April 15, 2015
Page 9
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The documentary ‘Monte Adentro’ explores the plight of Colombian mule drivers, a way of life that’s on the verge of extinction.
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Full Frame
O PINIONATED
brings out best
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in documentaries
BY J UDGE
D ARLEEN O RTEGA
D ARLEEN O RTEGA
Every April, I make a pilgrimage
to Durham, N.C, for the Full Frame
Documentary Film Festival, the pre-
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U.S.
Aside from last year, when my trip
was interrupted due to the death of
my life partner, every year at least
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this four-day festival; I’ll complete
my report next week
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“Best of Enemies,” which is slated
for a nationwide theatrical release at
BY
the end of July. The political party
conventions of 1968 are primarily re-
membered for the unrest and political
violence that occurred in the streets,
but this canny documentary shifts
focus to a surprisingly intense televi-
sion battle that was being waged at
the time that presaged today’s culture
wars.
In an effort to up its dismal rat-
ings, ABC News enlisted conserva-
tive commentator William F. Buckley
and liberal commentator Gore Vidal
to address each convention day’s
events. The times were different in
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relatively new medium, functioned as
a seemingly neutral (though entirely
white and male) center for American
culture, and rifts between genera-
tions and communities were becom-
ing deeper and more visible. Buckley
and Vidal were both privileged intel-
lectuals who staked out opposite ends
of the political spectrum, and their
debates were a marvel of eloquent
bombast that changed television and
American political discourse forever.
Filmmakers
Morgan
Neville
(“Twenty Feet From Stardom”) and
Robert Gordon (“Johnny Cash’s
America”) do a wonderful job of
placing these television debates in
their historical context and capturing
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personalities in setting the poles of a
divide that still drives American poli-
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distance is by turns hilarious and ex-
tremely sobering. This riveting win-
dow into American history and our
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wrestling with fascinating questions
about American culture and about
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“(Dis)honesty--The Truth About
Lies” is less satisfying but still inter-
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work of best-selling author and Duke
University professor of behavioral
economics Dan Ariely, who studies
irrational behavior and what compels
people to make choices they know
are unethical. Filmmaker Yael Mal-
amede interviews a number of folks
with interesting and often high-pro-
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mines his research for analyses of
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