What is your favorite Documentary Subject?

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   vmartinezwilsonposted 13 years ago

   There are documentaries about every subject and occasion.  Do you have a favorite? 
   
   Nature? Historical? True Crime? Political? Sports? Biographical?  Rockumentary? Mockumentary?
   
   I have found that over the years I've moved from one spectrum (I used to love Depeche Mode's 101) to another (I know love Historical, specifically those tackling World War II).  Which way does your viewing swing?  Or, do you now like them at all?

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      Hollie Thomasposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I think nature and political are my favorites.

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         vmartinezwilsonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I really enjoyed Chronique dun ete, even though it was done in 1961, the political discourse is still relevant.  I haven't seen a nature documentary that I loved that was solely about nature and not about a person.  Do you know any good ones?

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            Hollie Thomasposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            David Attenborough will always be my fave. 1961, before I was born, still sounds interesting, I think I need to find out more about Chronique dun ete. Jaque Cousteau (apologize in advance for the spelling errors) Marine life mostly, always on the TV when I was a child, fascinating non the less. Umm, I can see why you'd associate a person with a wildlife or nature programe, however, I disagree that it's about the person. Only a politician could be that egocentric.

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               vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               I was just thinking of the ones I've seen, which aren't many.  The one that intrigues me the most was Grizzly Man and that tended to be about the person set within nature.  The shots of Alaska is mezmerizing.
               
               And, yes the political documentaries tend to veer toward egocentric.  I can't wait until someone does one about the republican canidates this go around.  That should be a different kind of interesting.

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                  Hollie Thomasposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  I don't believe I've seen Grizzly Man, yet another I'll have a look out for on the net (thanks)
                  
                  Indeed it would be a different kind of interesting.

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                     vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     Just so you know, I did a review of Grizzly Man as a hub if you want to read about it first.
                     
                     Grizzly Man Hub by me

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                        Hollie Thomasposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        Thanks, I'll read it.

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      Daniella Lopezposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I usually watch religious or political documentaries. I've noticed here lately I've been watching a lot of documentaries on Hitler and the Nazi era. But I'll really watch just about any kind of documentary, so long as it's decently put together.

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         vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I find myself drawn to World War II documentaries as well.  I've just recently finished a hub on Night and Fog hub by me .  the time period is so complex, everytime I watch a new documentary I see something I hadn't before.  This has become more noticeable now that I've watched the docmentary on Goebbels memoirs.  It's the reason I wrote my hubs on the history of German cinema. 
         
         I've studied documentary, but find myself watching them more and more because of Netflix.  I can put them on, clean or fold laundry or whatever and feel like I've learned something new.

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      Stevennix2001posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I enjoy nature documentaries a lot.  Mainly because with so much trouble that goes on in society today, it seems almost peaceful to watch the beauty of nature in documentaries.

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         vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I must have a sick and twisted mind since I watch so many morbid documentaries.  Even those that are nature oriented have some sort of morbid sensibility.  I was watching Animal Planet and was barely paying attention to the sharks and the shots of nature until a shark took out a hammerhead.  Sigh, I think I may need to watch happier documentaries.

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            Stevennix2001posted 12 years agoin reply to this

            lol. Nah, I don't think your sick or twisted, as I actually enjoy those types of nature documentaries too.  In fact, one of favorite scenes in one documentary involved a fight between a great white shark and a killer whale, as the shark tried to eat the whale, but he got ripped to shreds.  So trust me, you're fine. 
            
            I was just mainly referring to documentaries like "march of the penguins", and "winged migration" specifically.  Granted, there are a few morbid scenes that one can name in "March of the Penguins", but I think the watching these animals interact in their natural habitat has always seemed very therapeutic for me.  I don't know why. 
            
