Scorsese, Spurlock offer glimpses of real life

Some of the best films to come along in the last few years have been documentaries. This spring’s crop, which features films from Martin Scorsese, Errol Morris and Morgan Spurlock, features music (the Stones), investigative journalism (Abu Ghraib) and humor (about Osama bin Laden). Documentaries often have more drama than a fiction film and more laughs than your average wacky comedy, so don’t let the word “documentary” scare you away.

“Shine a Light”

Video   'Shine a Light' Martin Scorsese directs this documentary featuring the Rolling Stones in concert. Buena Vista Pictures

Starring: Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Bill Clinton, Ron Wood, Charlie Watts
Director: Martin Scorsese
Story: This concert film captures the Rolling Stones during a two-night stand at New York’s intimate Beacon theater. It features guest appearances from Jack White, Christina Aguilera, Bill and Hillary Clinton (don’t worry, these two don’t sing) and Buddy Guy. Scorsese also intertwines some older interview footage from when the band was young. Ten cinematographers, including Robert Elswit (“Michael Clayton”), Emmanuel Lubezki (“Y Tu Mama Tambien”) and Declan Quinn (“Leaving Las Vegas”) shot the film.
One to watch? Just for fans. According to the Hollywood Reporter’s Kirk Honeycutt, the film is really just standard concert fare. The film has “no insight from Martin Scorsese about what makes the Rolling Stones the Rolling Stones,” he wrote. Further the Guardian Unlimited Denis Seguin pointed out that the band does a bit of self-censorship on their lyrics. He mentioned that a line about “black girls” was missing from “Some Girls,” and went on to add, “Also gone AWOL was the bit about killing the Kennedys from ‘Sympathy for the Devil.’ Why might this be so?”
Coming: April 4
Web site: http://www.shinealightmovie.com/

“Where in the World is Osama bin Laden”

The Weinstein Company

Starring: Morgan Spurlock
Director: Morgan Spurlock
Story: From the maker of “Super Size Me” comes this film about one man’s search for Osama  bin Laden. Spurlock travels around the Middle East talking to normal people in his quest not only find the notorious terrorist, but to also show that we may have more in common with the people that we’re afraid of than it appears.
One to watch? It depends on how you feel about Spurlock. Variety’s John Anderson is not a fan, writing that the film has the “documentary credibility as ‘Borat,’” and adding that the film “doesn’t really know what it wants to be. It's a comedy, a political essay, a rumination on incipient fatherhood (yes, we get to see Spurlock's baby being born) and a naif's-eye survey of current events.” However, Cinematical’s James Rocchi enjoyed the film, calling it “a frank and fascinating and warm and smart look at the world we live in, and how it might be better.”
Coming: April 18
Web site: http://www.whereisobl.com/

“Standard Operating Procedure”

Sony Picture Classics

Starring: Christopher Bradley, Sarah Denning, Joshua Feinman, Jeff L. Green, Merry Grissom, Cyrus King, Daniel Novy
Director: Errol Morris
Story: Academy Award-winning documentarian Morris (“The Fog of War”) is back with an examination of the events that took place at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Morris interviews five of the seven MPs indicted for their actions: Megan Ambuhl, Javal Davis, Lynndie England, Sabrina Harman and Jeremy Sivitz. He also investigates those who did not appear in or take the photos but who may have instigated the abuse.
One to watch? Yes. Morris has never made a bad documentary. Screen Daily’s David D’Arcy called the film “among the best documentaries on the Iraq war and on official efforts to cover up ugly aspects of the ‘war on terror.’” However, Variety’s Todd McCarthy took the film apart when he saw it at the Berlin Film Festival, writing “If the medicine's going to taste as bad as it does in ‘Standard Operating Procedure,’ it had better be really good for you.” He added that the film was a “grind to sit through.”
Coming: April 25
Web site: http://www.sonyclassics.com/standardoperatingprocedure/

Best of the rest: Documentaries — “Surfwise” tells the story of Dorian “Doc” Paskowitz, who abandoned his medical practice to hit the road and surf. Paskowitz lived with his wife and nine children in a 24-foot camper, and insisted that all of them learn to surf and that none of them go to school. (May 9) — Werner Herzog directed “Encounters at the End of the World,” a documentary about a society of around 1,000 people who live in Antarctica in the pursuit of science. (June 11) — Directed by Larry Charles, “Religulous” is a documentary that stars Bill Maher, who travels the globe interviewing people about God and religion. (June 20)

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