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** STICKY ** Documentary Thread

J

JustBusiness17

New Member
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
If nobody has picked up on it yet, I should mention that I'm a huge documentary fan. I thought it might be cool to share our favorite documentaries and compile a list of recomendations.

I will be pretty active contributor in this thread but I figured I would start with just one very fitting title, Manufacturing Dissent. Its a movie about the man who revolutionized documentary film making and inspired many people to become fans of the genre -Michael Moore. Surprisingly, the film is not a right-wing smear fest and was actually created by fans of Moore's who learned about some troubling discrepancies in his movies.

Manufacturing Dissent is a great first addition for this thread because it reminds us that we need to be careful how we form our opinions, no matter how convincing a case may seem. And isn't that the point of these forums?
(Note: keep an eye out for a famous atheist who provides some short commentary on Moore. It kinda caught me off guard)
 
arg-fallbackName="nasher168"/>
Re: Documentary Thread (Sticky Please)

A great documentary I found called "Alien Planet". I say documentary, but it's actually a look at a hypothetical planet called Darwin 4, which is host to life. It is almost unique in that the aliens are completely original and yet entirely within the realms of science.
It has the super-annoying tendency of American programs to tell you exactly what's about to happen every now and again, but other than that it's very good.


Also:
I didn't even know this series existed until recently-there can't have been very much publicity at the time. Walking with Monsters looks at our ancestors from the Cambrian explosion to the Permian extinction. A sort of prequel to the Walking with Dinosaurs series.
 
arg-fallbackName="derkvanl"/>
Re: Documentary Thread (Sticky Please)

I have some of my own that are really worth watching.

Some very good examples of what indoctrination can do to people (full playlists).
Vice guide to North Korea
Welcome to North Korea by Peter Tetteroo and Raymond Feddema
Jesus Camp
Japanes unit 731 documentary
Russian neo-nazi documentary

Drugs:
Horizon, Brittish most dangerous drugs
Colombia, cocaine war
steroids in bodybuilding

Religion:
The root of al evil, enemies of reason and who wrote the bible with Richard Dwakins: Playlist
Playlist with history of religion and the crusades.

Political:
The Trap - 1 - F*k You Buddy and 2 - The lonely robot and 3 - We will force you to be free

Very old and maybe a bit off but a 1993 broadcast on dutch public television called "Een schitterend ongeluk" (A glorious accident), which was a dicsussion betwee Rupert Sheldrake, Stephen J. Gould, Oliver Sacks, Freeman Dyson, Daniel Dennet and Stephen Toulmin. Parts can be find with youtube search, I didn't find the full episodes on the internet only fragments (there are 6, video can still be bought on DVD though).
Dennet and Sacks
Rupert Sheldrake (full playlist of the interview)
Freeman Dyson
There's more in related videos of the above.

Rural China "Children Left Behind" (3 vids)

I've seen so many, I really can't list them all. A very good collection of documentaries can be found on Spread the word And for something completely different BBC seven ages of rock website with video
 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
I haven't seen this one yet but it's one that looks really interesting. As a man posing as an evangelical presidential candidate, I'm sure he was able to capture quite a lot of crazy that is normally hidden from public view...
 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
This is a look at the most extreme faction of the anti-abortion movement in the US (and probably the world). It's amazing what comes out of these people's mouths :shock:

 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
The amazing life - and disturbing death - of an extraordinary woman who successfully challenged the place of God in American life for 30 notorious years.

Madalyn Murray O'Hair had come to occupy a special place in the American psyche since her 1963 campaign which ended compulsory prayer in US schools after a Supreme Court action on behalf of her son William. O'Hair's campaign succeeded, but she became the most hated woman in America (her own label), as she fought to take the name of God off the dollar bill - and her son became a born-again Christian.

Then, on a summer's day in 1995 , she suddenly disappeared, leaving her breakfast dishes on the table - and half a million dollars missing from her organisation's bank account.
Click to expand...

 
arg-fallbackName="5810Singer"/>
Simon Conway Morris: The History In Our Bones (Royal Institution Christmas Lectures 1996):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QadQOqWu0wM&feature=PlayList&p=424A382EA93DA15D&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=77
 
arg-fallbackName="Gnug215"/>
You all may know this one, but it should certainly be in our canon of documentaries, so to speak.

NOVA - Intelligent design on trial




This next one might be as familiar to some.
It's about radical islam and neocons, their ideological background.
The whole documentary is called "The Power of Nightmares", but it comes in three parts. "Baby it's Cold Outside" is the first of the three, each of which are divided into 6 episodes. Those are all linked to in the description of this first video if you're interested in watching more.

