Documentary vs. Biopic: Bus 174 Edition

One of my favorite documentaries from the last decade was "Bus 174 (2002)":

"On June 12th, 2000, a bus full of passengers was kidnapped in Rio de Janeiro in broad daylight. The kidnapper, Sandro do Nascimento, terrorized his victims and when he finally agreed to surrender and the episode was close to an end, a policeman tried to shoot him, killing one of the hostages instead, a young woman. The whole episode was broadcast live, causing revolt among the population. The documentary is about the incident, with interviews, focusing on Sandro do Nascimento, his childhood, and how unavoidably he was doomed to become a bandit."

So when I realized a feature film had been made about the same story, and that it was written by Braulio Mantovani, the man who wrote another favorite of mine, "City of God (2002)", I knew I absolutely had to watch "Last Stop 174 (2008)".

This is definitely one case in which the documentary and film complemented one another, while both being great movies on their own. I would recommend "Last Stop 174" even if you haven't seen the documentary, because Sandro's story is both fascinating and tragic.



You can watch the documentary "Bus 174" here.

Documentary vs. Biopic: Petey Greene Edition

I really loved the movie "Talk to Me (2007)" starring Don Cheadle. After watching it, I thought I knew a lot about Petey Greene.



But it wasn't until I watched "Adjust Your Color: The Truth of Petey Greene" (which won the 2009 Independent Lens Audience Award) on PBS that I really understood what made him such a legend.



(You can watch the entire episode here.)

No offense to Don Cheadle, but who do you think would have played a better Petey Greene?

Documentary vs. Biopic: Emmy Edition

"An old mother and her middle-aged daughter, the aunt and cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, live their eccentric lives in a filthy, decaying mansion in East Hampton."

The recent announcement of the Emmy nominations has given me a reason to post the first of several rants. I don't necessarily have a problem with biopics themselves, but I strongly believe that if you really want to learn about a subject, documentaries are simply more reliable.

Case in point, HBO's "Grey Gardens (2009)", which was nominated for a whopping 17 Emmys. I must admit, any accolades that Jessica Lange receives for her portrayal of Big Edie are more than well deserved, she was amazing. Since I am a fan of Drew Barrymore, I won't comment on her performance.



I had seen the groundbreaking documentary "Grey Gardens (1975)" on which the HBO movie was based a few times, so for me the fictional version provided a lot of background that I had been curious about. But I hope that anyone who has or plans to watch it will at some point watch the documentary, because it is one of the most intriguing stories you will ever watch.