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    <title>Lake of Fire's Recent Activity - Spout</title>
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      <title>Film:Lake of Fire</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/films/Lake_of_Fire/290315/default.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<table width='100%' style='font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><tr><td><img align='left' src='http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg' hspace='10' style='height:80px;' /></td>
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<strong>Title:</strong> Lake of Fire<br/>
<strong>Year:</strong> 2007<br/>
<strong>Director:</strong> Tony Kaye<br/>
<strong>Plot:</strong> With Lake of Fire, <a href="http://www.spout.com/films/128875/detail.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>American History X</a> helmer and music video director <a href="http://www.spout.com/players/P___263837/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tony Kaye</a> climbs inside of the decades-old abortion debate for a 152-minute study of the pro-life and pro-choice positions. In the process, he uncovers not an objective black-and-white issue, but a myriad of circumstances and sub-issues of tremendous moral complexity and ambiguity. He then investigates the sub-philosophies and ideas that belie each side, with generous input and assistance from socialist Noam Chomsky, and via interviews with Christian theologians, and professors of bioethics, sociology and philosophy. Kaye also gives substantial consideration to the violence directed by certain extremists at abortion doctors, nurses, and clinics. The director worked on the picture for well over fifteen years, and it serves as a prime candidate for the definitive abortion documentary. However, be forewarned: Lake of Fire includes lengthy, graphic depictions of abortion procedures and their physical and emotional side-effects, and it is not for the squeamish or suitable for younger audiences. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide<br/>
<strong>Times Tagged:</strong> 24<br/>
<strong>Number of Lists:</strong> 6<br/>
<strong>Number of blog posts:</strong> 8<br/>
<strong>SpoutRating:</strong> 4<br/>
</td></tr></table>]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 12 Aug 2009 01:30:51 GMT</pubDate><spout:Title>Lake of Fire</spout:Title><spout:Year>2007</spout:Year><spout:Director>Tony Kaye</spout:Director><spout:Plot>With Lake of Fire, &lt;a href="http://www.spout.com/films/128875/detail.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'&gt;American History X&lt;/a&gt; helmer and music video director &lt;a href="http://www.spout.com/players/P___263837/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'&gt;Tony Kaye&lt;/a&gt; climbs inside of the decades-old abortion debate for a 152-minute study of the pro-life and pro-choice positions. In the process, he uncovers not an objective black-and-white issue, but a myriad of circumstances and sub-issues of tremendous moral complexity and ambiguity. He then investigates the sub-philosophies and ideas that belie each side, with generous input and assistance from socialist Noam Chomsky, and via interviews with Christian theologians, and professors of bioethics, sociology and philosophy. Kaye also gives substantial consideration to the violence directed by certain extremists at abortion doctors, nurses, and clinics. The director worked on the picture for well over fifteen years, and it serves as a prime candidate for the definitive abortion documentary. However, be forewarned: Lake of Fire includes lengthy, graphic depictions of abortion procedures and their physical and emotional side-effects, and it is not for the squeamish or suitable for younger audiences. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide</spout:Plot><spout:TimesTagged>24</spout:TimesTagged><spout:taglevel>Tag Target (&gt;10)</spout:taglevel><spout:Numberoflists>6</spout:Numberoflists><spout:NumberOfBlogPosts>8</spout:NumberOfBlogPosts><spout:SpoutRating>4</spout:SpoutRating><spout:FilmCoverURL>http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg</spout:FilmCoverURL><spout:SpoutFilmDetailURL>http://www.spout.com/films/Lake_of_Fire/290315/default.aspx</spout:SpoutFilmDetailURL><spout:type>Film</spout:type></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Post: Lake of Fire</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/blogs/risselada/archive/2009/3/9/40911.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div><img align='left' src='http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg' hspace='10' style='height:80px;' />
<strong>Post By:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/members/5353/default.aspx'>Risselada</a><br/>
<strong>Post To:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/blogs/risselada/default.aspx'>Risselada Blog</a><br/>
<strong>Post Date:</strong> 3/9/2009 4:47:10 PM<br/>
<strong>Body:</strong> Lake of Fire There is probably no social issue in the United States more heated and polarizing than the abortion issue.  Yet after watching this film you will see that the debate gives room to so many possible different views and perspectives and ambiguity.  That may be why the film was shot in black and white.  Black and white being a phrase that seems to suggest two options, one or the other.  But as we know black and white cinematography actually reveals infinite shades of gray possible in the spectrum between the black and white with rarely any true white or black to be seen. In this film's over two and a half hour running time you see a lot of different perspectives.  Some that will seem pretty extreme and absurd to most viewers, some that will seem more sympathetic.  Some that will come from very thoughtful places, and some from very emotional places.  Some that are full of certainty, some that are full of doubt. One major thing that this movie points out is that the abortion issue is often about a lot more than abortion.  