SnagThis Tagged Articles at Cinematical

What do Transformers, Francis Ford Coppola, and Martha Stewart have in common? Push Button House! That's the name of an art installation / actual usable home by Adam Kalkin as well as a short film by Robert Profusek and Ryan Silbert; the latter is now available for free online streaming, courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms.

Both Coppola and Stewart were fascinated by the idea of a shipping container that transforms into a pre-fabricated home. As described by Luxist, the Push Button House "is a fully functional and sustainable home built inside a standard industrial shipping container. In just 90-seconds with the push of a button the shipping container turns into a five-room home with a kitchen, dining room, bedroom, living room and library." Kalkin created an earlier version in 2005; the updated illy's Push Button House debuted at the prestigious Venice Biennale in 2007 and was exhibited late in the year at the Time Warner Center in Manhattan. That's where the doc catches Kalkin as he puts the finishing touches to the exhibition.

The doc is barely 12 minutes long; the directors stated: "Push Button House is a small window into Adam's amazing body of work; our hope was to be able to convey a snippet of the creative energy that he puts into every piece." And since this is a short work week for many of us, I thought the length would allow more people to give it a look. More information about the film is available at SnagFilms.

Watch Push Button House right here at Cinematical -- after the jump! Please note: NSFW due to profanity.

As a Los Angeles native and a film history buff, I am endlessly fascinated by little-known tales that continue to emerge from Hollywood's storied past. Girl 27, now available for free streaming courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms, first caught my eye when it was released on DVD a couple of years ago: A woman hired as a movie extra in the 1930s is instead raped at an MGM party. If that real-life premise sounds intriguing, or causes the hairs on the back of your head to stand up with righteous indignation, you might want to check out the movie.

Beginning on a Biblical note with a quote that "nothing hidden ... will not be disclosed," the documentary mixes black and white archival footage with recent interviews of outraged observers looking back at the events of 1937. MGM, the biggest studio in the world at the time, sponsored a convention for its sales force; dozens of young women were lured there with the promise of work as an extra or bit player. Instead, they were wined and raped. Well, at least one woman was: Patricia Douglas, a 20-year-old lady who was brave enough to press a lawsuit against the studio, only to be discredited and "disappeared" from the legal record. David Stenn was finishing a book on Jean Harlow when he learned about what happened and was compelled to write about it, spurred on by his editor, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. As narrator and director, he's somewhat self-serving (as pointed out by an irritated Carina Chocano in her Los Angeles Times review), but the doc brings a shameful, unknown story to light.

Watch Girl 27 in its entirety for free, right here at Cinematical -- after the jump!

She may look like she's 'just' a girl singer, but an electric guitar stands at the ready just behind her waiting for the moment when this ... girl ... will ... rock ... !!! I've been itching to see Girls Rock! ever since I caught a trailer for it eons ago; something about its rough, DIY musical spirit was very appealing. Now you too can watch Girls Rock!, which recently became available for free online streaming, courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms.

The starting point for the documentary is a trip to the annual "Rock 'n' Roll Camp for Girls" in Portland, Oregon, observed our own Jeffrey M. Anderson. "For their week in camp, the girls, ranging in age from 8 to 18, must form bands, write songs, learn to play instruments, learn to play together and perform their original songs for a crowd of 700 by the last day. ... The best thing Girls Rock! has going for it is the fact that it discards the stagnant PBS documentary formula in favor of a more homemade, exploratory feel. And though it has roughly the same depth and breadth as a 3-minute song, it also has a real rock 'n' roll attitude."

Monika Bartyzel noted the surprising fact that the doc is directed by two men, Arne Johnson and Shane King. "Yet it doesn't really matter," she wrote in her review, "because they understand their subject perfectly. With the driving sounds of notable female rockers from Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon to Veruca Salt, the documentary is an intensely intimate, yet respectful, portrait of the pressures and releases of a group of dynamic young women." More information about the film is available at SnagFilms.

Watch Girls Rock in its entirety -- absolutely free -- after the jump!

One year ago, Beijing, China played host to the Olympic Games. Amidst a fair bit of controversy, the Games opened and closed with spectacular ceremonies directed by filmmaker Zhang Yimou. For those two weeks or so, the world's attention was focused on Beijing. But what about the years leading up to the Games? How did Beijing residents deal with the far-ranging, massive, and incredible extensive preparations?

