Hi, how have you been? I've been alright thanks. Now that my schedule has allowed some time for this, allow me to welcome you to this week's theme of choice: Documentaries.
The picture on the left there is from my all-time favourite documentary King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters. A film about a man who plays Donkey Kong in his garage. This for me is where my own interest in documentaries comes from.
Whether watching a hard-hitting investigative piece into corruption in the US Government, or a story about an ageing metal band who refuse to give up on a lost cause, the best documentary films are filled with passion, love and care for their respective subjects. They find better characters than Hollywood could ever dream up and more frightening situations than any writer could manage, all thanks to their roots in reality.
As much as I love to watch films about Disney princesses with magic hair and far-away planets inhabited by blue folks, I love a good documentary, largely for the same reasons.
While a film like Kick-Ass might make you think (very briefly) about becoming a superhero, a documentary film like Man on Wire lets you know that there are real heroes, genuine risk-takers and adventurers, doing things we all dream of doing, but doing it in real life.
Real life is full of real, exciting characters, whether they are evil dictators or legendary animators. Documentary makers have an eye for a story. They do the research, make confrontational approaches and thrive on their duty to the audience by providing remarkable stories about remarkable people.
So, in my next few pages, I will be watching some documentaries and offering up my thoughts. Starting with my review of Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer. Cheers if you stay with it and hit me with some feedback if you feel like it.
Thank you
No comments:
Post a Comment