Harlan County U.S.A. (1976) Director: Barbara Kopple Runtime: 103 min A very intense documentary about the famous “Brookside Strike” in 1972/3, when the miners in Harlan County, (Kentucky, USA) went on a strike. The miners have decided to join the United Miners of America (UMWA) trade union, and then they insisted that the company which …
Punishment Park (1971) Director: Peter Watkins Actors: Patrick Boland, Kent Foreman, Carmen Argenziano Runtime: 88 min Punishment Park is a dystopia (reverse utopia) in which US President Richard Nixon declares a state of emergency, suspends all civil rights, the police arrests thousands of people and deliverers them to military tribunals which are adjudicating with no …
Citizenfour (2014) Director: Laura Poitras Actors: Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald Runtime: 114 min “We are building the biggest weapon for oppression in the history of mankind.” Edward Snowden In January of 2013 documentary film director and producer Laura Poitras received an encrypted e-mail from a stranger who called himself Citizen Four, who offered to provide …
L’aveu (1970) Director: Costa-Gavras Actors: Yves Montand, Simone Signoret, Gabriele Ferzetti Runtime: 139 min The split between Tito and Stalin (1948), in the late 1940s and early 1950s, was followed by show trials of prominent Communists all over Eastern Europe and the wave of Stalinist purges in which tens of thousands suffered or lost their …
Le chagrin et la pitié (1969) Director: Marcel Ophüls Runtime: 251 min This two-part documentary analyzes the occupation of France in World War II through the example of a city with a population of approximately 100,000 people. The spirit of the time is quite well conveyed with the use of archive materials, as well as …
Guilty By Suspicion (1991) Director: Irwin Winkler Actors: Robert De Niro Runtime: 105 min The beginning of the Cold War brought a new wave of anti-communist hysteria and “witch hunts” in the U.S. The Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations headed by Senator McCarthy took the leading role, accompanied by the House Committee on Un-American Activities – …
Salvador (Puig Antich) (2006) Director: Manuel Huerga Actors: Daniel Brühl, Tristán Ulloa Runtime: 134 min Salvador Puig was a Spanish anarchist, member of the group MIL, which robbed banks and financed illegal political press, books and other materials, supported workers’ struggles and the fight against authoritarian regime of Francisco Franco. During the arrest, he killed …
Pandora’s Box (1992) Director: Adam Curtis Runtime: 6 x 45 min A six-part documentary series dealing with the effects and irrational consequences of political and scientific rationalism. The focus of the story is how the engineers and scientists inappropriately interfered in economy and politics, while on the other hand, economists and politicians equally inappropriately interfered …
The Devils (1971) Director: Ken Russell Actors: Oliver Reed, Vanessa Redgrave Runtime: 117 min Historical drama about the Urbain Grandier, a controversial Catholic priest from the 17th century who was tried for witchcraft, and sentenced for political reasons. Believe it or not, this movie is based on actual events. You can download this film or …
