2 - Biographies, a list by ExMachinaDeo

8.9

/23670/

84

/313/

84

/253/

4.5

/48526/

100

/56/

98

/90/

4.0

age 15+

A chronicle of the rise and fall of O.J. Simpson, whose high-profile murder trial exposed the extent of American racial tensions, revealing a fractured and divided nation.

80

46

8.2

/1679/

77

/81/

76

/78/

4.5

/14284/

78

/2/

A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.

93

9.0

/1567942/

88

/25430/

86

/16980/

4.5

/1253752/

98

/135/

97

/22910/

95

/30/

4.0

age 15+

The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.

91

8.7

/1371221/

85

/25752/

84

/13899/

4.5

/1908257/

93

/167/

97

/29224/

92

/21/

4.0

age 18+

The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.

89

8.5

/13675/

84

/647/

82

/298/

4.4

/27125/

98

/102/

92

/48/

89

/19/

4.0

age 15+

A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her. Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice– whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.

84

7.9

/16285/

79

/487/

78

/332/

4.4

/98678/

79

/72/

90

/267/

84

/15/

4.0

A fictional account of the life of Japanese author Yukio Mishima, combining dramatizations of three of his novels and a depiction of the events of November 25th, 1970.

86

8.5

/44794/

83

/1781/

80

/560/

4.4

/89050/

94

/51/

96

/1065/

82

/11/

age 16+

In 2001, Andrew Bagby, a medical resident, is murdered not long after breaking up with his girlfriend. Soon after, when she announces she's pregnant, one of Andrew's many close friends, Kurt Kuenne, begins this film, a gift to the child.

81

8.4

/3231/

81

/159/

82

/28/

4.3

/6065/

3.0

An intimate documentary that looks at the vicious cycles of drug addiction and street crime in one of the roughest parts of New Jersey.

83

7.7

/109591/

77

/3055/

75

/1815/

4.3

/176399/

89

/83/

91

/2301/

73

/15/

4.0

age 13+

A tribute to the controversial black activist and leader of the struggle for black liberation. He hit bottom during his imprisonment in the '50s, he became a Black Muslim and then a leader in the Nation of Islam. His assassination in 1965 left a legacy of self-determination and racial pride.

88

8.3

/136263/

83

/5833/

73

/61/

4.3

/612242/

98

/204/

99

/599/

88

/42/

4.0

age 11+

Presenting the tale of American founding father Alexander Hamilton, this filmed version of the original Broadway smash hit is the story of America then, told by America now.

79

8.2

/279310/

79

/4362/

80

/3793/

4.3

/378282/

91

/65/

93

/3297/

78

/16/

2.0

age 14+

A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his "owner" as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London.

85

8.0

/288936/

79

/4986/

78

/3220/

4.3

/449298/

96

/118/

90

/3874/

86

/15/

3.5

age 15+

Based on the true story of would-be Brooklyn bank robbers John Wojtowicz and Salvatore Naturile. Sonny and Sal attempt a bank heist which quickly turns sour and escalates into a hostage situation and stand-off with the police. As Sonny's motives for the robbery are slowly revealed and things become more complicated, the heist turns into a media circus.

87

8.4

/463137/

81

/7930/

80

/4588/

4.3

/476825/

90

/159/

95

/7757/

87

/28/

4.0

age 15+

Disciplined Italian composer Antonio Salieri becomes consumed by jealousy and resentment towards the hedonistic and remarkably talented young Salzburger composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

81

7.5

/9107/

72

/384/

72

/154/

4.2

/61059/

95

/145/

64

/19/

91

/34/

4.0

The life of internationally renowned artist and activist Nan Goldin is told through her slideshows, intimate interviews, ground-breaking photography, and rare footage of her personal fight to hold the Sackler family accountable for the overdose crisis.

83

69

8.4

/19612/

82

/542/

80

/281/

4.2

/301688/

86

/6/

Short film featuring the extended version of the song “All Too Well” by Taylor Swift. A troubled couple's romance blossoms before it eventually falls apart.

87

IMDb 87

8.2

/989584/

80

/33246/

80

/11163/

4.2

/3771862/

93

/513/

91

/6024/

90

/69/

4.0

age 15+

The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer's role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II.

80

IMDb 14

8.1

/10844/

79

/183/

76

/38/

4.2

/197443/

86

/286/

93

/527/

84

/53/

2.5

age 13+

The powerful story of love and loss that inspired the creation of Shakespeare's timeless masterpiece, Hamlet.

82

46

8.1

/1220/

71

/25/

69

/18/

4.2

/1587/

100

/8/

93

/12/

On the eve of 1987's Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, surviving families and friends of people who have died of AIDS prepare panels to be added to a large-scale memorial quilt project. Drawing from the sea of names memorialized, director Robert Epstein focuses on the lives of six people. Alongside the intimate profiles offered, through news footage and interviews, Epstein puts the AIDS crisis in the larger context of social and government response to the disease.

