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<div align='center'><a href='http://www.kontraband.com/blog/20233/Documenting-Hollywoods-Decline/'>Documenting Hollywood's Decline</a><br><div align='center'></div><br><a href='http://www.kontraband.com/blog'>See more like this on kontraband.com</a></div>

One of the unexpected benefits of the current scarcity of original ideas in Hollywood is the surprising migration of documentaries from the high number Sky channels to the art house and, even, the multiplex cinemas. I still think it rather strange to sit down in the cinema to watch a documentary; after all, aesthetically they aren't particularly suited to Dolby surround and massive screens. My own guess is that as the majority of Hollywood movies have become such slaves to the "high concept" ideal I've began to crave stories that are more focused on something relatable.

A way of cleansing the palate after swallowing the latest exercise in noise and sparkle that's been marketed down my throat. And I find it curiously pleasing that there are more interesting and varied stories out there in the real world than in the studios portfolio of comic book adaptations and horror remakes. (I just checked to make sure I wasn't raving there and out of 19 movies on at my local omniplex there are only 4 that are original stories, and one of those is Couples Retreat...).

So if you're looking for something other than the increasingly pornographic sensibilities of modern cinema here are some alternatives to the uninspired fantasy of Hollywood.

Deliver Us From Evil
Although the presentation of this doc is rather pedestrian - lots of slow sweeps over photographs and memos, too many talking heads sitting in office cubicles - this unintentionally serves only to reinforce what Hannah Arendt called "the banality of evil." As the story of paedophile priests unfolds the mind is left reeling at the way such despicable crimes are rationalized and dismissed by the Catholic Church. Interviews with victims are among the most disturbing things you'll ever see, I couldn't watch the screen when a father breaks down, half screaming, half crying, "Not molesting...Raping! He raped her. At 5 years old." Watching Father Oliver O'Grady walking through the park describing how he picked his victims while a child walks past in the background will redefine what you think a horror movie really is.


Touching the Void
Moving as far from the traditional documentary template as possible Touching the Void is the story of two mountaineers whose adventure up the Siula Grande turns into the most amazing story of survival. Utilizing a mixture of interviews and extremely well made dramatic reconstructions, this is an incredible edge of the seat thrill ride. It's testament to the skill of director Kevin Macdonald that he manages to keep an atmosphere of mortal peril even though the protagonists are both obviously alive and well, telling their story in a studio.


Earth/Planet Earth
The camera, high above, tracks along a river towards a drop off. The roar of water grows until we're swept past and turned to see the awesome sight of the 1000ft high Angel Falls, the world's highest free-flowing waterfall complete with rainbow slicing through the ephemeral mist. It's a hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck moment. Even the most visually inventive directors must throw their arms up with despair as the BBC's Natural History team conjured up breathtaking sight after breathtaking sight simply by pointing a camera in the right direction. CGI may have given us Middle Earth but it's not a patch on the real thing.


Anvil: The Story of Anvil
It's the ultimate buddy movie, it's a real world Spinal Tap, it's a Chicken Soup For The Soul for people who don't read inane bullsh#t, and its f#cking METAL dude! Maybe the claims that you don't need to like the music to like the film are a bit optimistic, but they're not entirely without merit either. There's a wonderful bromance between Steve and Robb, an eye opening look at the rock and roll lifestyle for the ones who don't make it, and so many funny moments that comedy writers must be left feeling impotent next to the delicious ironies of the real world. It's particularly soothing if you're currently going through the annual torture of the X-Factor (or American Idol) with your girlfriend.


Dark Days
Marc Singer spent 2 years living with New York's homeless population and offers this magnificent, unflinching view of their world. Again it's strange that in Hollywood for a tramp to be interesting he must be a forgotten violin maestro or green beret when the real stories are so powerful and dramatic. [Ed -it also has a soundtrack by DJ Shadow.]


Gimme Shelter
The Rolling Stones' 1970 film following their 1969 tour, which culminated with the fateful era-ending clusterf#ck at Altamont is so much more than a concert video. The fly on the wall camera captures all the behind the scenes dealings and egos as they unwittingly head for disaster. It's remarkable for one other thing too, it's the only band documentary that I know of where the subjects don't come across well. Especially nowadays band docs are pretty much just 90 minute long glorified adverts, reverential to the artists and asinine in production. Gimme Shelter pulls no punches with Jagger and co. They really don't come out of it well. It would be nice to see some other bands with the same balls to show themselves warts and all. The tunes are good too.


Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation!
Watching this film will give you at least three hilarious behind the scenes movie stories to impress your friends with, to avoid spoiling them I'll just hint at one. Dennis Hopper was banned not only from driving any car in Australia but also from being a passenger...Besides the great anecdotes there's a ton of charm in this exploration of the cheerful and deeply crazy Australian movie scene. Quentin Tarantino loves it, it's pretty much movie geek heaven and much like the movies it's about, it's a wild ride.


A word on Michael Moore:
Michael Moore makes stupid documentaries. He reduces complicated issues to simple ideology re-enforcing agitprop for liberals. And on one hand I think, why not? I mean Christ, the right has got a whole gang of misrepresenting f#ckwit agitators, they've got their own news channel in America but it doesn't mean that Moore's hammering of easy targets and surface skimming threads are worthwhile. Adam Curtis makes the documentaries that Moore should make. So go and watch them.

Added: 18 days ago by By Jingo | Posted in: Nerdcore | 7 Comments

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