Movies and TV Late night bullshit: Your favorite documentary. - Page 2

Direckshun · 10-24-2013, 11:10 PM

I've been on a documentary bender the past few days. I've started threads about documentaries I've seen in the past, and I'm on record saying that Planet Earth and WWII in HD are the best things ever put on television.

I've seen a couple documentaries recently that really left a profound impact on me. Maybe you've seen some you'd like to talk about? Or maybe you just want to piddle around late at night. This is your thread.

1. I saw "Crisis: Behind A Presidential Commitment" on some channel called Pivot a few days ago, about John F. Kennedy enforcing the integration of the University of Alabama over the segregationist civil disobedience of its then-governor, George Wallace (almost certainly at the behest of his constituents).

This was pretty okay. The story it told didn't have a lot of chapters to it: the federal court decision that mandated integration isn't discussed, nor is any of the other fallout surrounding school integration in the south. This confrontation was entirely civil; there was no violence or use of force. Here's the entire movie: Kennedy wonders if Wallace is going to stand in the way of school integration at U of A, Wallace does, so Kennedy nationalizes the Alabama Guard and there you have it: school integrated.

What's really awesome about this documentary (and it's really old, made in 1963) is it has almost zero voiceover commentary. You are seeing everything happen as history unfolds, as cameras tape Kennedy sweating bullets in the Oval, and Wallace mouthing off to a federal representative as he stands in front of the entrance to his school, blocking it off.

This happened about 50 years ago. That is absolutely ****ing insane, that we've gone from segregation to total integration in such a small amount of time. A public divided on an issue so important became a public overwhelmingly in support of it. So much can happen in such a small amount of time. These were people that mostly look like us, dress like us, and talk like us. This is not ancient history. And we're at each other's throats over increasing gas mileage standards for cars. These people were talking about treating black people equally. Makes our fights seem small by comparison, if you ask me.

2. I saw "Blackfish" tonight on CNN, after months of wanting to see it at my local arthouse theater but never getting a chance to. This movie's about the gross negligence of aquatic amusement parks (SeaWorld, SeaWorld, and SeaWorld) for their criminally negligent treatment of killer whales.

I think the most amazing thing about this documentary is how ****ing amazing orca are. These are creatures that are the sizes of school buses, the intelligent capacity of humans, and what seems like an emotional capacity that far exceeds humans. It's really stunning, the things this documentary reveals about these gigantic mammals.

Mainly it follows the exploits of this one orca they call "Tillicum" from his capture at sea to his confinement in a tank that's simply impossibly small for a creature of his size. The fact that they store a ton of these things together in the same tank is revealed as absolutely insane: they're a lot like people from all over the world, and when you just cherry pick them, separate them from their families, and throw them into what must feel like a bathtub to them with a bunch of others who they can't talk to, can't understand, and don't trust, bad things happen.

Namely, trainers get attacked, mutilated, and occasionally even killed. And of course you see all the deliberate actions from SeaWorld to keep churning out product even in light of this danger.

Mostly, for me, this film really illustrates what it's like for us to abdicate our responsibility to take stewardship over the earth. Humanity simply does not have the resources to adequately care for these creatures: they span hundreds of miles a day, and require more stimulation and social interaction than we are capable of providing. These are incredibly social creatures apparently, and we are placing them in underwater jail cells.

I'm a religious person, and I can't help but think of this as a sin. I don't think you have to be religious to feel like the animals that share our world deserve moral treatment, and that aquatic amusement parks like SeaWorld are absolutely abdicating this responsibility with killer whales.

Anyway.

That's my rant. What kind of mind-expanding documentaries have you seen recently?

Direckshun · 10-24-2013, 11:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerm

Loose Change is a 9/11 conspiracy doc.

Welp, I'm out.

Dayze · 10-24-2013, 11:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerm

9/11: In Plane Site and Zero: An Investigation Into 9/11 are much better than Loose Change IMO...

yes; those are very good also.

**Gonzo** · 10-24-2013, 11:50 PM

Watched Craigslist Joe the other day. Fascinating how people will place ads for anything on that site.

Jerm · 10-24-2013, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Direckshun

Welp, I'm out.

What about Zeitgeist?

Direckshun · 10-24-2013, 11:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerm

What about Zeitgeist?

I'm generally out on conspiracy theories. I'm assuming that's what that is.

I subscribe to one. That's it.

Fritz88 · 10-24-2013, 11:59 PM

1- Shock of the new.
2- Anything by Adam Curtis.

Going to sleep. Maybe I'll add more later.

Dayze · 10-25-2013, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerm

What about Zeitgeist?

shit....I forgot about that one. I liked that one too.

Dallas Chief · 10-25-2013, 12:02 AM

Favorite of all time is tough to say- top five in no particular order...

Paradise Lost
Hoop Dreams
American Movie
Dogtown and Z-Boys
Smartest Guys in the Room (Enron)

Iconic · 10-25-2013, 12:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Direckshun

Interesting. Tell me about it.

To make it short and sweet- They interview the six former heads of Shin Bet, the Israeli security agency, about the morality of state-sanctioned violence. It's kind of depressing but what I like most is how honest and sincere the men are about Israel's dirty laundry.

Dallas Chief · 10-25-2013, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerm

Loose Change is a 9/11 conspiracy doc.

Wasn't it remade or changed several times to where the latest version is just a convoluted mess? The earlier versions were so far out there that at least they had some entertainment value.

SPATCH · 10-25-2013, 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dallas Chief

Favorite of all time is tough to say- top five in no particular order...

Paradise Lost
Hoop Dreams
American Movie
Dogtown and Z-Boys
Smartest Guys in the Room (Enron)

Damn, dude. Hoop Dreams. Just incredible.

