By John Corrado

Two of the best and most important documentaries of 2014 are opening this weekend, with The Case Against 8 and The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz both starting limited runs at the Bloor Cinema today.  These are invaluable films that chart the moving human stories behind recent political history, and should both be required viewing.

Premiering at Hot Docs and a runner up for the Audience Award, The Case Against 8 will be playing at the Bloor Cinema until July 3rd.  Tickets and showtimes can be found right here.

After gay marriage was legalized in the State of California, voters passed the controversial Proposition 8, revoking the use of the word “marriage” for same sex unions.  But the bill was challenged by two fearless couples, Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo as well as Kris Perry and Sandy Stier, who enlisted the help of prominent Republican lawyer Ted Olsen to battle the unconstitutional law.

What followed was a rigorous legal battle that was fought from both sides, before the unjust Prop 8 was finally repealed.  Despite the fact that the hearings themselves were not allowed to be filmed, directors Ben Cotner and Ryan White cover a lot of ground, and The Case Against 8 provides a fascinating play by play of events.

This is a powerful and important film that works as both a compelling legal procedural and touching human drama, and the release coincides perfectly with the WorldPride celebrations happening this weekend around Toronto.

The opening night selection at Hot Docs and one of the top films at the festival, The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz will be playing at the Bloor Cinema until July 7th.  Tickets and showtimes are right here.

From the time he was young, Aaron Swartz was a programming genius and early adopter of the internet, using his coding skills to launch numerous platforms including RSS and Reddit.  But he wasn’t looking to profit from his work, and instead turned his attention to fighting for the freedom of information, downloading thousands of files from corporately run archive sites through MIT’s secure network, which unjustly led to his arrest.

Aaron Swartz was a true visionary and inspiring advocate, but he ultimately fell victim to the same corrupt systems that he was trying to expose, taking his own life at the age of 26 with the pressures of the court and potential jail time finally taking their toll on him.

Raising fascinating questions about how much control should be put on public information, The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz is made all the more powerful for never losing sight of the heartbreaking human story at hand.  This is one of the most thought provoking and important films you will see this summer, and one of the finest documentaries of the year.