By John Corrado The latest work from Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania (the Oscar-nominated The Man Who Sold His Skin), the Oscar-nominated documentary Four Daughters is a chilling and fascinating study of how radicalization takes hold. The film is formally audacious in its mix of documentary and dramatic reenactments, blending subjects and actors to tell… Read More Review: Four Daughters
By John Corrado Estonian filmmaker Anna Hints’ artful, unconventional documentary Smoke Sauna Sisterhood follows a group of women in Southern Estonia, who are gathered together in a traditional smoke sauna hidden deep in the woods. Shot over several years, Hints follows a variety of subjects over the backdrop of changing seasons. As they sit naked… Read More Review: Smoke Sauna Sisterhood
John Corrado Inspired by Pixar’s 1998 second feature A Bug’s Life, the Disney Plus series A Real Bug’s Life puts us on the ground to document the lives of real insects around the world across five half-hour episodes narrated by Awkwafina. Produced by National Geographic, A Real Bug’s Life begins on the streets of New… Read More Review: A Real Bug’s Life (Disney+)
By John Corrado Director Thomas von Steinaecker’s documentary Radical Dreamer: Werner Herzog offers an enjoyable overview of the iconic German filmmaker’s career, known both for his accent and bold, inquisitive filmmaking style. The documentary chronologically explores Herzog’s early films as part of the New German Cinema movement, which gave way to his reputation as a… Read More Review: Werner Herzog: Radical Dreamer
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) Director Madeleine Gavin’s documentary Beyond Utopia offers a compelling glimpse inside North Korea, through the eyes of those who risk their lives trying to escape the country. The real pull of Gavin’s film is the secret, handheld footage shot by defectors themselves, showing us the perilous journey that… Read More Review: Beyond Utopia
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) The 2023 Toronto International Film Festival ran from September 7th to 17th. Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe (which was voted the winner of the TIFF People’s Choice Award for Documentary) is a heartwarming documentary about a childhood icon, that also touches on the history of Canadian children’s… Read More #TIFF23 Review: Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe (TIFF Docs)
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) In the summer of 2020, after having to cancel their tour due to COVID, the Canadian indie rock band July Talk decided to do a concert at the Stardust Drive-In in Sharon, Ontario. But this came with its own unique set of challenges, including figuring out the logistics… Read More Review: July Talk: Love Lives Here
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) Directed by Julie Cohen (Julia, RBG), the fascinating and highly engaging documentary Every Body explores the people who make up the I in LGBTQIA, which stands for intersex. The term intersex is used to describe those born with elements of both male and female sex characteristics, with over… Read More Review: Every Body
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) Marvel Comics legend Stan “The Man” Lee gets the documentary biopic treatment in Stan Lee, an officially sanctioned project that is premiering on Disney Plus. Born Stanley Martin Lieber, and coming of age during the Great Depression in New York City, the film charts how he got his… Read More Review: Stan Lee (Disney+)
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival runs from May 25th to June 4th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. In the documentary Supporting Our Selves, director Lulu Wei looks at the history of Community One, a Toronto organization that was founded… Read More #InsideOut2023 Review: Supporting Our Selves
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival runs from May 25th to June 4th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. In his informative documentary Commitment to Life, filmmaker Jeffrey Schwarz (I Am Devine, Tab Hunter Confidential), explores the history of the… Read More #InsideOut2023 Review: Commitment to Life
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) With a manned mission to Mars now basically a matter of when and not if, one of the biggest questions that remains is how human astronauts will deal with the isolation on the three year mission that it takes to get to the Red Planet. This question is… Read More Review: The Longest Goodbye
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) Aaju Peter, the subject of filmmaker Lin Allluna’s documentary Twice Colonized (which recently had its world premiere as the opening night film of Hot Docs), is an Inuit lawyer who was born in Greenland, but moved to the Canadian Arctic. Living in Iqaluit, Aaju is perhaps most notable… Read More Review: Twice Colonized
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Hot Docs Film Festival ran from April 27th to May 7th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. The documentary Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law? offers a solid introduction to pro-democracy activist Nathan Law, as it provides an engaging overview of… Read More #HotDocs23 Review: Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law?
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Hot Docs Film Festival ran from April 27th to May 7th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. In their documentary When Spring Came to Bucha, directors Mila Teshaieva and Marcus Lenz take us into the Ukrainian town of Bucha in the… Read More #HotDocs23 Review: When Spring Came to Bucha
By John Corrado ★★★½ (out of 4) The 2023 Hot Docs Film Festival ran from April 27th to May 7th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. Directed by Mystlav Chernov, one of three Associated Press journalists who went to the Ukrainian city of Mariupol as soon as Russian… Read More #HotDocs23 Review: 20 Days in Mariupol
By John Corrado This year’s 30th anniversary edition of Hot Docs has officially come to a close, with the festival’s Top 20 Audience Award finalists announced today. The first place winner of the Hot Docs Audience Award is Quebec filmmaker Philippe Falardeau’s Lac-Mégantic – This Is Not an Accident. The top ranking mid-length film was… Read More #HotDocs23 Audience Award Winners
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Hot Docs Film Festival runs from April 27th to May 7th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. The Lebanese Burger Mafia is an enjoyable look at the history of Burger Baron, an Alberta fast food franchise that is not really… Read More #HotDocs23 Review: The Lebanese Burger Mafia
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Hot Docs Film Festival runs from April 27th to May 7th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. In director Juha Suonpää’s documentary Lynx Man, we are introduced to a unique subject; Hannu, an older Finnish man who has appointed himself… Read More #HotDocs23 Review: Lynx Man
By John Corrado ★★★ (out of 4) The 2023 Hot Docs Film Festival runs from April 27th to May 7th in Toronto, more information on tickets and showtimes can be found right here. Against the Tide, which won the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Vérité Filmmaking at Sundance, is a compelling slice-of-life documentary from… Read More #HotDocs23 Review: Against the Tide
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