Direckshun · 10-25-2013, 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iconic

To make it short and sweet- They interview the six former heads of Shin Bet, the Israeli security agency, about the morality of state-sanctioned violence. It's kind of depressing but what I like most is how honest and sincere the men are about Israel's dirty laundry.

Sounds right up my alley.

Thanks for the recommendation!

SPATCH · 10-25-2013, 12:09 AM

There was a thread about this when it aired, but if you haven't watched A League of Denial then you need to.

Direckshun · 10-25-2013, 12:11 AM

I did see it.

A very, very sore subject with me, actually. I almost quit football altogether last year because of the book that documentary was based on.

Really, anything by Frontline is amazing.

Dayze · 10-25-2013, 12:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dallas Chief

Favorite of all time is tough to say- top five in no particular order...

Paradise Lost
Hoop Dreams
American Movie
Dogtown and Z-Boys
Smartest Guys in the Room (Enron)

yep; Smartest Guys In The Room was good; and pissed me off all at the same time.

10-24-2013, 11:10 PM
Direckshun __ Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Springpatch Casino cash: $4343447	Late night bullshit: Your favorite documentary. I've been on a documentary bender the past few days. I've started threads about documentaries I've seen in the past, and I'm on record saying that Planet Earth and WWII in HD are the best things ever put on television. I've seen a couple documentaries recently that really left a profound impact on me. Maybe you've seen some you'd like to talk about? Or maybe you just want to piddle around late at night. This is your thread. 1. I saw "Crisis: Behind A Presidential Commitment" on some channel called Pivot a few days ago, about John F. Kennedy enforcing the integration of the University of Alabama over the segregationist civil disobedience of its then-governor, George Wallace (almost certainly at the behest of his constituents). This was pretty okay. The story it told didn't have a lot of chapters to it: the federal court decision that mandated integration isn't discussed, nor is any of the other fallout surrounding school integration in the south. This confrontation was entirely civil; there was no violence or use of force. Here's the entire movie: Kennedy wonders if Wallace is going to stand in the way of school integration at U of A, Wallace does, so Kennedy nationalizes the Alabama Guard and there you have it: school integrated. What's really awesome about this documentary (and it's really old, made in 1963) is it has almost zero voiceover commentary. You are seeing everything happen as history unfolds, as cameras tape Kennedy sweating bullets in the Oval, and Wallace mouthing off to a federal representative as he stands in front of the entrance to his school, blocking it off. This happened about 50 years ago. That is absolutely **ing insane, that we've gone from segregation to total integration in such a small amount of time. A public divided on an issue so important became a public overwhelmingly in support of it. So much can happen in such a small amount of time. These were people that mostly look like us, dress like us, and talk like us. This is not ancient history. And we're at each other's throats over increasing gas mileage standards for cars. These people were talking about treating black people equally. Makes our fights seem small by comparison, if you ask me. 2. I saw "Blackfish" tonight on CNN, after months of wanting to see it at my local arthouse theater but never getting a chance to. This movie's about the gross negligence of aquatic amusement parks (SeaWorld, SeaWorld, and SeaWorld) for their criminally negligent treatment of killer whales. I think the most amazing thing about this documentary is how **ing amazing orca are. These are creatures that are the sizes of school buses, the intelligent capacity of humans, and what seems like an emotional capacity that far exceeds humans. It's really stunning, the things this documentary reveals about these gigantic mammals. Mainly it follows the exploits of this one orca they call "Tillicum" from his capture at sea to his confinement in a tank that's simply impossibly small for a creature of his size. The fact that they store a ton of these things together in the same tank is revealed as absolutely insane: they're a lot like people from all over the world, and when you just cherry pick them, separate them from their families, and throw them into what must feel like a bathtub to them with a bunch of others who they can't talk to, can't understand, and don't trust, bad things happen. Namely, trainers get attacked, mutilated, and occasionally even killed. And of course you see all the deliberate actions from SeaWorld to keep churning out product even in light of this danger. Mostly, for me, this film really illustrates what it's like for us to abdicate our responsibility to take stewardship over the earth. Humanity simply does not have the resources to adequately care for these creatures: they span hundreds of miles a day, and require more stimulation and social interaction than we are capable of providing. These are incredibly social creatures apparently, and we are placing them in underwater jail cells. I'm a religious person, and I can't help but think of this as a sin. I don't think you have to be religious to feel like the animals that share our world deserve moral treatment, and that aquatic amusement parks like SeaWorld are absolutely abdicating this responsibility with killer whales. Anyway. That's my rant. What kind of mind-expanding documentaries have you seen recently?
Posts: 59,282

10-24-2013, 11:59 PM	#21
Fritz88 Custom User Title Join Date: Nov 2008 Casino cash: $8855943	1- Shock of the new. 2- Anything by Adam Curtis. Going to sleep. Maybe I'll add more later.
Posts: 12,706

10-25-2013, 12:02 AM	#23
Dallas Chief Veteran Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Jupiter, FL. Casino cash: $2135273	Favorite of all time is tough to say- top five in no particular order... Paradise Lost Hoop Dreams American Movie Dogtown and Z-Boys Smartest Guys in the Room (Enron)
Posts: 3,836

10-25-2013, 12:09 AM	#28
SPATCH birth of spatch Join Date: May 2008 Casino cash: $10006207	There was a thread about this when it aired, but if you haven't watched A League of Denial then you need to.
Posts: 4,569

10-25-2013, 12:11 AM	#29
Direckshun __ Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Springpatch Casino cash: $4343447	I did see it. A very, very sore subject with me, actually. I almost quit football altogether last year because of the book that documentary was based on. Really, anything by Frontline is amazing.
Posts: 59,282