Year: 2021 Runtime: 78 minutes Directors: Erin Bernhardt and Din Blankenship By Morgan Roberts How do we unlearn hate? How do we break past our prejudices to love those who look and live differently than us? In the documentary film, “Refuge,” we see just that. Chris Buckley is a veteran who returned from combat, traumatized and looking to make sense of what he endured. Instead, … Continue reading Film Review: Refuge
Year: 2023 Runtime: 106 minutes Director: Miranda Yousef By Joan Amenn Disclaimer: I am not a fan of the works of Thomas Kinkade, who is the subject of this documentary by Miranda Yousef. Why am I reviewing it then? Because I am a fan of artists and films that tell their stories so I hoped to gain new insight into someone who I did not … Continue reading Art for Everyone: SXSW 2023 Review
Year: 2023 Runtime: 80 minutes Director: Dan Covert Writers: Amy Dempsey, Dan Covert, Erik Auli, Tara Rose Stromberg By Joan Amenn Nominated for a Grand Jury Award at this year’s SXSW, “Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life” is an intriguing look at an artist who has managed to create ubiquitous images and yet, remain relatively unknown. Geoff McFetridge’s work can be seen everywhere from movie titles … Continue reading Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life: SXSW 2023 Review
Year: 2023 Runtime: 90 minutes Directors: Rachael Dyer and Scott Alexander Ruderman By Joan Amenn Nominated for a Grand Jury Award at this year’s SXSW, “Pay or Die” is a heartrending look at the cost of insulin and the emotional, physical and financial toll it has taken on citizens of the US. It is very important to note that the horrific scenarios shown in this … Continue reading Pay or Die: SXSW 2023 Review
Year: 2023 Runtime: 88 Minutes Directed by Heba Khaled, Talal Derki, Ali Wajeeh By Sarah Manvel Sometimes the purpose of a documentary is to shine a light on a part of the world most people will never see. Sometimes the purpose is to provide a voice to people who feel they have no voice of their own (which is nonsense of course, we all have … Continue reading Under the Sky of Damascus: Berlinale 2023 Review
Year: 2023 Runtime: 102 minutes Directors: Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson By Sarah Manvel Three times in my life now I have seen an event at which I was present for a second time, in a documentary. The first was a concert, the second was a vigil for a murdered woman. The third was when I took a friend to hear Nikki Giovanni speak at … Continue reading Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project – Sundance 2023 Film Review
Year: 2023 Runtime: 89 Minutes Director/Writer: Anna Hints By Morgan Roberts In Estonia, women gather to a dark smoke sauna to discuss life, loss, insecurities and strengths. Joining the women in this intimate setting, “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood” highlights the power of stories and connection. The idea is that, in this space in the damp heat, the women can share their pain and shame to remove … Continue reading Smoke Sauna Sisterhood: Sundance 2023 Film Review
Year: 2023 Runtime: 99 minutes Director: Tracy Droz Tragos By Rosa Parra Directed and produced by Tracy Droz Tragos, “Plan C” is a documentary that follows a pair of women who are responsible for developing the Plan C organization, co-founded by Francine Coeytaux, who has worked in public health for various decades. Plan C is aimed at those interested in seeking an abortion, but need … Continue reading Plan C: Sundance 2023 Film Review
A year’s end inspires memories, contemplation, aspirations—and for critics, talk about which films we loved and which ones we missed. As 2022 winds down, the ITOL team raises a toast to our personal favorites, from a mother’s fight for justice and a father-daughter sojourn to fierce pursuits of agency, pleasure, identity, and power. The films below (more than 50, with links to our writers’ reviews … Continue reading Personal Best: ITOL’s Favorite Films of 2022
Year: 2022 Runtime: 87 minutes Directors: Bradford Thomason, Brett Whitcomb By Morgan Roberts For many, “Reading Rainbow” was more than a television program. It was our first form of education that taught us to love books, telling stories, and using our imaginations. “Butterfly in the Sky”is the documentary film that dives into the history of “Reading Rainbow” and the impact the show had on many … Continue reading Three Rivers Film Festival Preview: “Butterfly in the Sky”
In Their Own League 