Steve James | Film Festival Today

Jay Berg’s AFI DOCS 2018 Top Five

July 4, 2018

“Mediha” Offers Healing from Trauma
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 23, 2023
Mediha (Hasan Oswald, 2023) 3½ out of 4 stars. I would be lying if I said I didn’t have trauma fatigue when it comes to certain documentary subjects. But what is one viewer’s discomfort and exhaustion compared to real-world horror and its impact on survivors. Assuming I am not unique in my aversion to repeated exposure to tragedy, I urge everyone to steel their nerves and gear up for another narrative of kidnapping, abuse and rape. Fortunately, ... >>
“Yours in Freedom, Bill Baird” Stirs
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 19, 2023
Yours in Freedom, Bill Baird (Rebecca Cammisa, 2023) 3½ out of 4 stars. Sometimes the best kind of biographical documentaries are the ones that introduce us to unsung heroes of the past. Though they may have been celebrated (or not) in their day, time has weakened their cultural prominence. What makes director Rebecca Cammisa’s newest film, Yours in Freedom, Bill Baird, so special is the way it both revives the memory of an important historical ... >>
“Shari & Lamb Chop” Is a Delight
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 15, 2023
Shari & Lamb Chop (Lisa D’Apolito, 2023) 3½ out of 4 stars. I am simultaneously too young and too old to have ever experienced Shari Lewis in her two television broadcast eras: from the late 1950s through early 1960s, and then from 1992 until her death from cancer in 1998 at the age of 65. But as a child, I was given her 1975 book Magic for Non-Magicians, co-written with her father, Abraham Hurwitz, which had on its back cover a photo ... >>
“Pay or Die” Enrages but Enlightens
By Matt Patti
November 13, 2023
Pay or Die (Rachael Dyer/Scott Alexander Ruderman, 2023) 4 out of 4 stars. The cost of insulin has long plagued Type 1 diabetics in the United States. The substance vital to their survival is outlandishly priced, especially in comparison to other countries that offer the exact same quantity and quality. This disparity has made life a difficult burden to diabetic Americans and, in many unfortunate cases, led to medical struggles and even deaths ... >>
“Lucha: A Wrestling Tale” Wins Hearts
By Christopher Llewellyn Reed
November 13, 2023
Lucha: A Wrestling Tale (Marco Ricci, 2024) 3½ out of 4 stars. In documentary cinema, there is a grand tradition of competition films, which follow teams or individuals on the road to transformational success, be it in sports or other arenas. Political-campaign movies are not dissimilar in their trajectories. Quite often, we follow the protagonist(s) through obstacles and opportunities until some of them win. Those who lose receive our sympathy, ... >>

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