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The awesome documentary thread

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  • The awesome documentary thread

    We need a thread to discuss some of the lesser known documentaries that should be better known. I find that it is one of my fave genres, especially when the content pertains to subjects that fall within the sleazy/oddball/neato! pool of interests I enjoy wading around in.

    So yeah, I wanna find out about some new stuff. Lay some of your faves on me, and I'll do the same. They can be theatrical, tv, or direct to dvd, but lets stick to full length films an hour or longer.

    I'll get the ball rolling with this trailer for a film I really liked, and features art by Cinema Sewer contributor, Jim Rugg:

    NY77: THE COOLEST YEAR IN HELL (2009)
    www.cinemasewer.com

  • #2
    I just got a documentary called Unforgotten which is about what happened in the Willowbrook Mental Hospital on Staten Island. Haven't watched it yet but will this weekend. Amazon says:

    "A critically acclaimed, award-winning documentary that examines the impact of the horrors of the notorious Willowbrook State Institution for the developmentally disabled on the survivors and their families, Unforgotten features eloquent testimonials of family members and focuses on the lives of survivors, 25 years after Geraldo Rivera's historic television expose. "Stirring...Passionate...Unforgotten is unforgettable" -The Hollywood Reporter. "Absolutely Mesmerizing" --Jeffrey Lyons, WNBC TV. "A plea for treating people humanely" -Stephen Holden, The New York Times."

    So yeah, on top of that, see Cropsey if you haven't.



    We've been in those buildings you see in the trailer and they're creepy as fuck. That said, they're not the buildings where the crimes took place, those are gone, but they are supposedly where the cops and authorities looked for the bodies while all of this was going on.
    Rock! Shock! Pop!

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    • #3
      I second Cropsey. Really good. Another I watched recently was Square Grouper, about pot smuggling in the 70s. That was fascinating stuff.

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      • #4
        I've seen that one and I agree. I like how at the end the guy states that he never even thought about smuggling dope until he listened to Jimmy Buffett.
        Rock! Shock! Pop!

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        • #5
          Jimmy Buffett the mastermind of all pot smuggling in the 70s. You didn't know that?

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          • #6
            I do know, thanks to that documentary, and I shared that info with my mom, who is an ardant Jimmy Buffett fan.

            Robin, what was that documentary you sent me on that Nevada whorehouse? I can't remember the name of it off the top of my head, but despite that it's pretty awesome, a real fly on the wall look at how a legitimate brothel was run in the 70s complete with awesome 70s styles and furnishings.
            Rock! Shock! Pop!

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            • #7
              You must mean MUSTANG HOUSE OF PLEASURE (1978)


              ..or possibly CHICKEN RANCH (1983)?
              www.cinemasewer.com

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              • #8
                And yeah, I saw SQUARE GROUPER as well. Not as kick-ass as their earlier COCAINE COWBOYS, but totally entertaining. Especially the first third about the homophobic pot-cult living in the Florida mansion.
                www.cinemasewer.com

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                • #9
                  Mustang Ranch, that was it. That needs a legitimate DVD release - it's so good!
                  Rock! Shock! Pop!

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                  • #10
                    I need to see that. Great poster.

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                    • #11
                      Given your love of all things 70s and whorish, I can guarantee you'd dig it.

                      Another documentary that sticks with me is the PBS special on Jonestown. It uses a lot of recordings from the event and some pretty amazing archival clips and stills to paint a grim fucking portrait (obviously) of what happened there. It's actually very frightening and depressing but completely fascinating as well.
                      Rock! Shock! Pop!

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                      • #12
                        Check out:

                        Killing of America.

                        Titicut Follies.

                        Pretty much any Herzog documentary; of particular interest Encounters at the End of the World and Lessons of Darkness.
                        "Ah! By god's balls what licentiousness!"

                        Marquis de Sade, The 120 Days of Sodom.

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                        • #13
                          Yeah Jonestown...that IS a great doc. I remember that a little bit when it happened. I remembered seeing bodies on the news and feeling sick. I was probably 7 or 8. Would you consider Satanis a documentary? That's a good one too.

                          What about documentaries included in DVDs/BDs? Like the one on The Thing...that is one of the best ones ever, concerning a movie anyway.

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                          • #14
                            I'd say those count, Satanis too, though I read a lot of that was staged for the cameras.

                            The Joe Spinell story deserves all the praise it has been given over the years, and the Godfather's Of Mondo too. BU did some great stuff - recently the documentary on 10th Victim, which covers Marcello Mastroianni's career in a breezy 90 minutes plus is also super awesome.
                            Rock! Shock! Pop!

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Alex K. View Post
                              Pretty much any Herzog documentary; of particular interest Encounters at the End of the World and Lessons of Darkness.
                              I almost posted the same thing earlier but got sidetracked at work. All of his documentary stuff is awesome. The crazy preacher one, Grizzly Man, and yeah, Lessons of Darkness is amazing stuff, visually and conceptually. Totally highbrow but not in an unapproachable way, just really great filmmaking.

                              +1 on Killing Of America. One of the more legitimately insightful films of the mondo era.
                              Rock! Shock! Pop!

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