film documents Mark as he attempts to produce his self-written, feature-length horror film. But due to budget constraints (among other organizational problems), Mark has to turn back to directing “Coven,” an independent short film that also happens to be a horror. The film looks into the life of a man who longs for it all, but may not have the means to achieve it.
Being a filmmaker myself, this documentary really spoke to me. It’s something that most of us in this field long for. We all want to create a truly great film that is seen by millions. Both sad and inspiring, this doc is the perfect example of life being more entertaining than art. This film is my current favorite documentary for both its story and the amazing one-liners we get from Mark’s best friend, Mike. The man is comedic gold simply by being himself. If you need a reason to see this one other than the story of Mark, you have to see it for Mike.
“Overnight” (2003)
From one documentary about filmmaking to another, this time we look at a guy who was handed one of the greatest Hollywood movie deals of all time, only to screw it up. The film tells the story of Troy Duffy, a Boston bartender who is offered $450,000 for the purchase and production of his screenplay, “The Boondock Saints” (1999). The Weinsteins, who are essentially royalty in the movie producing world, even go as far as purchasing the bar Duffy works at as an extra bonus gift for Duffy. The movie deal also would allow Duffy’s band, The Brood, to produce the soundtrack for the film.
This film documents how a man who began as Hollywood’s “next big thing” is reduced to a swearing, belligerent mess unable to deal with what is given to him.
“Overnight” shows us a portrait of a man not ready for the industry he’s been thrust into. The film is gritty and raw. It shows what can happen when everything one could ever want is served up on a silver platter to a person without the maturity to handle it. If anything, this film is worth seeing if you’re a fan of “The Boondock Saints.” It shows both how the film could have been created on a grander scale as well as how close it came to never happening.
“Confessions of a Superhero” (2006)
If you’ve ever been to Hollywood and been to Graumans’s Chinese theater, you know about the costumed folk who stand outside of it looking like just about any movie star or superhero you can thing of. Have you ever wondered what those people are like and why they do it? This film takes you into the lives of four people who make their living as costumed professionals. We also get to see the good and the bad as they discuss their triumphs over the years and why they started in the first place.
This movie gave me a lot to think about when I first saw it. These people are genuinely interesting, and all of their stories are different though tied to the same general theme of wanting to make it big someday. The still photography littered throughout the transitions is beautiful, and the interviews are a mix of both depression and downright hilarity. However, this film does have a strangely somber overtone that you begin to feel from about the first three minutes in.
As a side note about my statements at the beginning about Morgan Spurlock films -- he did technically executive-produce this film, but he wasn’t the director of it. “Confessions of a Superhero” is a fine documentary by Matt Ogens.
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