            Of course, I also like to follow Michael Moore's documentaries as well.  Not because I agree with anything that he says, as half the stuff he says isn't true if you bother to research into everything that he says.  And as a person, I think he's a bit of an arrogant pompous a** if you ask me.  However, I do find his style of film making rather fascinating, as he's able to make even people that hate him to see his movies.

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               vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               I occasionally watch nature films in the vein of "March of the Penguins", but I must have the attention span of a gnat, becuase I tend to do other things while I watch.  The closest time i've come to being rivited is when I had watched Jaques Cousteau.  It may be the accent.
               
               I always watch Michael Moore's docmentaries too and I'm in the same boat as you in regards to what he says.  I'll give the man credit in that he always asks the greatest questions even I don't agree with his solutions.  I always think it's better that those questions were asks, which is why he is a great documentarian.  The best always has the audience thinking.

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      dannyjohnson1027posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Do you like most types of movies? So far the most loved to look at the category?  

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      gabgirl12posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I love documentaries! But I find myself lately drawn to Religion and 'End of the World' type documentaries like writings of Nostradamus and the Mayan Calendar.
      
      I also like Ghost story type documentaries. It's weird because I believe in God but for some reason I'm fascinated by paranormal activity. The best ones usually contain rich history that would lead to such activity. It makes it more believeable as opposed to trickery that you hear or read about.
      
      I also enjoy business type documentaries, like how Hershey started, and Ford motors etc.
      
      I'm not really big on War, Michael Moore type stuff.
      
      One documentary that I always pay attention to no matter how busy I am are the 9/11 documentaries. I'm a New Yorker and during that horrible time I had family trapped in Manhattan. So when I see them it hits my heart because I remember how frantic my family was at just trying to connect to each other.

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   Captain Redbeardposted 12 years ago

   I really enjoy watching evolution documentaries. Richard Dawkins is a favorite of mine. He is a brilliant mind yet I think is terribly blind to certain things. I have heard his own arguments taken apart and him left speechless and it's always interesting to me that he keeps to his "faith" of disbelief
   
   I really enjoy watching serial killer documentaries for some reason....I don't know why but I find these people interesting and sad. I recently watched one on H.H. Holmes, America's first serial killer. His story was really interesting. By the time he died he honestly thought he was turning into the devil and thought he could feel horns growing from his forehead.

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I like evolution documentaries, but I find myself watching a lot films about what would happen to the Earth if people weren't around anymore or what would happen if people modern technology.  They're all 'what ifs', but intriguing nonetheless.
      
      I absolutely love documentaries on serial killers.  H.H. Holmes is so very crazy and interesting and if you watched the doc that I did, I will tell you it left out a lot.  He was a scam artist to the nth degree and they only touched on the things he did, like saying he was a pharmacist and so forth.  What he did to those kids..and that mansion of his...shudder.  Good watching there!

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   Polly Cposted 12 years ago

   I always like to watch documentaries portraying social issues, both national and internations, as I like to learn about the vast contradictions between people's lives.

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      That is an interesting way to people watch.  I'm definately a left coaster, so seeing the differences in the US, let alone worldwide, is a study on humankind.  I especially like watching documentaries about historical social issues, like in Titticut Follies.  It's so odd and dated, but still relevant in the way we view mental illness.

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   icountthetimesposted 12 years ago

   Anything with an unusual or controversial theme. Not sure why really, I just like to learn things that I never would in everyday life.

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      It's a great reason to watch a documentary.  It's the reason I was really old documentaries, then read about the making of them.  I want to see what parts were staged, who paid for them to be made and the like.

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   ciaron daviesposted 12 years ago

   Human interest stories

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Do you mean like the life and times of a person?  Like Anne Frank or social based ones like Titticut Follies?

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         ciaron daviesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Social based ones and life times but that follow the character, with insightful interviews by people who knew them, so that you get a broad picture of the subject, a glimpse into their life, the people that surround them and the subjects impact on the world.

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   Senoritaaposted 12 years ago

   Wild life that is really wild, one that is not labelled 'wild' by interfering humans!

