Drive In '77

My Favorite Films of 2012: The Documentaries

This year I am separating the documentary yolk from the scripted whites of the cinematic egg.  Over the last decade I always have a doc high on my list while squeezing one or two out in favor of a more concise overall list, so this time I am giving all of them my respect.  Some incredible stories came to me via documentary filmmaking in 2012, please see these!

Keep in mind detail junkies, some of these show earlier release dates (via IMDB), but they were all widely available in 2012 and for docs that is my main criteria. 

Documentary Favs

1. Bones Brigade: An Autobiography
2. Comic Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope
3. Trek Nation
4. The Queen of Versailles
5. PressPausePlay
6. Indie Game: The Movie
7. Patriocracy

Special Shout Out: Perfect Cappuccino (2008)

Bones is a real no-brainer for me and would sit in the Top 5 for the overall list as well.  I was practically shouting after watching it and even lept to Facebook to urge others to seek it out.  I only wish the subject matter was a bit more "Oscar worthy" so Stacy Peralta could get some much deserved love.  The man has turned out to be an incredible filmmaker and with Bones he has created an important document on the history of skateboarding.

Morgan Spurlock's Comic Con film was my most watched doc of the year.  I bought the DVD (yes with the HeroClix figures like a nerd...) without having seen the movie at all and loved it.  Sure, as a long time attendee of the event, I probably would've made a different version of the movie (Note to everyone: there's still plenty of Con docs that could be made!), but this is a great effort and made me smile over and over again.

Trek Nation was a poignant journey of a son searching to understand his father's tremendous legacy.  For as big an impact Gene Roddenberry had on television and science fiction, to his son he was just dad.  Rod's quest turns out to be a little like an away mission where the unexpected is waiting around every papier mache rock.  It's a great watch for Trekkies, but I think any pop culture fan will find a lot of enjoyment out of it.

The Queen of Versailles was my biggest surprise.  I really queued it to see if my wife would enjoy it as the description was something of a "Real Housewives-esque" documentary.  What actually happend was a film crew starts a movie about the building of the largest house in the U.S. and what they get is a story about how a rich family is affected by the recession.  What makes it work is the fact that the family is incredibly likeable and sane about their life.  The trophy wife has an engineering degree, the kids have a lot but don't act like spoiled Honey Boo Boos, and the father is just a hard working businessman who has clearly earned his fortune.  They are an American success story who trap themselves in all the lavishness, but when the table turns, are capable of adapting and surviving.  You might not relate to the bank account (which is still considerable even through their "hard times"), but the message is surprisingly wonderful.

As someone who has both made films and been involved in bands since high school, the onslaught of the digital revolution is sometimes exciting and often very very scary.  It amazes me how quickly we've abandoned tried and true methods for computers and software.  I recorded a demo in 2011, and the process is ridiculous.  The art of performance is ignored for tweaking towards "perfection."  It's no wonder the industry is tanking.  PressPausePlay takes an in depth look at the way music is produced and consumed in this digital world.  It is a great conversation starter and if you're an artist in any way, a must watch.

On the flip side, Indie Game: The Movie is a great peek into how small game developers and creators can utilize new technology to become huge successes.  You'll follow a couple games in development and see how their process differs while getting a look at marketing, programming, trade shows, Xbox Live, and the overall business of indie video games.  It's great, inspirational, and you connect and cheer for the people involved. 

Do you hate modern politics?  Do you think the entertainment news channels and their absurd 24 hour news cycle of shouting matches, misinformation, and soundbite personalities are killing this country?  Me too!!  In that case you will love Patriocracy, an in depth examination of how the news media has changed and grown into this massive pile of bullshit since the introduction of CSPAN back in the late 70s.  If you watch this and don't get angry, you're dead inside.  Might be the most important political doc you could ever watch if for no greater reason than it should help you realize how often you are misled by imposter newscasters.

On a happier note, I tossed in a special mention for the film Perfect Cappuccino.  If you like coffee, this one woman's journey to at first discover coffee culture in Italy and then get immersed in the local coffee house revolution in America is fascinating and informative.  Not the most well assembled doc, but you can tell she was shooting on the fly and adapting to the curves thrown her way, which is admirable. 

I think all of these except the Comic Con doc are available on Netflix streaming right now as are at least three of the Oscar nominated documentaries.  So far, out of the Academy films, I'd suggest The Invisible War if for no other reason than as a test.  If you're not enraged by military polices and cultural practices after that, you're clearly a robot.

Can't wait to see what 2013 brings!!  I love me some doc!

 

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Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest

Holy smokes!  Michael Rappaport got skillz!  This is easily my favorite documentary about hip hop ever and Top 10 for music in general.  For me, that is a statement.  I love music docs.  Music docs are an obsession and I 've watched even mediocre ones a dozen times, but Beats, Rhymes & Life makes me want to go buy the Blu Ray, hook up the stereo, and crank the dial.  It is a mix of old school hip hop history, the persistence of artistic vision, and the story of a group so influential they've become almost impossible to quantify.

Directed by the aforementioned Michael Rappaport, an actor and notorious hip hop aficionado known for his roles in flicks like Higher Learning and his time on Boston Public, this film tells the story of A Tribe Called Quest.  If you neither know nor own any of their music, chances are you will by the end of this movie.  As a drummer, it was these "Native Tongue" and early hip hop groups like Run DMC that I always gravitated towards when I was searching for grooves to lay under rock and roll.  Tribe might have been the best.  Their loops were always tight and bottom heavy but without all the over tweaked low end you get on modern rap albums.  They carried with them a soul that changed the game and transcended the genre.  They were jazz, they were R&B, they were street, they were poetry and it's about time their story was on film.

For a first dip into the feature film pool, Rappaport displays a keen knowledge of how to capture life and infuse it with history, a skill required for good documentary filmmaking.  He lets the players talk (and they do!) and tell their story all while following them through a new resurgence of performance.  They're a group that has over two decades of history, and no stone is left unturned.  The beauty of the way the collection of images, old and new footage and interviews is assembled is the power of Tribes music.  Throughout, you cannot help but bob your head and feel the flow of their tracks whether it lays underneath the scene or is cranked up in the mix.  Everything is tied together with a perfect bow as if it was that dream Christmas gift you didn't even know you'd asked for.

I don't know what else to say without sounding like some schill blowing endless smoke up this film's arse.  You have to see it.  You must do yourself the favor of seeing it.  If you grew up in the 80s it is required viewing.  A fantastic doc from beginning to end.

Grade: A+