Boomtown Beijing -- now available to stream online, for free, courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms -- peers through the eyes of Beijing residents, the millions of folks who had to deal with construction projects decimating old neighborhoods, ever-increasing traffic and congestion, and a multitude of billboards and other signs exhorting the nation's citizens to fulfill the slogan of the games: "Faster, Higher, Stronger." Filmmaker Tan Siok Siok interviews a good range of people, from a taxi driver who feels that he's realized a dream and now faces intense pressure to meet the new, high standard of service demanded, to an 11-year-old boy who happily participates in his school's reenactments of the ancient Olympic Games (his father, known as "the mad man," is behind it all) even as he not-so-secretly wishes to be the Olympic torch-bearer.

Now that some time has passed, Boomtown Beijing provides a good reminder of the challenges that the residents of Beijing -- and the whole of China itself -- faces in adapting to a changing world. More information about the film is available at its official site and at SnagFilms.

Watch Boomtown Beijing, in its entirety, after the jump!

"They're keeping us all safe, and they have cool toys!" Those are the words of a museum curator, talking about firefighters and their equipment in Trial by Fire: The New York City Fire Musuem, a documentary that is now available for free online viewing, courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms.

Running just 26 minutes, the doc nonetheless covers a lot of ground. It helps when the museum itself stirs up so many strong feelings. Located in a renovated 1904 firehouse in the SoHo district of Manhattan, the museum displays cover the history of firefighting in New York City, dating back to the mid-17th century. Evolving from "rattle men," who walked around looking for fires and then sounded an alarm by using hand-held rattles, to working class volunteers, who enjoyed the social opportunities of fighting fires, to the first paid department in 1865, when the number of firefighters dropped from 10,000 to 800. The doc also traces the development of equipment specifically designed for firefighters, like the fire helmet, introduced after a devastating inferno that destroyed much of the city in 1835.

While not a major piece of documentary filmmaking, I enjoyed watching Trial by Fire. Several retired firefighters bring historical perspective, and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani is on hand as well. It's breezy, educational, and, perhaps best of all, pays tribute to a profession that's really more of a heroic calling. Bravo to all firefighters!

Watch Trial by Fire: The New York City Fire Museum after the jump!

Feeling hot this summer? Well, imagine what it would be like to run through the Sahara Desert; not just a quick dash from your air-conditioned home to your air-conditioned car to your air-conditioned place of employment, but running 150 miles over seven days, trekking through the heat and the sand and the wind, with all your provisions strapped to your back? Now you're ready to watch Marathon of the Sands, a documentary that is available for free online viewing courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms.

Directed by Les Guthman and Tim Powell, the doc focuses on just a few of the more than 700 runners from around the world who came to Morocco to compete in the race. "Compete" and "race" may sound like out-of-place terms for a long-distance test of endurance, but the top runners are not only competing against themselves and the elements, but the other athletes. Others, however, simply wish to finish the race, like the British man who wears bunny shoes and carries around a costumed bunny head, in an effort to raise funds for charity in honor of his late wife. The first leg of the race, a 17-mile jaunt, looks loose and easy for the competitors, but by the second day, when blisters start bursting, the strain begins to show.

Produced for Outside Television, Marathon of the Sands is ideal for small-screen viewing -- perhaps while sipping a cool beverage of your choice! More information is available at SnagFilms.

Watch Marathon of the Sands right here at Cinematical -- after the jump!

"The roots of our music, our culture, had suddenly been wiped out.." When the levees broke in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans was devastated. Among the multitude of victims was the "cultural gumbo" of the city's vital music scene, built up over many decades. The city is "the crucible of music," says U2's The Edge. "Without New Orleans, there'd be no rock 'n' roll."

Music Rising, now available for free online viewing courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms, documents the efforts of musicians to help their fellow artists to continue playing and performing -- and to encourage musicians who had been forced to leave the city to come home. The film begins on a somber note, as the devastation is recapped. One musician sadly surveys the ruins of his home before leaving town, declaring that he will never return; he is emblematic of the many departed musicians. Record Producer Bob Ezrin, whose quoted words open this article, toured the city and admitted he could not quite process the extent of the damage that had been done. Along with The Edge and Henry Juszkiewicz, Ezrin was one of the creators of Music Rising, a campaign whose first phase was intended to replace musical instruments lost in the flood.