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Those are an interesting watch, but can you imagine the amount of editing that goes into that?  There must be hours of downtime.

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   mel22posted 12 years ago

   Is American Greed considered a documentary ?

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I don't see why not, I consider Lockup on MSNBC a documentary too.

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   mattyfazposted 12 years ago

   It would definitely have to be documentaries about space. Something about space just fascinates me and I cannot get enough of information about it and peoples theories about what is out there. Amazing possibilities.

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      The only documentaries about space that I've seen are when I visited Nasa and there was one on the History channel.  Do you know any good ones?

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   MissEposted 12 years ago

   Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz......Sorry, not much on documentaries.  My husband loves historical and scientific ones.  My 5th grader loves animal documentaries.  I would probably stay awake more during the space ones....yeah.

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      vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I used to stay away from them as well and found that they were boring.  Let me suggest two for you if you like drama: The Thin Blue Line and Paradise Lost.  They are riviting and the story about the situation at hand rolls out like a feature film.

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    hawkdad73posted 12 years ago

    I have to say I like watching main stream religion and its effect on society.

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       In the evangelical sense or in the Religuslous sense?

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          hawkdad73posted 12 years agoin reply to this

          More in the sense of an attempt to dispel my own assumptions that there is an inherent "religious-less" to all we consider holy.

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    LookingForWaldenposted 12 years ago

    Religulous by Bil Maher
    
    And anything on time travel.

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       That movie is funny, although I was a little disapointed.  It seemed like the targets he chose were easy to mock.  I wish he would be chosen less easy targets and still question their belief system.

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    gabby0506posted 12 years ago

    Criminal of course!! They have been fascinating me since childhood!!

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Me too, I watch MSNBC Lockup, Preditor, then there's Gangland; not to mention all those films about Al Capone, serial killers and the link.  It is intriguing to watch films about the seedier side of life.  Have you ever watched The Iceman?  Such a good documentary about a hitman.

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    lokoyizoneposted 12 years ago

    Terrorism and History

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I tend to avoid documentaries on terrorism.  I'm not sure why, they just seem religious based.  Maybe you know some that are not. 
       
       And I love history and the history channel.  I remember watched the History channel for hours and hours and wondered what else they could show about World War II, because I thought I'd already watched everything that could have been shown. lol

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       hawkdad73posted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Historical documentaries make for the perfect Sunday afternoon. I have to be in the right mood for terrorist documentaries, though.

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    Richard Craigposted 12 years ago

    Dinosaurs and the Universe are my fave because there are always more questions than answers.

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I love watching realizations of far away planets.  They did one that imagines what the area/life was like on a planet that had one side permanently in dark and the other in light.  So interesting what the wildlife could possibly exist like that!

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    ikechiawazieposted 12 years ago

    I love the topic on Sharks and whales

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Shark week must be your favorite.  I love the documentaries that highlight the deepest areas that we've only begun to research.  There is so much unknown down there that it becomes fascinating to think that we're on the same planet as some of these creatures.

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       hawkdad73posted 12 years agoin reply to this

       The only think that would make a perfect Sunday afternoon with the above-mentioned historical documentaries would be shark documentaries.  Love 'em.

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    prettydarkhorseposted 12 years ago

    war zones and plight of children in different parts of the world.
    
    Then I cry, LOL

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I cry watching those as well.  There's one called Born into a Bordello or something like that, that still shakes me.

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    arekwhiteposted 12 years ago

    My favorite documentary subject is villages in mountains..

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       hawkdad73posted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Any you'd like to recommend?

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Is that anything like Land Without Bread by Luis Bunuel?

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    vintageglamourposted 12 years ago

    Nature/ our Ecosystem, True Crime, Stories about Incarcerated individuals.

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       vmartinezwilsonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Do you watch MSNBC's Lockup?  I love, love, love watching that show.  It is a fascinating look at another side of society.

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