Politically, the abortion issue often takes the front line as identifying the right wing from the left.  Many Republicans know that they will continue to a gigantic amount of votes just based on their mostly pro-life stance alone, no matter what other views they hold.  It's like the flagship issue for them. A lot of times the most vocal and extreme members of the pro-life movement also refer to themselves as certain kinds of fundamentalists who are using the pro-life movement to try to inflict their own sexual morality on the rest of society.  Christianity generally teaches that sex is designed to be within a mature monogamous relationship.  Even though this is ideal it's absurd to think you can force anyone into it.  They can't deny that the issue is not just about the life of a baby as much as it is about a fear of sex when most of them are also against prophylactics and sexual education.  They could try to defend being against prophylactics by claiming that gametes are people as much as a zygote, as absurd as that is, but if that was they case they should also be trying to make male masturbation or a female having a period without giving birth illegal.  Of course there is no excuse for preventing sexual education, unless they feel like the education is incorrect.  But as I think Noam Chomsky says in the movie, in every single culture when the level of sex education rises, the level of unwanted pregnancies lowers.  I think people are afraid that if sex is talked about people will have it more, but human nature is that people will figure it out, so it's best to have them informed.  Parents should take the time to teach their children the morals they have.  Sorry I think I went into my own rant a bit there over things explored in the movie. But certainly we can say that the pro-choice side uses the abortion issue as a stand in for something much bigger and inappropriately as well.  They say it's all about women's rights, but clearly abortion is about much more than that.  As much as some of them would like to believe so, the controversy surrounding abortion wouldn't go away if men were able to get pregnant as well.  Sure, maybe there are some people who are using the abortion issue as a repression of female rights, but even if that's how some people want to use it, it doesn't mean it should be used that way to fight back.  If pro-choice people want to be taken seriously they should talk about the issue as a matter of human rights, not just women's rights.  Again, some more of my own ranting. Some of my favorite comments are when a pro-life person says that being pro-life doesn't just mean that you should be anti-abortion.  It means you should also be anti-death penalty, anti-war, and anti any other situation where life is destroyed. Many pro-life people seem to be more concerned about the life of someone before they are born.  Pro-choice people seemed more concerned about people after they are born.  There is an innocence to someone who hasn't even been born yet that we need people to look out for them.  But if we can't even take care of and respect the people already living in this world, what is the point of making sure more people make it into this world safely? Some of the most compelling characters in this film include Norma McCorvey, the pregnant women in the famous Roe v. Wade case the made abortion legal.  After the case was over, Norma was working for an abortion clinic when she decided one day to actually go in the back and see the aborted fetuses.  The horrible site she saw along with the caring pro-life activist Flip Benham caused her to join the pro-life cause.  The feeling of guilt she professes for feeling responsible for all of the abortions that have become legal is powerful. Also the end of the film follows a woman coming into a clinic to have an abortion.  We see her decision and her trauma. This film is graphic but necessarily so. After the fairly long running time for a documentary, by the end you feel as though there was enough to say and explore about the issue that the film could have been twice or even three times as long.  But what it does show is powerful, varied, and important.  I recommend everyone see this. Rating: 9/10<br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Mon, 09 Mar 2009 20:47:10 GMT</pubDate><spout:postby>Risselada</spout:postby><spout:postto>Risselada Blog</spout:postto><spout:postdate>3/9/2009 4:47:10 PM</spout:postdate><spout:body>Lake of Fire There is probably no social issue in the United States more heated and polarizing than the abortion issue.  Yet after watching this film you will see that the debate gives room to so many possible different views and perspectives and ambiguity.  That may be why the film was shot in black and white.  Black and white being a phrase that seems to suggest two options, one or the other.  But as we know black and white cinematography actually reveals infinite shades of gray possible in the spectrum between the black and white with rarely any true white or black to be seen. In this film's over two and a half hour running time you see a lot of different perspectives.  Some that will seem pretty extreme and absurd to most viewers, some that will seem more sympathetic.  Some that will come from very thoughtful places, and some from very emotional places.  Some that are full of certainty, some that are full of doubt. One major thing that this movie points out is that the abortion issue is often about a lot more than abortion.  Politically, the abortion issue often takes the front line as identifying the right wing from the left.  Many Republicans know that they will continue to a gigantic amount of votes just based on their mostly pro-life stance alone, no matter what other views they hold.  It's like the flagship issue for them. A lot of times the most vocal and extreme members of the pro-life movement also refer to themselves as certain kinds of fundamentalists who are using the pro-life movement to try to inflict their own sexual morality on the rest of society.  