Film & Documentary
July 27, 2020
Letter from the editor:
Several new biographical documentaries have recently come out. Seph Rodney discusses how Flannery obscures author Flannery O’Connor’s racism, while Deana Bianco talks to the director of The Bad and the Beautiful, about photographer Helmut Newton. Jourdain Searles writes about how the acclaimed Vision Portraits explores the lives of blind artists. And Serena Scateni examines the works of feminist filmmaker Lynne Sachs, and the unique ways she depicts labor and familial relations.
Every year, JAPAN CUTS presents some of the most vibrant new works from Japan, and this year’s online edition is no exception. Serena Scateni reviews Life: Untitled, about sex work in the country, and Ryan Swen surveys the long, often ignored career of director Nobuhiko Obayashi, whose final film Labyrinth of Cinema is playing at the festival. As long as cinema is quarantined online, Hyperallergic will be on top of everything streaming.
Until we can see you at the movies again, stay safe.
A Filmmaker Explores Relationships to Blindness
Grappling with his own loss of sight, Rodney Evans surveys the experiences of blind artists in Vision Portraits.
Jourdain Searles
A Documentary’s Attempt to Protect Flannery O’Connor at All Costs
Flannery expresses the author’s genius but goes to tortured lengths to excuse her racism.
Seph Rodney
The Documentarian Who Secured Rare Footage of Helmut Newton at Work
Director Gero von Boehm discusses The Bad and the Beautiful, his new film about the “King of Kink.”
Deana Bianco
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A Dynamic Portrait of Sex Workers Channels Suppressed Rage to Cathartic Ends
Now streaming as part of JAPAN CUTS, Kana Yamada’s Life: Untitled features a wealth of skillfully written characters attuned to Japan’s contemporary social dysfunctions.
Serena Scateni
Nobuhiko Obayashi’s Cinematic Visions of Youth and Optimism
The prolific and innovative Japanese director passed away earlier this year. Now, JAPAN CUTS is celebrating him with a series of conversations and his final film.
Ryan Swen
A View From the Street: LA Video Artists Move From Screens to Storefronts
Oxy Arts’s Streetview Video Series includes recent MFA grads and a special commission reflecting on the pandemic.
Elisa Wouk Almino
Experimental Films Contemplate the Future From an “Endangered Present”
After Civilization, a free, month-long film series presented by Maysles Documentary Center, explores broader questions of what if and what now.
Dessane Lopez Cassell
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