The passing of Tower Records documented here. It was fun to watch, especially since most of the people are still alive.
Before Tower records expanded into my area of the country, the first one I ever went to was on a trip to L.A. when I went to the Tower on Sunset Blvd. This was in the 1980s, and I was amazed at the soundtrack selection they had of LPs I had only read about in publications like "Soundtrack!," "CinemaScore," and "Films In Review." Loads of Varese and foreign releases. I bought as many as I thought I could carry back in my luggage.
I didn't think this would be good for much more than what you'd see in a Jerry Springer episode, but it was. The feel-good ending was a little.... ummm... "pat", but still worth my time altogether.
I heard the stage version of this on radio and it was hilarious.
This is a documentary about getting fired in general (instead of specific stories in the stage version) and it was good, too. My favorite part were the sock puppets.
An incredible 20 + hr journey detailing the very beginnings and the end of the Vietnam War. Take as a whole, from the French colonizing the country in the mid 1800's to the US bailing out in 1975, The Vietnamese fought for independence for about 100 years + . It's an extraordinary work, with fascinating interviews from both sides of the conflict, including members of NVA(North Vietnamese Army), Viet Cong, a South Vietnamese marine, and a host of Americans, from grunts to war protestors and family members. But what is really mind blowing are the multiple revelations, from audio tapes to memorandums, that every single American president involved knew this was an unwinnable war, yet they did it anyway, all simply out of political expediency, and flat out lied on just about everything(the last part is not surprising btw). The final 2 hours is the most moving, particularly when discussing the War Memorial.
If there was ever something that you could wish to binge watch and not feel guilty, this would be it. And having Peter Coyote narrate it is icing on the cake.
THE MAN WHO WOULD BE POLKA KING - An okay documentary about a Polish guy who comes to America, achieves his dreams of being well-off and well-known for Polka, organizes tours and owns a gift shop. Then gets 400+ people involved in a Ponzi scheme. He does 5 years and leaves plenty of victims behind.
He's a real scumbag, and his absolutely hideous hag of an unrepentant wife is dodgy as hell. At every turn it's all the fault of others not them.
INTO THE INFERNO - An interesting but slightly unfocused Werner Herzog documentary about volcanoes. It zips around the world and also gets into early human life and touches on certain religious beliefs surrounding them. The most mesmerizing footage is by the French couple Katia and Maurice Krafft. The fast-flowing lava is astonishing. It would have made a good four part series or so, instead of a one-off film.
Yeah sure it's hosted and narrated by Ronald Reagan, but let me tell you comrades, The Truth about Communism from 1962 is as accurate a documentary on the history of Communism as one will ever see.
