Social & Political Documentary movies

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Tense Dry Clinical Measured Industrial

In post-industrial Ohio, a Chinese billionaire opens a new factory in the husk of an abandoned General Motors plant, hiring two thousand blue-collar Americans. Early days of hope and optimism give way to setbacks as high-tech China clashes with working-class America.

Themes

Class inequality, Culture clash, Labor capital frictions, Foreign investment anxieties, Labor rights, Industrial modernization

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Tense Atmospheric Procedural Restrained Clinical

In June 2013, Laura Poitras and reporter Glenn Greenwald flew to Hong Kong for the first of many meetings with Edward Snowden. She brought her camera with her.

Themes

Media accountability, Whistleblower risk, Privacy vs security, State secrecy tension, Surveillance ethics, Journalist ethics, Asylum politics

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Bleak Restrained Clinical Measured Leisurely

Notorious killer whale Tilikum is responsible for the deaths of three individuals, including a top killer whale trainer. Blackfish shows the sometimes devastating consequences of keeping such intelligent and sentient creatures in captivity.

Themes

Animal trainer dynamics, Confinement and care, Killer whale ethics, Industry vs welfare, Witness testimony debates, Stress of capture

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Restrained Deliberate Clinical Relentless Measured

Alex Gibney explores the phenomenon of Stuxnet, a self-replicating computer virus discovered in 2010 by international IT experts. Evidently commissioned by the US and Israeli governments, this malware was designed to specifically sabotage Iran’s nuclear programme. However, the complex computer worm ended up not only infecting its intended target but also spreading uncontrollably.

Themes

Secrecy vs transparency, State sponsored cyber operation, Investigation under uncertainty, Governance of cyber tools, Collateral disruption risk, Lifecycle of malware

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Immersive Realistic Bleak Dry Measured

A cautionary tale for these times of democracy in crisis—the personal and political fuse to explore one of the most dramatic periods in Brazilian history. With unprecedented access to Presidents Dilma Rousseff and Lula da Silva, we witness their rise and fall and the tragically polarized nation that remains.

Themes

Democracy in crisis, Personal political fuse, Rise and fall of leaders, Polarized national mood, Family political history, Governance under scrutiny

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Bleak Deliberate Clinical Measured Nerve-wracking

The Cove tells the amazing true story of how an elite team of individuals, films makers and free divers embarked on a covert mission to penetrate the hidden cove in Japan, shining light on a dark and deadly secret. The shocking discoveries were only the tip of the iceberg.

Themes

Environmental activism, Government complicity, Visibility vs secrecy, Economic incentives in hunting, Public awareness and risk

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Realistic Steady Bleak Dry Restrained

A film that exposes the shocking truth behind the economic crisis of 2008. The global financial meltdown, at a cost of over $20 trillion, resulted in millions of people losing their homes and jobs. Through extensive research and interviews with major financial insiders, politicians and journalists, Inside Job traces the rise of a rogue industry and unveils the corrosive relationships which have corrupted politics, regulation and academia.

Themes

Corporate influence on policy, Deregulation and risk, Systemic risk in finance, Predatory lending patterns, Unemployment and inequality, Bailout ethics and accountability

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Tense Clinical Relentless Measured Nerve-wracking

Fed Up blows the lid off everything we thought we knew about food and weight loss, revealing a 30-year campaign by the food industry, aided by the U.S. government, to mislead and confuse the American public, resulting in one of the largest health epidemics in history.

Themes

Public health vs corporate profit, Industry influence on policy, Sugar and obesity link, Lobbying and guideline neglect, Policy inertia and resistance, Health messaging and confusion

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Dry Clinical Relentless Fast-paced Oppressive

Michael Moore's provocative documentary explores the two most important questions of the Trump Era: How did we get here, and how do we get out.

Themes

Media influence on politics, Gun policy and protests, Wealth vs ordinary citizens, Racial rhetoric and division, Institutional power and control, Public accountability and mistrust

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Tense Intimate Dry Deliberate Intense

To understand firsthand what the United States of America can learn from other nations, Michael Moore playfully “invades” some to see what they have to offer.

Themes

Economic inequality mitigation, Womens rights leadership, Education access debt-free, Welfare states expansion, Drug policy reform, Labor rights co-determination

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