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Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

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Re: Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

#361

Post by imhoguy »

For anyone into music and art, just recently I have seen "B-Movie: Lust & Sound in West-Berlin 1979-1989" (2015) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4291066/ and I can't get the soundtrack out of my head. Genius edit on tons of rare video material!

Make sure you have English subtitles just for a few scenes if you don't understand German.

Ah, and one can ask how come it was finished in 2015 and Mark Reeder the main character haven't aged in staged scenes? No VFX ;) Read after watching https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/b-movie-...

Re: Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

#362

Post by netrus »

_8j50 wrote: post #345
atombender wrote: post #322

The Death of Yugoslavia (1996) [1] [2]. Won the BAFTA and Peabody awards that year. It's a BBC documentary in six episodes about the conflict that caused the dissolution of Yugoslavia and the wars in the Balkans. It stands out among many documentaries for being a truly dispassionate moment-to-moment record of events. No sensationalism, no grand-standing, just the facts. If you're tired of the Netflix style of documen…

Didn't a guy putting a bottle in his ass start the demise of Yugoslavia? Do they mention him at all?

To save everyone one Google search: [1]. It is/was apparently not clear if the guy was masturbating or being assaulted - that's the point of the story.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%90or%C4%91e_Martinovi%C4%8...

Re: Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

#364

Post by nyolfen »

colordrops wrote: post #137
bloqs wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://youtu.be/x1bX3F7uTrg obligatry response whenever anything by Adam Curtis is offered up. Sorry, I'm largely of the opinion that it is (well made) boomer-aimed catastrophe porn designed to give the viewer a smug sense of having "esoteric knowledge".

There is some truth to this parody, but there is also a lot to learn from Century of Self, if you weren't already aware of, say, Edward Bernaise and his role in American society. Now his doc HyperNormalisation, I took nothing away from it, but oh boy was it an amazing way to spend the evening. The music and imagery is fricking amazing.

i think you should watch it again. i feel like it has become significantly more relevant since it was released.

Re: Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

#366

Post by leobg »

giantg2 wrote: post #264
2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote: post #26

The World at War - BBC documentary series about WWII. Shows humanity simultaneously at it's best and worst. The Vietnam War - Ken Burns documentary series. Very balanced and sobering take on the Vietnam war, events leading to the Vietnam war, and unrest in the US during that period. The Fog of War - Errol Morris doc about Robert McNamara. The Salt of the Earth - Doc about photographer Sebastião Salgado Alone in the W…

Is that actually Dick building the cabin, or is it a reenactment based on his diary/book?

He filmed (and narrated) himself, AFAIK.

Re: Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

#368

Post by mav88 »

Into the Abyss. Werner Hertzog looks at the process of capital punishment with great sensitivity and his usual deep insight.

The Jinx. While filming a documentary on a rich man suspected of murdering his wife, the crew become involved in the investigation. Perhaps the most jaw-dropping finale of any documentary ever.

Re: Ask HN: What are some of the best documentaries you've seen?

#370

Post by agd »

Once Upon a Time in Iraq - interviews with people who lived through the Iraq invasion and the years following.

This was so eye opening compared to the standard news reporting about Iraq. Harrowing and informative.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Once_Upon_a_Time_in_Iraq

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