Christianity generally teaches that sex is designed to be within a mature monogamous relationship.  Even though this is ideal it's absurd to think you can force anyone into it.  They can't deny that the issue is not just about the life of a baby as much as it is about a fear of sex when most of them are also against prophylactics and sexual education.  They could try to defend being against prophylactics by claiming that gametes are people as much as a zygote, as absurd as that is, but if that was they case they should also be trying to make male masturbation or a female having a period without giving birth illegal.  Of course there is no excuse for preventing sexual education, unless they feel like the education is incorrect.  But as I think Noam Chomsky says in the movie, in every single culture when the level of sex education rises, the level of unwanted pregnancies lowers.  I think people are afraid that if sex is talked about people will have it more, but human nature is that people will figure it out, so it's best to have them informed.  Parents should take the time to teach their children the morals they have.  Sorry I think I went into my own rant a bit there over things explored in the movie. But certainly we can say that the pro-choice side uses the abortion issue as a stand in for something much bigger and inappropriately as well.  They say it's all about women's rights, but clearly abortion is about much more than that.  As much as some of them would like to believe so, the controversy surrounding abortion wouldn't go away if men were able to get pregnant as well.  Sure, maybe there are some people who are using the abortion issue as a repression of female rights, but even if that's how some people want to use it, it doesn't mean it should be used that way to fight back.  If pro-choice people want to be taken seriously they should talk about the issue as a matter of human rights, not just women's rights.  Again, some more of my own ranting. Some of my favorite comments are when a pro-life person says that being pro-life doesn't just mean that you should be anti-abortion.  It means you should also be anti-death penalty, anti-war, and anti any other situation where life is destroyed. Many pro-life people seem to be more concerned about the life of someone before they are born.  Pro-choice people seemed more concerned about people after they are born.  There is an innocence to someone who hasn't even been born yet that we need people to look out for them.  But if we can't even take care of and respect the people already living in this world, what is the point of making sure more people make it into this world safely? Some of the most compelling characters in this film include Norma McCorvey, the pregnant women in the famous Roe v. Wade case the made abortion legal.  After the case was over, Norma was working for an abortion clinic when she decided one day to actually go in the back and see the aborted fetuses.  The horrible site she saw along with the caring pro-life activist Flip Benham caused her to join the pro-life cause.  The feeling of guilt she professes for feeling responsible for all of the abortions that have become legal is powerful. Also the end of the film follows a woman coming into a clinic to have an abortion.  We see her decision and her trauma. This film is graphic but necessarily so. After the fairly long running time for a documentary, by the end you feel as though there was enough to say and explore about the issue that the film could have been twice or even three times as long.  But what it does show is powerful, varied, and important.  I recommend everyone see this. Rating: 9/10</spout:body></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Post: Jesus Camp</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/blogs/risselada/archive/2009/1/22/39786.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div><img align='left' src='http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg' hspace='10' style='height:80px;' />
<strong>Post By:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/members/5353/default.aspx'>Risselada</a><br/>
<strong>Post To:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/blogs/risselada/default.aspx'>Risselada Blog</a><br/>
<strong>Post Date:</strong> 1/22/2009 12:05:56 PM<br/>
<strong>Body:</strong> Jesus Camp Some folks at the church community I'm a part of, MissioDei (it's Latin for Mission of God, I'm just saying because a lot of people ask), set up a monthly gathering to watch a movie and discuss.  The guy who arranged it picked this movie to start with.  The idea for each movie was to have a certain theme within it to discuss afterwards, not necessarily picking apart the movie so much as expanding the idea of the themes to how they relate to our lives and neighborhoods.  The movie we actually did after this one was Iron Man where we talked about redemption. I was sort of dreading this movie because so many people talked about how angry it would make you.  I guess I was prepared for something a lot worse.  I wasn't too surprised that stuff like this was going on in our country though.  It wasn't any kind of revelation to me.  Not that it isn't upsetting to see children indoctrinated from such a young age into an "us vs. them" kind of mentality with all of the battle metaphors. But the consideration as Christians in our community wasn't to point at these people and say, "Wow what a bunch of wackos.  They really give Christ a bad name." but to say how much are we really like them in some of the ways that we would like to criticize.  We had some really good and long conversations about different church communities each of us had grown up in.  How much of what we believe is something just because we were taught it at a young age, and how much if it is something we have come to know and believe through our own adult experience and person journey through our spiritual life?  