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A nook on TV for reality nuts *
Some other new digital ventures have already foundered, but the Documentary Channel is going strong, MICHAEL POSNER discovers.
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A reel close-up on diversity *
Documentaries and social-realist dramas dominate this film festival dedicated to giving visual minorities greater exposure, LIAM LACEY writes.
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Accuracy, schmaccuracy: Whose reality is it, anyway? *
Audiences are often outraged by how the documentary, a form that purports to deal with facts, may play fast and loose with the truth, REBECCA CALDWELL writes.
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An old soul in a new indie-life *
Singer-songwriter Matthew Barber studied the great thinkers as a philosophy grad and now, his of-the-moment music has snagged him a contract with Warner Music, GUY DIXON writes.
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Canadian war hero makes triumphant return to former battleground *
Spitfire Ace goes back to Malta where he is given a hero's welcome. . .
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Controversy heats up over Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 *
Embattled filmmaker Michael Moore, facing an apparent refusal by the Walt Disney Co. to distribute his latest documentary, is expected in Toronto this morning as the keynote speaker at an environmental conference.
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Disney blocks distribution of Moore's new documentary *
The Walt Disney Company is blocking its Miramax Films division from distributing Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, which criticizes President Bush's handling of Sept. 11 and connects the Bush family with Osama bin Laden's.
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Drawing Out the Demons *
Vancouver premiere of local filmmaker David Vaisbord's latest feature: April 15-16, 2005 at Pacific Cinematheque, Vancouver, BC.
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Fahrenheit burns up box office *
Michael Moore's red-hot documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 earned more in its first three days of release across North America than his Oscar-winning Bowling for Columbine did in its entire run, the film's distributors said yesterday.
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HOT DOCS 2004 *
The following are reviews of selected films at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, which kicks off today in Toronto.
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HOT DOCS CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES ITS 2006 PROGRAMME *
From April 28 to May 7, Hot Docs will showcase the best in contemporary documentary cinema from Canada and around the world, screening 99 outstanding docs from 23 countries for Toronto audiences and more than 1700 international industry delegates.
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HOT DOCS WRAPS UP, ANNOUNCES TWO MORE AWARD WINNERS *
With the 12th annual festival having closed on Sunday, May 1, Hot Docs is proud to announce a record-breaking attendance of 41,000 and an astounding 100 per cent increase in sold-out screenings over the 2004 festival.
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Jessica Simpson, Jandek's not *
A new documentary spins the tale of a most unusual recording artist, who in 26 years has made 35 recordings and no public appearances.
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Johanna Schneller: Films not likely to fade away *
There's no point in gnashing your teeth, wondering how writer-directors Kevin Smith and the Coen brothers can make sharp, witty movies such as Clerks or Fargo, and then yawn out such tepidities as the current Jersey Girl and The Ladykillers. You just have to hope that some balmy L.A. night, these filmmakers recognize that they are lost, and steer themselves back toward the funny.
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Magic moments *
It's not about accuracy, art or acting. A love affair with documentaries, at least for RICK GROEN, is all about a few seconds of honesty.
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Michael Moore doc to hit theatres in weeks *
Canada's Lions Gate joins 'coalition of the willing' to release scathing Fahrenheit 9/11.
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Michael Moore turns up the heat *
'There are some things I don't think you get about me,' filmmaker Michael Moore tells LIAM LACEY, before happily agreeing with that 'manipulative' comment. . .
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Minimize me *
Soso Whaley was so infuriated by a new documentary that claims McDonald's food will make you fat and unhealthy she set out to prove the opposite. ANDRE MAYER reports.
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Moore cautions Canadians about Iraq *
Hopefully Canadians will not set a trend at the end of the current federal election and vote into power a political party that says it would have joined the Bush administration's invasion-of-Iraq coalition, says U.S. filmmaker Michael Moore.
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My Date With Drew (Garber review) ****
The premise of the film is that 27-year-old Brian Herzlinger is out of a relationship, out of work, out of the loop and pretty much out-of-it in general, but he has not given up on his dream: To get a date with Drew Barrymore.
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Rejuvenated NFB plots a new course *
The leadership is determined to slash red tape and get back to doing what the board does best, GAYLE MacDONALD writes.
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See Some of the World's Best Commercials *
Have You Always Wanted to Write a Commercial? Then, come see some really great commercials without being interrupted by really bad television: April 30 to May 4, 2006, Vancouver, BC.
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Support for Moore ramps up *
The liberal American grassroots political organization MoveOn is urging its more than two million members to strike a blow for the First Amendment by turning up for the opening day next Friday of Michael Moore's incendiary documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, in part to battle attempts by a powerful California Republican to intimidate theatre owners into not showing the film.
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The Aristocrats (Madelyn Miller review) *** 1/2
Warning: Not exactly a movie spoiler, but this review contains words and describes situations that are strictly for adults. Reader discretion is advised!
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The Komagata Maru's Return To Vancouver *
DOXA is an annual documentary film festival dedicated to bringing thought-provoking and compelling films to local audiences. This year's festival will run from May 24 - 29, 2005, Vancouver, BC.
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The new blockbuster docs *
Once relegated to public television, documentaries are muscling in on feature films at the box office.
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The Real Deal (Nowack) *
Filmmakers Alan and Susan Raymond spend a year at M. Hall Stanton Elementary School in Philadelphia, documenting how the school and its principal have brought stability to its impoverished students.
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The Reel Deal (Lacey) *
It's the year of the documentary. Critics are applauding, Oscar has noticed, and record audiences have made them popular, even profitable. In the first of a week-long series devoted to the hot doc, LIAM LACEY answers the question: Why now?
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The shot seen around the world *
Behind the creation of some remarkable film.
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The truth is in the lens of the beholder *
Advances in technology are allowing young documentary makers to challenge the staid boundaries of the genre, GUY DIXON writes.
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TIFF unveils rich lode of docs *
With filmmaker Michael Moore's anti-war documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 joining the $100-million club on the weekend -- a record for a documentary in North American box office -- 2004 is undeniably the year of the Super Doc.
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War at forefront of film festival *
"Fun and crucial" are the words veteran documentary filmmaker Michael Maclear used to describe the Hot Docs film festival, which had its official kickoff yesterday in Toronto.
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Oscar ratings follow box-office slide *
Sunday's Academy Awards telecast averaged 38.8 million viewers, down nearly 8 per cent from last year, bearing out predictions that a relative lack of star power and the serious, art-house subject matter of Oscar-nominated films such as Crash, Brokeback Mountain, Munich and Capote would dampen interest in this year's show.
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