Film-Forward

Music

Tribeca Arts Documentaries 2014

The Power of Art: Real or Fake   Documentaries on artists are an annual presence at the Tribeca Film Festival, but the breadth of art this year is exceptional. Tomorrow We Disappear By the time directors Jimmy Goldblum and Adam Weber finally got around to finishing Salman Rushdie’s 1981 novel Midnight’s Children (just before I […]

Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon

Directed by Mike Myers Produced by Myers and Beth Aala Released by Radius/TWC and A & E IndieFilms USA. 84 min. Rated R If success is all about promotion, then the fact that this is the debut directing effort by comic actor Mike Myers is one part of the package. Amidst the constant name-dropping, testimonials, […]

Mercedes Sosa

Written & Directed by Rodrigo H. Vila Released by First Run Features English, Spanish, Portuguese & French with English subtitles Argentina. 93 min. Not rated The biographical documentary Mercedes Sosa: The Voice of Latin America is a fine introduction to—or, for those who are familiar with Mercedes, a welcomed reminder of—the major turning points of […]

Inside Llewyn Davis

Written & Directed by Joel & Ethan Coen Produced by Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen & Joel Coen Released by CBS Films USA. 105 min. Rated R With Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund, Justin Timberlake,  F. Murray Abraham, Stark Sands, Adam Driver, Jeanine Serralles, Max Casella, Ethan Phillips, Robin Bartlett, Jerry Grayson & […]

Narco Cultura

Directed by Shaul Schwarz Produced by Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen & Todd Hagopian Released by Cinedigm English & Spanish, with English subtitles. USA. 102 min. Rated R Welcome to the surreal, macho, and denial filled world of narcocorridos. This popular and controversial musical style is inspired by the drama of narco-traffickers and their violent […]

My Father and the Man in Black

Written & Directed by Jonathan Holiff Produced by Holiff, Tanya Lyn Nazarec & Jennifer Phillips Released by New Chapter Productions Canada. 88 min. Not Rated My Father and the Man in Black settles two scores. One is the personal odyssey of a son, debut documentary director Jonathan Holiff, finally reconciling with the memory of his […]

The Secret Disco Revolution

Produced & Directed by Jamie Kastner Released by Screen Media Canada. 84 min. Not rated Were such hits as “Boogie Wonderland,” “Boogie Fever,” or “Boogie Oogie Oogie” songs of political protest? In his amicable and gossipy overview of 1970’s dance music, director Jamie Kastner poses that question to powerhouse singer Martha Walsh, forever known as […]

Big Star

Directed by Drew DeNicola Co-directed by Olivia Mori Produced by Mori & Danielle McCarthy Released by Magnolia Pictures USA. 113 min. Rated PG-13 Director Drew DeNicola and Olivia Mori’s documentary rediscovers the Memphis band whose three albums all feature in Rolling Stone’s top 500, even though commercial success eluded them. It’s a story of frustrated ambition, […]

20 Feet From Stardom

Directed by Morgan Neville Produced by Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers Released by Radius-TWC USA. 90 min. Rated PG-13 With Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, Judith Hill, Tata Vega, Claudia Lennear, Gloria Jones, Lynn Maybry, Cindy Mizelle, Susaye Greene, Jo Lawry, The Waters Family, Rose Stone, Janice Pendarvis, and Mable John The first 45 […]