When do we try to mix up church with our political beliefs and try to use one of them for or against the other? I guess some of the most shocking stuff in this movie is the political stuff.  Abortion is such a flagship political issue for so many people that embody an entire larger set of political agendas.  (See the fantastic documentary Lake of Fire which I will blog about at a later date).  To see these kids basically used for the political purposes of adults is rather frustrating.  At one of the anti-abortion rallies or whatever you call them, they had all of the children there with big strips of tape over their mouths.  I can't remember exactly their reason for doing this.  Maybe to represent the unborn children that had been silenced by being aborted.  But to me the image of these children with tape over their mouth seemed more to reveal how these children had no voice of their own.  Their own voice was covered up so other people's words could come out of their mouths instead. So again, maybe this will be an eye opener of a movie for some people, although not anything as shocking to me as I was anticipating from what I'd been hearing.  What I would find interesting though is a documentary made maybe fifteen or twenty years from now showing what some of the primary children featured in this movie are like by that time in their lives.  Will they retain their zeal?  If so will their opinions on many of these political issues become more varied?  I guess everyone is different, but there's no doubt that what happens to you at a young age will shape to some extent forever. Rating: 7/10<br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Jan 2009 17:05:56 GMT</pubDate><spout:postby>Risselada</spout:postby><spout:postto>Risselada Blog</spout:postto><spout:postdate>1/22/2009 12:05:56 PM</spout:postdate><spout:body>Jesus Camp Some folks at the church community I'm a part of, MissioDei (it's Latin for Mission of God, I'm just saying because a lot of people ask), set up a monthly gathering to watch a movie and discuss.  The guy who arranged it picked this movie to start with.  The idea for each movie was to have a certain theme within it to discuss afterwards, not necessarily picking apart the movie so much as expanding the idea of the themes to how they relate to our lives and neighborhoods.  The movie we actually did after this one was Iron Man where we talked about redemption. I was sort of dreading this movie because so many people talked about how angry it would make you.  I guess I was prepared for something a lot worse.  I wasn't too surprised that stuff like this was going on in our country though.  It wasn't any kind of revelation to me.  Not that it isn't upsetting to see children indoctrinated from such a young age into an "us vs. them" kind of mentality with all of the battle metaphors. But the consideration as Christians in our community wasn't to point at these people and say, "Wow what a bunch of wackos.  They really give Christ a bad name." but to say how much are we really like them in some of the ways that we would like to criticize.  We had some really good and long conversations about different church communities each of us had grown up in.  How much of what we believe is something just because we were taught it at a young age, and how much if it is something we have come to know and believe through our own adult experience and person journey through our spiritual life?  When do we try to mix up church with our political beliefs and try to use one of them for or against the other? I guess some of the most shocking stuff in this movie is the political stuff.  Abortion is such a flagship political issue for so many people that embody an entire larger set of political agendas.  (See the fantastic documentary Lake of Fire which I will blog about at a later date).  To see these kids basically used for the political purposes of adults is rather frustrating.  At one of the anti-abortion rallies or whatever you call them, they had all of the children there with big strips of tape over their mouths.  I can't remember exactly their reason for doing this.  Maybe to represent the unborn children that had been silenced by being aborted.  But to me the image of these children with tape over their mouth seemed more to reveal how these children had no voice of their own.  Their own voice was covered up so other people's words could come out of their mouths instead. So again, maybe this will be an eye opener of a movie for some people, although not anything as shocking to me as I was anticipating from what I'd been hearing.  What I would find interesting though is a documentary made maybe fifteen or twenty years from now showing what some of the primary children featured in this movie are like by that time in their lives.  Will they retain their zeal?  If so will their opinions on many of these political issues become more varied?  I guess everyone is different, but there's no doubt that what happens to you at a young age will shape to some extent forever. Rating: 7/10</spout:body></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Post: New Nonfiction Award</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/blogs/karina/archive/2008/1/7/23606.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div><img align='left' src='http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg' hspace='10' style='height:80px;' />
<strong>Post By:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/members/19702/default.aspx'>Karina</a><br/>
<strong>Post To:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/blogs/karina/default.aspx'>Karina on SpoutBlog</a><br/>
<strong>Post Date:</strong> 1/7/2008 4:00:34 PM<br/>
<strong>Body:</strong> An email from AJ Schnack reveals that he, in partnership with the Toronto Film Festival’s Thom Powers and Indiepix.net, are launching a new range of awards for “excellence in non-fiction filmmaking.”