The Power of Nightmares - Part 1 - Baby It's Cold Outside

 
arg-fallbackName="Laurens"/>
Richard Dawkins:
The Root of All Evil: Part 1, The God Delusion http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SENkfh8S6LU
The Root of All Evil: Part 2, The Virus of Faith http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EFl8xwxgBQ

The Enemies of Reason Ep 1 (Part 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyQ57X3YhH4
*Part 2 is missing unfortunately*
The Enemies of Reason Ep1 (Part 3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrVeKUs9f50
The Enemies of Reason Ep 1 (Part 4) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRxKnjn704Y
The Enemies of Reason Ep 1 (Part 5) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbEGTcGzBr8

The Enemies of Reason Ep 2 (Part 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt6W7eJ_E0A
The Enemies of Reason Ep 2 (Part 2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwZGp2DGLIE
The Enemies of Reason Ep 2 (Part 3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOmMdnO4qE4
The Enemies of Reason Ep 2 (Part 4) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eCLI0ZRt9Y
The Enemies of Reason Ep 2 (Part 5) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eCLI0ZRt9Y
 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
Nice additions ;)

Gnug, your second post looks really interesting. I'm definitely watching that one this weekend. Your first one is a classic and must watch for anyone on the fence about evolution.

Laurens, you contributions are both good too. One thing to note is that Dawkins hated the title "Root of All Evil" and fought hard to have it renamed.


Here is a must watch for anyone interested in the contrast and comparison of Christianity with archeology:



This one is similar to the previous but it looks a little more closely with the roots of Christianity and the influences of the Pagan religion that preceded it:
 
arg-fallbackName="Laurens"/>
JustBusiness17 said:
Nice additions ;)
Laurens, you contributions are both good too. One thing to note is that Dawkins hated the title "Root of All Evil" and fought hard to have it renamed.
Click to expand...

I was unaware of that fact. I did think it was a rather harsh title when I saw it, but the title doesn't detract from the content of the documentaries fortunately.
 
arg-fallbackName="Laurens"/>
Here's some more:

James Randi in Australia Testing Dowsers:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpcFl23dmcQ
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw4EPMkPXFk
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUtA7JkuySQ
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53ngwL8GFIQ
Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWkz-4_z-pE

Scientology Inside the Cult:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rD9bCdHqU3s

Panorama: Scientology and Me:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuJlZ_f1594
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdCBeMlLTSQ
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FCfO741sr4
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY_MLq7mwac

Origin of Species by Charles Darwin:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfmOaAz371M
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gR5UlRTJP24
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHth4tg7B2M
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CF-N1xB8WLM
Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU7jU4vRksA


200th Anniversary Charles Darwin David Attenborough BBC Documentary:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwFFTxMjxoM
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vh8UNWP1hFo
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ-We670SZM
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qe_cIR1fUe0
Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s94_D3e3P70
Part 6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8ej6JLDvuw

BBC Conspiracy Files: The 3rd Tower:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIJ-2WZLnNw
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Tf1ScR9j1Q
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyoBF1984k4
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv_Oc21lIXU
Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyWIv4fk3qs
Part 6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPMrTkmMbQM
 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
Perhaps its my deep interest in the field of marketing, but I happen to think the following is one of the most important series of documentaries I've ever watched. While I had seen the first episode before, I wasn't aware of the remaining 3 parts. It covers the entire evolutionary history of marketing in a way that is both fascinating and yet deeply disturbing. With great care to illuminate the psychological underpinnings of consumerism, it looks at the implications of both business and politics. One of the most frightening topics is how marketing adapted to the cultural shift towards individualism in order to stimulate the consumption of products that feed into our personal identities. But even that is trumped by the use of psychology to mass manipulate the electorate for political ends.

If you want to find out just how individual you aren't, this would be a good place to start:


This is a 4 part series that should be watched in order. Use the wikipedia page as a reference:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Century_of_the_Self


I also highly recommend the series posted above by Gnug215 which was produced by the same film maker (Adam Curtis). The Power of Nightmares delves into fear politics and the historical (and current) use of the imagined enemy to control the masses. In my opinion, these two series are inseparable and should be watched by anyone interested in knowing more about why the world is the way it is.
 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
Here is an interesting documentary on the nature of privatization... Fun times ahead :?



--

If you ever wanted to understand consumerism, this is a good place to start:

 
arg-fallbackName="Gnug215"/>
Ooh, Who Killed the Electric Car. One of my favs.

You're finding some really good ones, JB. I really enjoyed the one about consumerism.

Here is another fav of mine:

Enron - The Smartest Guys in the Room 01 of 10 - 2005



While it may look like just a tedious story of economic downfall, but it's so much more.
There's a fair bit in there about group-think and mass psychology, which is really interesting.

Check it out!
 
arg-fallbackName="JustBusiness17"/>
Thanks Gnug, I really like the consumerism one myself...

I remember the Enron doc being really well put together! It definitely put capitalism in perspective for me... If you liked that one, Bush Family Fortunes touches on Enron's campaign contributions to Bush:



I would contend that despite all his corporate sponsors, Bush still didn't win the election, though.



FoxNews' lack of journalistic integrity definitely clinched the election for Bush though...



On the subject of media, I was a little surprised just how corrupt the movie industry was:



Of course, when you're talking about corporate greed, its really hard to overlook The Corporation:

 
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