The documentary, directed by Canadian filmmaker Don Young, provides an overview of that first phase. It ends in September 2006, with many questions left unanswered. The campaign continued, but, tragically, the future of New Orleans remains cloudy. More information about the film is available at the official Music Rising campaign site and at SnagFilms.

Watch Music Rising after the jump!

I've been known to frequent certain fast food establishments far more than I should, to the extent that the employees recognize me and greet me warmly upon my return. So my guilty conscience prodded me to revisit Morgan Spurlock's Super Size Me, which is available for free online viewing via our friends at SnagFilms. We've embedded it after the jump so you can view it right here at Cinematical.

SnagFilms is celebrating their one-year anniversary, and Super Size Me is currently the most popular title. Clearly it's not just guilty consciences that make the doc essential, and surprisingly enjoyable, viewing. Spurlock sets out to test the boundaries between personal and corporate responsibility, to see if eating every meal at McDonalds every day for 30 days would be dangerous to his health -- as one judge indicated would need to be proved if a lawsuit against the fast food giant could proceed. Spurlock establishes his baseline medical condition with three physicians, who anticipate that the diet may only affect him to a limited extent.

What starts off as "wish fulfillment of an eight-year-old child quickly turns to drudgery. A healthy man and a healthy eater, Spurlock finds no joy in his self-imposed diet, and has a tendency to be strident. Yet the medical risks are real, as is his concern about waking people up about the dangers of a fast food nation. Coincidentally (?!), McDonalds started to phase out super-sizing -- right about the time of the film's release. Super Size Me remains a vital document and a plea for the healthy, responsible consumption of food. It's funny, too!

Watch Super Size Me after the jump!

What does democracy mean to you? Does it mean the same thing in the US as it does in Russia? Mikhail Morozov (AKA Mikhail Fedorovich), "a Russian patriot, devout Christian and millionaire businessman ... also presides over Duravoko -- 'the village of fools' southwest of Moscow -- where people willingly come from all over Russia to free themselves from freedom." For God, Tsar and Fatherland examines a community struggling to deal with the US concept of "democracy." The documentary is available for free online viewing, courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms, and is quite timely, in view of President Obama's first trip to Russia this week.

Morozov gets a memorable, if not entirely flattering, introduction: a view from behind as the portly, balding man jumps into a swimming pool. It's almost as though journalist / filmmaker Nino Kirtadze wants to strip the man down to his essence, and then allow the film to clothe Morozov with the issues that define him. He lays down the law to a potential resident: listen and obey only me; don't ask questions. He leads the prayers for the group and ties God, Tsar, and the Fatherland (Russia) all together into a trinity. "Western-style" democracy, he says, has only led to disaster.

To be certain, the doc is dryly presented, yet it's of interest because it provides a Russian perspective, questioning why resistance to "Western-style" democracy seems to be gaining ground. More information about the film is available at the Why Democracy site and at SnagFilms.

After the jump: Watch For God, Tsar and Fatherland.

What are your plans for the weekend? Here in the U.S., most folks are enjoying a long holiday weekend, filled with food, friends, and fireworks -- and maybe a free concert and a movie or two. On a personal note, with local temperatures soaring above 100 degrees for the past week or so, I'm staying inside and out of the weather as much as I can. And so I was pleased to find Jazz on a Summer's Day is available for free online viewing, courtesy of our friends at SnagFilms.

Directed by Aram Avakian and Bert Stern, the film documents the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival and the America's Cup sailing tournament, two events which go together like a cool drink on a hot day. Performers at the festival include Thelonius Monk, Gerry Mulligan, Anita O'Day (pictured), Dinah Washington, Chuck Berry, Louis Armstrong, and Mahalia Jackson. My knowledge of jazz is extremely limited, so all I can add to that list is that I very much enjoyed listening to all the musicians. As much as anything, I got a kick out of the spectator footage -- nicely dressed folks, a number in business suits (!), stylish sunglasses, bright colors, the whole nine yards -- and the dulcet-toned, super low-key announcer.

Frankly, this is a good doc for watching, and listening to, in the background. We've embedded it after the jump. More information is available at SnagFilms.

After the jump: Watch Jazz on a Summer's Day!