Prompted in part by general disappointment in the doc community over the Oscar shortlist, a panel of twelve film festival directors have produced a short list of 15 films, which will be eligible for nominations in nine categories. There are four films common to both the Oscar shortlist and this new list: Lake of Fire, No End in Sight, Sicko and Taxi to the Dark Side. The nominations, and the official name of the awards, will be announced at a press conference at the Sundance Film Festival, which you can be sure the Spouties will try to attend. In the meantime, you can peruse the panel, the shortlist, the categories, and AJ’s blog post about how the awards came to be.
 Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » karina<br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2008 21:00:34 GMT</pubDate><spout:postby>Karina</spout:postby><spout:postto>Karina on SpoutBlog</spout:postto><spout:postdate>1/7/2008 4:00:34 PM</spout:postdate><spout:body>An email from AJ Schnack reveals that he, in partnership with the Toronto Film Festival’s Thom Powers and Indiepix.net, are launching a new range of awards for “excellence in non-fiction filmmaking.”
Prompted in part by general disappointment in the doc community over the Oscar shortlist, a panel of twelve film festival directors have produced a short list of 15 films, which will be eligible for nominations in nine categories. There are four films common to both the Oscar shortlist and this new list: Lake of Fire, No End in Sight, Sicko and Taxi to the Dark Side. The nominations, and the official name of the awards, will be announced at a press conference at the Sundance Film Festival, which you can be sure the Spouties will try to attend. In the meantime, you can peruse the panel, the shortlist, the categories, and AJ’s blog post about how the awards came to be.
 Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » karina</spout:body></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Post: New Nonfiction Award</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/1/7/23604.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div><img align='left' src='http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg' hspace='10' style='height:80px;' />
<strong>Post By:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/members/9325/default.aspx'>SpoutBlog</a><br/>
<strong>Post To:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/default.aspx'>SpoutBlog on spout.com</a><br/>
<strong>Post Date:</strong> 1/7/2008 4:00:23 PM<br/>
<strong>Body:</strong> An email from AJ Schnack reveals that he, in partnership with the Toronto Film Festival’s Thom Powers and Indiepix.net, are launching a new range of awards for “excellence in non-fiction filmmaking.”
Prompted in part by general disappointment in the doc community over the Oscar shortlist, a panel of twelve film festival directors have produced a short list of 15 films, which will be eligible for nominations in nine categories. There are four films common to both the Oscar shortlist and this new list: Lake of Fire, No End in Sight, Sicko and Taxi to the Dark Side. The nominations, and the official name of the awards, will be announced at a press conference at the Sundance Film Festival, which you can be sure the Spouties will try to attend. In the meantime, you can peruse the panel, the shortlist, the categories, and AJ’s blog post about how the awards came to be.
 Originally posted on:SpoutBlog<br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Mon, 07 Jan 2008 21:00:23 GMT</pubDate><spout:postby>SpoutBlog</spout:postby><spout:postto>SpoutBlog on spout.com</spout:postto><spout:postdate>1/7/2008 4:00:23 PM</spout:postdate><spout:body>An email from AJ Schnack reveals that he, in partnership with the Toronto Film Festival’s Thom Powers and Indiepix.net, are launching a new range of awards for “excellence in non-fiction filmmaking.”
