Tag Archives: documentaries

Live From New York!

Posted on June 12, 2015 by robchristopher

Over at Chicagoist, I review the new documentary about Saturday Night Live. Bottom line? It’s rather shallow and cursory, and doesn’t do justice to its subject. Entertaining? Yes. But you’re better off staying home and rewatching the 40th anniversary special.

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3 things about Bao Nguyen’s LIVE FROM NEW YORK!

Posted on June 7, 2015 by robchristopher

Live from New York! [2015] 1. Andy Rooney offers his opinion on Andrew Dice Clay. 2. Ralph Nader: “Political satire is harder than poetry.” 3. A man applies strips of white tape to a cue card, blocking out certain lines … Continue reading →

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3 things about Mark Levinson’s PARTICLE FEVER

Posted on June 6, 2015 by robchristopher

Particle Fever [2013] 1. A statue of Shiva on the campus. 2. Circular cheese shaver. 3. “The things that are the least important for our survival are the very things that make us human.”

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3 things about Jerry Blumenthal, Peter Gilbert & Gordon Quinn’s VIETNAM LONG TIME COMING

Posted on May 26, 2015 by robchristopher

Vietnam Long Time Coming [1998] 1. He greets and plays with a little girl at the airport. Later he says, “Killed a girl like that. She came out of the village, holding grenades. I killed that girl. Fucked up things … Continue reading →

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3 things about Ben Steinbauer’s WINNEBAGO MAN

Posted on April 15, 2015 by robchristopher

Winnebago Man [2009] 1. “Will you do me a kindness?” 2. He goes for a walk using a guideline: a rope strung between stakes. 3. Trouble in front of Walmart.

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3 things about Martin Scorsese’s SHINE A LIGHT

Posted on March 28, 2015 by robchristopher

Shine a Light [2008] 1. Marty begs for a set list. 2. “We’re both pretty lousy, but together we’re better than ten other men.” 3. Buddy Guy shows up and shows how it’s done. As someone who’s indifferent to the … Continue reading →

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3 things about Dana Ranga’s EAST SIDE STORY

Posted on March 20, 2015 by robchristopher

East Side Story [1997] 1. A musical from 1964 called The Loveable White Mouse. 2. Eisensteinian dance band in The Jolly Fellows. 3. Dance routines couldn’t be shown, so the activities of work were refashioned into choreography. I’d love to … Continue reading →

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3 things about Sarah Polley’s STORIES WE TELL

Posted on December 8, 2014 by robchristopher

Stories We Tell [2012] 1. Talking on the phone, making a stop sign with her hand. 2. He explains why taking out the garbage makes him feel like he’s not in control. It means you’re on someone else’s schedule. 3. … Continue reading →

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3 things about Ron Mann’s ALTMAN

Posted on November 16, 2014 by robchristopher

Altman [2014] 1. Jack Warner: “That fool has all the actors talking at the same time!” 2. Altman’s grandson played Swee’pea in Popeye. 3. Lily Tomlin’s definition of Altmanesque: “Making a family.” Attempting to capture the essence of Robert Altman … Continue reading →

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3 things about Sophie Fiennes’ THE PERVERT’S GUIDE TO IDEOLOGY

Posted on November 8, 2014 by robchristopher

The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology [2012] 1. The Coke has grown warm; the distance between the sublime and the excremental is a short one. 2. Cynical ideology: I know very well what I’m doing and I am nevertheless doing it. … Continue reading →

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