The Art of Observing Life
2013 · 1h 10m · Not Rated
Documentary
Directed by
Marina Goldovskaya
Free account saves your watchlist and ratings.
The Art of Observing Life
Overview
Over twenty years, the Russian documentary filmmaker Marina Goldovskaya interviewed pioneers of American documentaries, such as Richard Leacock, Robert and Anne Drew, Albert Maysles, D.A. Pennebaker, Jonas Mekas, among others. In long conversations, they discuss the elaboration of titles that are now fundamental to the genre’s world history, commenting on the introduction of new light and portable cameras that allowed the advent of Cinema Verite, in addition to sharing the fundamentals and principles of the art of capturing life. The sum of these parts corresponds to a singular opportunity of re-encounter with the thinking of these masters, even those that have already passed away.
Director and cast
More films
King Coal (2023)
Documentary · N/A
The cultural roots of coal continue to permeate the rituals of daily life in Appalachia even as its economic power wanes. The journey of a coal miner’s daughter exploring the region’s dreams and myths, untangling the pain and beauty, as her community sits on the brink of massive change.
- Runtime
- 1h 18m
- Cast
- Elaine McMillion Sheldon, Lanie Marsh, Gabrielle Wilson
Time (2020)
Documentary · PG-13
Fox Rich, indomitable matriarch and modern-day abolitionist, strives to keep her family together while fighting for the release of her incarcerated husband. An intimate, epic, and unconventional love story, filmed over two decades.
- Runtime
- 1h 21m
- Director
- Garrett Bradley
- Cast
- Fox Rich, Robert Fox Richardson, Freedom Rich
Beyond Right & Wrong: Stories of Justice and Forgiveness (2012)
Documentary · Not Rated
A survivor of the Rwandan Genocide struggles to forgive the man who killed her children. A victim’s daughter strikes up an unusual friendship with the ex-IRA bomber who killed her father. And two men—one Israeli, one Palestinian—form a bond after tragedies claim their daughters.
- Runtime
- 1h 20m
- Director
- Roger Spottiswoode, Lekha Singh
Elie Wiesel Goes Home (1997)
Documentary · History · N/A
A documentary chronicling the adolescent years of Elie Wiesel and the history of his sufferings. Eliezer was fifteen when Fascism brutally altered his life forever. Fifty years later, he returns to Sighetu Marmatiei, the town where he was born, to walk the painful road of remembrance - but is it possible to speak of the unspeakable? Or...
- Runtime
- 1h 48m
- Cast
- Elie Wiesel, Jean-Hugues Anglade, William Hurt
The Spectacular Now (2013)
Comedy · Drama · Romance · R
Sutter, a popular party animal, unexpectedly meets the introverted Aimee after waking up on a stranger's lawn. As Sutter deals with the problems in his life and Aimee plans for her future beyond school, an unexpected romance blossoms between them.
- Runtime
- 1h 35m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Masam Holden
The Circle (2017)
Drama · Science Fiction · Thriller · PG-13
A young tech worker takes a job at a powerful Internet corporation, quickly rises up the company's ranks, and soon finds herself in a perilous situation concerning privacy, surveillance and freedom. She comes to learn that her decisions and actions will determine the future of humanity.
- Runtime
- 1h 50m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Emma Watson, Alicia Vikander, Tom Hanks
Smashed (2012)
Comedy · Drama · Romance · R
Kate and Charlie like to have a good time. Their marriage thrives on a shared fondness for music, laughter… and getting smashed. When Kate’s partying spirals into hard-core asocial behavior, compromising her job as an elementary schoolteacher, something’s got to give. But change isn’t exactly a cakewalk. Sobriety means she will have to...
- Runtime
- 1h 25m
- Director
- James Ponsoldt
- Cast
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Aaron Paul, Octavia Spencer

Comments
Talk about the film with other members