Documentary

Non-fiction features and programs, often stranger than fiction, and just as dramatic or comical…

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Three Worlds of Jacques Cousteau, The (1956-1976): Dir. Jacques Cousteau, Louis Malle; A trilogy of award-winning documentary feature films from famed oceanogragher, Jacques Cousteau. The Silent World (1956) won the Palm D'Or at Cannes and is noted as one of the first films to use underwater cinematography to show the ocean depths in colour, shot aboard his ship, Calypso. The film later…
Cruise, The (1998): Dir. Bennett Miller; A wonderful insight into life in New York City in the late 1990's through one of the cities eccentric characters - Tim "Speed" Levitch, a tour guide for Manhattan's Gray Line double-decker buses. He talks fast, is in love with the city, and dispenses historical facts, architectural analysis, and…
Tea With the Dames (2018): Dir. Roger Michell
Feat. Judi Dench, Eileen Atkins, Joan Plowright…; British acting legends Dames Eileen Atkins, Judi Dench, Joan Plowright and Maggie Smith discuss their remarkable lives at Plowright's country home in this illuminating, entertaining romp through 6 decades of film history.
Unrest (2017): Dir. Jennifer Brea; A groundbreaking documentary about the mysterious condition known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Made a by Jennifer Brea, a woman who suffers from the condition herself and seeks to raise awareness of the stigma surrounding this debilitating disease, which many still believe is "all in the patient's…
In the Shadow of the Stars (1991): This winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary film 1991 depicts the lives of various members of the chorus in the San Francisco Opera.
Kobi (2017): Dir. Andrea Bosshard, Shane Loader; A loving portrait of Swiss goldsmith Kobi Bosshard, widely regarded as the grandfather of contemporary NZ jewellery, made by his daughter, filmmaker Andrea Bosshard. Kobi is approaching 80 and maintains committed to his work, designing jewellery pieces of classic simplicity and elegance in his modest…
Man of Aran (1934): Dir. Robert Flaherty
Feat. Colman 'Tiger' King, Maggie Dirrane, Michael Dillane; Powerful study of the daily struggle for survival on the Aran Islands off the western coast of Ireland, without even the benefit of soil to plant vegetables in. The islanders take their main sustenance from the sea (there is a classic, swiftly-edited shark-hunt sequence), but such is the immense swell of…