Throughout the history of the art form, non-fiction cinema has seen its form consistently challenged. Be it the earliest days of travel documentaries blurring the line between narrative fiction and whatever “documentary” cinema truly means to today’s almost avant-garde ethnographic documentaries. However, a formally challenging piece of non-fiction filmmaking is ultimately nothing without a captivating central focus. And, frankly, a documentary with a subject that compels can be almost rudimentary in its craft and still be worthy of one’s time.
That’s where Angkor Awakens, the new film from documentarian Robert H. Lieberman lies. A novelist-turned-filmmaker, Lieberman is likely best known in studied documentary circles for his superlative They Call It Myanmar, and now shines a light on Cambodia, and that nation’s history including the Khmer Rouge genocide and their response to it. Low on aesthetic frills, Lieberman blends archival footage with admittedly low-res interview segments that simply let the terror,...
That’s where Angkor Awakens, the new film from documentarian Robert H. Lieberman lies. A novelist-turned-filmmaker, Lieberman is likely best known in studied documentary circles for his superlative They Call It Myanmar, and now shines a light on Cambodia, and that nation’s history including the Khmer Rouge genocide and their response to it. Low on aesthetic frills, Lieberman blends archival footage with admittedly low-res interview segments that simply let the terror,...
- 5/20/2017
- by Joshua Brunsting
- CriterionCast
A primer on the history of a country whose name conjures memories of 1970s horror, Robert H. Lieberman's Angkor Awakens is dominated by questions of how the Khmer Rouge's atrocities came to pass and how present-day Cambodia might move beyond the trauma that regime inflicted. Ultimately optimistic but never Pollyannaish, the straightforward doc will play best in educational settings and on video, serving as a fine (if dry) entry point for Americans curious about the region's past.
Those drawn in by the evocative title expect a larger focus on ancient Angkor, once the world's largest city, capital of a vast...
Those drawn in by the evocative title expect a larger focus on ancient Angkor, once the world's largest city, capital of a vast...
- 5/5/2017
- by John DeFore
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Here is a collection of a dozen of the best documentaries I saw in 2012. It's not a "best of the year" list. Just some good memories of these films.
I will not burden you again with another complaint about lists. More than ever, I despise them because they shift focus away from a film and toward a list. When I recently caught up with "Django Unchained," for example, I gave it four stars. The comments section was overrun with readers asking if that meant it was now on my Top Ten list. One reader insisted on knowing which title it replaced. Although the piece was some 2,000 words long, another reader insisted he still wanted to see "my official review."
All I can do with any film is tell you that I've seen it, and what I thought about it. If it sounds interesting to you, it might be worth seeking out.
I will not burden you again with another complaint about lists. More than ever, I despise them because they shift focus away from a film and toward a list. When I recently caught up with "Django Unchained," for example, I gave it four stars. The comments section was overrun with readers asking if that meant it was now on my Top Ten list. One reader insisted on knowing which title it replaced. Although the piece was some 2,000 words long, another reader insisted he still wanted to see "my official review."
All I can do with any film is tell you that I've seen it, and what I thought about it. If it sounds interesting to you, it might be worth seeking out.
- 1/15/2013
- by Roger Ebert
- blogs.suntimes.com/ebert
"They Call It Myanmar: Lifting the Curtain" releases today on DVD and features Nobel Peace Prize Winner Aung San Suu Kyi. ..They Call it Myanmar. is a thing of beauty. a hymn to a land that has grown out of the oldest cultures in Asia.. .Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times After successful theatrical openings in over 100 U.S. cities and with President Obama now scheduled for an unprecedented Nov. 19th visit to Burma, They Call It Myanmar: Lifting the Curtain releases today on DVD and digital platforms. Shot clandestinely over a three-year period by best-selling novelist, filmmaker and Cornell University physicist Robert H. Lieberman, this unique documentary lifts the curtain to expose the everyday life in a country...
- 11/13/2012
- by April MacIntyre
- Monsters and Critics
Title: They Call It Myanmar Director: Robert H. Lieberman Held in socio-economic limbo for almost a full half century by a military dictatorship that turned away the just election of eventual Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, and sentenced her to two decades of house arrest, Burma (or Myanmar, as it’s known to many inside the country) is probably the second most isolated country on the planet, behind only North Korea. Filmed clandestinely over a two-year period, the contemplative new documentary ”They Call It Myanmar” provides a fascinating, beyond-the-manicured-travelogue-hedges snapshot of the second largest country in Southeast Asia, home to more than 60 million people — many stuck in terrible poverty but [ Read More ]
The post They Call It Myanmar Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post They Call It Myanmar Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 9/29/2012
- by bsimon
- ShockYa
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