Naqoyqatsi (2002)
First-time filmmaker Godfrey Reggio’s experimental film from 1982–shot mostly in the desert Southwest and New York City on a tiny budget with no script, then attracting the support of Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas and enlisting the indispensable musical contribution of Philip Glass–delighted college students on the midnight circuit and fans of minimalism for many [...]
Trekkies (1997)
Trekkies is a 1997 film directed by Roger Nygard about the devoted fans of Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek franchise. It is the first movie released by Paramount Vantage, then known as Paramount Classics. Starring Denise Crosby (best known for her portrayal of Security Chief Tasha Yar on the first season of the series: The Next [...]
The End of Men (2011)
In the past 100 years, the idealized archetypes of masculinity have been largely unchanged. What Manliness is, what Manhood is, what a Man is, have been remarkably constant. Men are rugged individuals. They are resilient, brave and loyal. Running like a spine through these images of manhood is one defining theme: A man is the [...]
Culture in Decline: Baby Go Boom! (2013)
In this installment of Peter Joseph’s public access parody, the subject of Security and True Safety will be investigated. The evil terrorists are revealed to be at it again with a new airline scare; our Guy In A Tie reminds us of who is in control and a special award show finds a very special recipient in [...]
Shoah (1985)
Claude Lanzmann directed this 9 and a half hour documentary film Shoah, about the Holocaust without using a single frame of archive footage. He interviews survivors, witnesses, and ex-Nazis (whom he had to film secretly since though only agreed to be interviewed by audio). His style of interviewing by asking for the most minute details [...]
The Other F Word (2011)
The Other F Word is a revealing and touching film that asks what happens when a generation’s anti-authoritarians, punk rockers, become society’s ultimate authoritism, dads. A large chorus of punk rock’s leading men including Blink-182′s Mark Hoppus, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea and Rise Against’s Tim McIlrath. The Other F Word follows Jim Lindberg, a 20 [...]
The Celluloid Closet (1995)
Based on Vito Russo’s groundbreaking 1981 work of film history, The Celluloid Closet gathers clips from dozens of mainstream Hollywood films to illustrate how the movies have dealt explicitly — and more importantly, implicitly — with gay and lesbian themes. Layered between the clips are interviews with filmmakers whose works have touched on that subject. [...]
Prophets of Science Fiction – Science Channel (2011)
All episodes except episode 7 Episode 7. Robert Heinlein What once was just imagination is now real; what was once the distant future is now around the corner. The “Science Fiction” of the past has now simply become “Science”. And the science of the future was strangely prophesied by a group of visionaries whose dreams [...]
Freakonomics (2010)
Published in 2005, Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything was a surprise international bestseller. It saw New York Times journo Stephen J Dubner team with University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt to apply economic theory to bizarre subjects. They exposed cheating in the world of Sumo wrestling, and the relationship between the Ku Klux [...]
Bigger Stronger Faster* (2008)
Pop culture junkies tend to think of Hulk Hogan, Sylvester Stallone, and Arnold Schwarzenegger as entertainment figures. In Poughkeepsie, NY, back in the 1980s, filmmaker Christopher Bell and his brothers viewed them as heroes and became bodybuilders. Like the Hulkster, Mike and Mark Bell even turned to professional wrestling. Chris, a former staffer at Venice’s [...]