87

8.1

/405664/

78

/5821/

79

/4610/

4.2

/521776/

92

/151/

93

/7166/

90

/28/

4.0

age 17+

The life of boxer Jake LaMotta, whose violence and temper that led him to the top in the ring destroyed his life outside of it.

86

8.3

/27950/

82

/1781/

80

/574/

4.2

/84419/

97

/256/

94

/735/

85

/41/

3.5

age 10+

For more than thirty years, and through his television program, Fred Rogers (1928-2003), host, producer, writer and pianist, accompanied by his puppets and his many friends, spoke directly to young children about some of life's most important issues.

79

8.1

/287619/

79

/7131/

77

/3516/

4.2

/588605/

83

/78/

91

/27238/

63

/11/

age 6+

In the years before World War II, a tomboyish postulant at an Austrian abbey is hired as a governess in the home of a widowed naval captain with seven children, and brings a new love of life and music into the home.

86

8.0

/22838/

76

/555/

75

/273/

4.2

/37057/

95

/43/

89

/617/

93

/21/

4.0

This movie chronicles the life and times of R. Crumb. Robert Crumb is the cartoonist/artist who drew Keep On Truckin', Fritz the Cat, and played a major pioneering role in the genesis of underground comix. Through interviews with his mother, two brothers, wife, ex-wife and ex-girlfriends, as well as selections from his vast quantity of graphic art, we are treated to a darkly comic ride through one man's subconscious mind.

84

8.1

/21795/

80

/616/

76

/296/

4.2

/42320/

98

/58/

94

/927/

84

/16/

3.0

age 13+

Martin Scorsese's documentary intertwines footage from The Band's incredible farewell tour with probing backstage interviews and featured performances by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, and other rock legends.

86

8.0

/107401/

78

/2053/

77

/1717/

4.2

/148955/

95

/112/

91

/1578/

86

/32/

4.0

age 13+

A retired farmer and widower in his 70s, Alvin Straight learns one day that his distant brother Lyle has suffered a stroke and may not recover. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver's license. Then he hits on the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.

86

8.1

/779328/

80

/18759/

79

/11744/

4.2

/657927/

95

/376/

90

/6135/

96

/57/

3.5

age 15+

In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Facing cruelty as well as unexpected kindnesses Solomon struggles not only to stay alive, but to retain his dignity. In the twelfth year of his unforgettable odyssey, Solomon’s chance meeting with a Canadian abolitionist will forever alter his life.

83

59

8.3

/1874/

84

/170/

86

/29/

4.1

/2884/

Ozzy Osbourne faces his identity and mortality after his world stops. Dealing with health issues and Parkinson's, he questions if he can perform again while music remains his life's cornerstone.

80

39

8.5

/785/

84

/125/

71

/10/

4.1

/3962/

The story behind one of the most revered and mysterious characters in WWE history and the man himself, Windham Rotunda, has never been documented, until now.

83

8.0

/11333/

82

/870/

80

/190/

4.1

/40806/

98

/107/

98

/312/

76

/22/

3.0

age 11+

Christopher Reeve portrayed the Man of Steel in four Superman films and played dozens of other roles that displayed his talent and range as an actor, before being injured in a near-fatal horse-riding accident in 1995 that left him paralyzed from the neck down. After becoming a quadriplegic, he became a charismatic leader and activist in the quest to find a cure for spinal cord injuries, as well as a passionate advocate for disability rights and care.

60

?

8.8

/38/

10

/1/

4.1

/583/

Nan Goldin's slide show “The Ballad of Sexual Dependency” converted, mixed and screened as a film by the artist, portraying the American underground culture, the no wave scene, post-Stonewall gay subculture, among others.

84

7.6

/16350/

74

/835/

75

/233/

4.1

/115515/

98

/182/

84

/85/

84

/39/

4.0

age 10+

A doomed love triangle between intrepid French scientists Katia and Maurice Krafft, and their beloved volcanoes.

78

7.6

/115244/

75

/5403/

75

/1137/

4.1

/979384/

89

/277/

94

/459/

73

/55/

2.5

age 15+

The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s. Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the biggest stage in sports.

85

14

8.8

/85/

91

/5/

80

/2/

4.1

/1007/

Never Get Tired is the story of underground musician Jeff Rosenstock, who put his songs online for free and redefined punk rock for the internet age.

80

7.7

/9600/

79

/734/

82

/324/

4.1

/46615/

96

/99/

94

/139/

70

/23/

2.5

age 14+

This documentary offers a deeply intimate look at extraordinary teenager Billie Eilish. Award-winning filmmaker R.J. Cutler follows her journey on the road, onstage, and at home with her family as the writing and recording of her debut album changes her life.

