Documentaries

Rebecca Deniston
Aug 07, 2023
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Photo by KAL VISUALS on Unsplash

Life. For some people, anyway.

The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe (2022)

Rebecca Deniston
·
June 4, 2022
The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe (2022)

Everyone knows Marilyn Monroe is a beautiful enigma. Sixty years after her death, she’s still a moving target, keeping us guessing about what she was really like. The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes recently came to Netflix promising to change everything we know about Marilyn’s death. Was it suicide? Was it an accidental overdose? Or s…

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Elvis: That's the Way It Is (1970)

Rebecca Deniston
·
July 23, 2022
Elvis: That's the Way It Is (1970)

I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m liking that HBO Max is streaming so much Elvis stuff right now. It’s a gold mine, it really is, and the timing is fortuitous because I’m going to go see the new Baz Luhrmann movie for the second time on Tuesday. So it’s research. ;-)

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The Melies Mystery (2021)

Rebecca Deniston
·
July 27, 2022
The Melies Mystery (2021)

Ever see the 2011 movie, Hugo? It’s a beautiful film about a young and inventive boy who discovers the special effects pioneer working as a toy seller in a Paris train station. Amazingly enough, director Martin Scorsese wasn’t too far off. If anyone is looking to fill in the blanks, the 2021 documentary,

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When the World Breaks (2010)

Rebecca Deniston
·
September 7, 2022
When the World Breaks (2010)

The Great Depression, at least the one that took place during the 1930s, is now almost out of living memory. My grandparents were there, of course, and while they rode it out more or less stoically, as farmers they were in an especially bad spot because they couldn’t farm enough to make a profit. Like millions of others, they all but lived on potatoes a…

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The Blackwell Ghost (2017)

Rebecca Deniston
·
October 26, 2022
The Blackwell Ghost (2017)

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: We all know there’s some truly weird stuff to be found on streaming services, but The Blackwell Ghost promises to be different. Amazon describes it as “An authentic documentary that shows actual ghost footage that was captured on camera.”

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I, Douglas Fairbanks (2018)

Rebecca Deniston
·
November 19, 2022
I, Douglas Fairbanks (2018)

It’s easy to underestimate, especially nowadays, how important Douglas Fairbanks really is, and I, Douglas Fairbanks attempts to bridge the gap between today and yesterday. While I give the filmmakers props for creativity, some key details get a wee bit lost in the shuffle.

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Attack On Pearl Harbor: Minute By Minute (2022)

Rebecca Deniston
·
December 7, 2022
Attack On Pearl Harbor: Minute By Minute (2022)

Today is the eighty-first anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the event which propelled the United States into the Second World War. Netflix has an excellent documentary series, Attack On Pearl Harbor: Minute By Minute that makes sense out of the confusion that surrounded the event.

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The Sleepless Unrest (2021)

Rebecca Deniston
·
January 7, 2023
The Sleepless Unrest (2021)

Anyone who’s seen the first Conjuring movie will no doubt remember the premise: During the nineteen-sixties a couple with five daughters move into a farmhouse with a mysterious past and haunting ensues. Into the fray come Ed and Lorraine Warren to help exorcise the demons and put everyone to rights again. Well, it’s a new century and stuff is still happ…

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If You're Not In the Obit, Eat Breakfast (2017)

Rebecca Deniston
·
January 21, 2023
If You're Not In the Obit, Eat Breakfast (2017)

At my family’s house there’s a framed watercolor print on one of the bathroom walls that says, “Do not regret growing older; it is a privilege denied to many.” It’s a pretty safe bet Carl Reiner would have agreed with that sentiment. He was the kind of guy who was raring to go each time the sun came up, even when he hit ninety, the age…

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Elizabeth and Margaret: Love and Loyalty (2020)

Rebecca Deniston
·
February 15, 2023
Elizabeth and Margaret: Love and Loyalty (2020)

The relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret is more complex than it’s given credit for, and Elizabeth and Margaret: Love and Loyalty presents it beautifully while busting a few myths. Even though the film covers the lives of both sisters, Margaret seems to get the lion’s share of the story, probably because the details of her l…

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Closed For Storm (2021)

Rebecca Deniston
·
February 25, 2023
Closed For Storm (2021)

Who else is rolling with this wild winter weather we’re having in the United States lately? Or at least hunkering down as much as possible? I get to do a little of both as a crossing guard, and yes, I have stories, but I won’t go there. Not on here, anyway. :-)

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All That Breathes (2022)

Rebecca Deniston
·
March 25, 2023
All That Breathes (2022)

Black Kites are falling from the sky in New Delhi, where they’ve long been seen by the local Muslim population as a necessary evil. If they throw meat at the birds and keep them happy, the birds won’t dive bomb them and will even protect them. Saud and his brother, Nadeem, along with their friend Salik, want more than anything to help out these bird…

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Rock Camp (2021)

Rebecca Deniston
·
May 24, 2023
Rock Camp (2021)

One of the cool things about being a musician is a natural desire to share the wealth, and concert promoter David Fishof’s Rock and Roll Fantasy Camps famously do just that, with workshops put on by prestigious rock musicians and a slamming concert to wind everything up. These camps are expensive and probably out of reach for a lot of people…

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Call Me Kate (2023)

Rebecca Deniston
·
June 7, 2023
Call Me Kate (2023)

It’s cliched by now to say Katharine Hepburn was a force of nature and she was an inspiration to so many people. One of my piano teachers, Mrs. Lyman, who taught long after most of her peers had retired, used to say, “If Katharine Hepburn can keep going, so can I.”

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Beckham (2023)

Rebecca Deniston
·
October 14, 2023
Beckham (2023)

From the get-go, Victoria “Posh Spice” Beckham makes it clear that she’s not into football. Not at all. I’m not much into football either, well, soccer because I’m American, but it can’t be denied that David Beckham has always been a force to be reckoned with. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen

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The Blue Angels (2024)

Rebecca Deniston
·
May 29
The Blue Angels (2024)

The Blue Angels have been a staple at air shows mostly around the United States for decades, wowing crowds with intricate close-order formations and impressive feats of aerodynamic skill. I haven’t seen them in person myself, although I did see the Air Force’s Thunderbirds once at Maither Field in the early nineties. However, my dad has watched the Blue…

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I Am: Celine Dion (2024)

Rebecca Deniston
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Jun 26
I Am: Celine Dion (2024)

No one is indifferent to Celine Dion. I’m on the fence about her music, personally, but it’s hard to deny that she’s an amazing performer. She’s been part of the western cultural zeitgeist for so long and a lot of people have Celine Dion memories, even if they’re just of her singing the infamous “My Heart Will Go On.” Her frankly creepy and ill-advised

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Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam

Rebecca Deniston
·
Jul 27
Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam

I’ll be honest, I was never a huge boy band fan. At all. They always seemed cookie-cutter to me. Four or five guys doing perfectly timed dance steps, looking mildly tough but still very clean, music as light as a feather despite the vaguely hip-hop-sounding drum programs. Sure, these guys could sing like nobody’s business and it was al…

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The World's Greatest Fair (2004)

Rebecca Deniston
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Aug 17
The World's Greatest Fair (2004)

It’s hard to remember today just how big a deal a World’s Fair used to be. Nowdays, of course, we can pull out our phones and talk to people from all over the world at the drop of a hat, we can find out about new technology at the drop of a hat, we can imagine ourselves in any locale at the drop of a hat just by watching someone else go there.

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Am I Racist? (2024)

Rebecca Deniston
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Sep 21
Am I Racist? (2024)

Yeah, I went there. I was one of about a dozen at my showing, which isn’t too bad for a Wednesday morning. Jeremy Jahns and the backlash resulting from his admirably balanced and gutsy review (with an open comment section, no less) was a partial inspiration to review

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