84

7.7

/66727/

75

/1795/

75

/915/

4.1

/129225/

93

/147/

85

/3212/

87

/35/

4.0

age 16+

Follows the story of "Grizzly Man" Timothy Treadwell and what the thirteen summers in a National Park in Alaska were like in his attempt to protect the grizzly bears. The film is full of unique images and a look into the spirit of a man who sacrificed himself for nature.

78

27

8.0

/339/

78

/12/

73

/7/

4.1

/3167/

Daniel Johnston stars in this psychedelic short film about an aging musician coming to terms with the dreams of yesteryear.

81

45

7.6

/637/

74

/29/

70

/8/

4.1

/2565/

100

/7/

83

/3/

86

/4/

Fred Hampton was the leader of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party. This film depicts his brutal murder by the Chicago police and its subsequent investigation, but also documents his activities in organizing the Chapter, his public speeches, and the programs he founded for children during the last eighteen months of his life.

79

7.4

/31583/

72

/1194/

71

/755/

4.1

/70104/

82

/234/

72

/59/

80

/44/

4.0

age 13+

Austrian farmer Franz Jägerstätter faces the threat of execution for refusing to fight for the Nazis during World War II.

83

8.1

/1920/

77

/124/

74

/57/

4.1

/6681/

97

/62/

93

/13/

78

/14/

3.5

From a prolific career in film and television, Anton Yelchin left an indelible legacy as an actor. Through his journals and other writings, his photography, the original music he wrote, and interviews with his family, friends, and colleagues, this film looks not just at Anton's impressive career, but at a broader portrait of the man.

86

8.1

/22137/

81

/1064/

80

/335/

4.1

/23276/

100

/18/

96

/59/

81

/6/

The definitive film on the climb that captured headlines and ignited imaginations worldwide. Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson ascend the hardest big wall of all time: a 19 day ascent of The Dawn Wall, on the 3,000 foot vertical face of El Capitan, in Yosemite National Park. The film travels deeper than the climb, digging into the history of the climbers and painting an intimate portrait of Caldwell's harrowing life experiences that culminated in a single-minded drive to complete this impossible climb. The Dawn Wall is a heart-warming and inspiring movie that celebrates perseverance, camaraderie, and the universal spirit of dreaming big, and never giving up.

77

34

7.4

/864/

62

/27/

74

/27/

4.1

/3320/

94

/3/

Also known as Walden, Jonas Mekas’s first diary film is a six-reel chronicle of his life in 1960s New York, interweaving moments with family, friends, lovers, and artistic idols. Blending everyday encounters with portraits of the avant-garde art scene, it forms an epic, personal meditation on community, creativity, and the passage of time.

82

7.9

/31389/

74

/528/

74

/412/

4.1

/25134/

75

/44/

88

/404/

89

/4/

4.0

After a botched robbery results in the brutal murder of a rural family, two drifters elude police, in the end coming to terms with their own mortality and the repercussions of their vile atrocity.

86

8.1

/3259/

77

/155/

74

/73/

4.1

/4308/

100

/13/

92

/72/

4.0

Just two years away from turning 30, participants in Michael Apted's documentary series are facing serious questions of identity and purpose, wondering whether they've found their place in the world.

84

8.2

/7086/

79

/166/

72

/115/

4.1

/11024/

96

/27/

94

/282/

3.5

age 14+

Harvey Milk was an outspoken human rights activist and one of the first openly gay U.S. politicians elected to public office; even after his assassination in 1978, he continues to inspire disenfranchised people around the world.

82

7.5

/3596/

75

/189/

67

/87/

4.1

/18373/

100

/105/

69

/20/

89

/21/

4.0

As a visually radical memoir, CAMERAPERSON draws on the remarkable footage that filmmaker Kirsten Johnson has shot and reframes it in ways that illuminate moments and situations that have personally affected her. What emerges is an elegant meditation on the relationship between truth and the camera frame, as Johnson transforms scenes that have been presented on Festival screens as one kind of truth into another kind of story—one about personal journey, craft, and direct human connection.

80

7.9

/10914/

79

/299/

76

/138/

4.1

/22678/

88

/111/

91

/946/

77

/33/

3.0

This 2005 documentary film chronicles the life of Daniel Johnston, a manic-depressive genius singer/songwriter/artist, from childhood up to the present, with an emphasis on his mental illness and how it manifested itself in demonic self-obsession.

83

7.8

/190593/

76

/3346/

75

/1976/

4.1

/125622/

96

/135/

90

/2576/

85

/34/

3.5

age 16+

A research chemist comes under personal and professional attack when he decides to appear in a 60 Minutes exposé on Big Tobacco.

86

8.1

/530099/

79

/18204/

78

/8583/

4.1

/567176/

97

/378/

93

/2949/

93

/45/

3.5

age 15+

The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core.

73

8.1

/10093/

79

/606/

78

/71/

4.0

/29224/

61

/28/

77

/4822/

69

/14/