Prompted in part by general disappointment in the doc community over the Oscar shortlist, a panel of twelve film festival directors have produced a short list of 15 films, which will be eligible for nominations in nine categories. There are four films common to both the Oscar shortlist and this new list: Lake of Fire, No End in Sight, Sicko and Taxi to the Dark Side. The nominations, and the official name of the awards, will be announced at a press conference at the Sundance Film Festival, which you can be sure the Spouties will try to attend. In the meantime, you can peruse the panel, the shortlist, the categories, and AJ’s blog post about how the awards came to be.
 Originally posted on:SpoutBlog</spout:body></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Post: Oscar Doc Shortlist Needs to Be Longer</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2007/11/20/21857.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div><img align='left' src='http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/s290315.jpg' hspace='10' style='height:80px;' />
<strong>Post By:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/members/9325/default.aspx'>SpoutBlog</a><br/>
<strong>Post To:</strong> <a href='http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/default.aspx'>SpoutBlog on spout.com</a><br/>
<strong>Post Date:</strong> 11/20/2007 12:01:31 PM<br/>
<strong>Body:</strong> It’s pretty upsetting when you see more documentaries than most Americans, and yet you haven’t seen any of the 15 docs deemed best of the year by the Academy. This is my case this year, and I guess I was slacking. Or maybe the real problem is that Oscar has shortlisted too many films that haven’t been released commercially. In his IN DEPTH look at the shortlisted docs, Kurt Cobain About a Son filmmaker AJ Schnack points out that only 6 of the films have pursued a true theatrical release and 2/3 have not been available for review by critics nor have they reported their box office. For commentary on Schnack’s earlier analysis of both this year and last year’s eligible docs, check out Karina’s post from last week.
So, there’s my excuse. Anyway, I still have many months to see the docs that are most likely to receive the five nominations. My guesses of what I need to see before Oscar night: Sicko, No End in Sight, Lake of Fire, Body of War and War/Dance (or Taxi to the Dark Side, if the Academy allows so many Iraq War docs). Of course, if I want to be a true doc fan, I should make sure to see all 15, as well as a lot of other films left outside the shortlist.
 (more…)
 Originally posted on:SpoutBlog<br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2007 17:01:31 GMT</pubDate><spout:postby>SpoutBlog</spout:postby><spout:postto>SpoutBlog on spout.com</spout:postto><spout:postdate>11/20/2007 12:01:31 PM</spout:postdate><spout:body>It’s pretty upsetting when you see more documentaries than most Americans, and yet you haven’t seen any of the 15 docs deemed best of the year by the Academy. This is my case this year, and I guess I was slacking. Or maybe the real problem is that Oscar has shortlisted too many films that haven’t been released commercially. In his IN DEPTH look at the shortlisted docs, Kurt Cobain About a Son filmmaker AJ Schnack points out that only 6 of the films have pursued a true theatrical release and 2/3 have not been available for review by critics nor have they reported their box office. For commentary on Schnack’s earlier analysis of both this year and last year’s eligible docs, check out Karina’s post from last week.
So, there’s my excuse. Anyway, I still have many months to see the docs that are most likely to receive the five nominations. My guesses of what I need to see before Oscar night: Sicko, No End in Sight, Lake of Fire, Body of War and War/Dance (or Taxi to the Dark Side, if the Academy allows so many Iraq War docs). Of course, if I want to be a true doc fan, I should make sure to see all 15, as well as a lot of other films left outside the shortlist.
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 Originally posted on:SpoutBlog</spout:body></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Tag:murder</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/murder/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/murder/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>murder</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 8748</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 157</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 831</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:42:29 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>8748</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>157</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>831</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Tag:documentary</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/documentary/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/documentary/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>documentary</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 402</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 127</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 496</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:11:06 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>402</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>127</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>496</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Tag:sex</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/sex/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/sex/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>sex</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 2414</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 126</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 549</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:42:22 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>2414</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>126</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>549</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
    <item>
      <title>Spout Tag:violence</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/violence/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/violence/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>violence</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 952</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 82</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 240</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 15 Nov 2009 12:34:09 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>952</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>82</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>240</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:pregnancy</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/pregnancy/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/pregnancy/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>pregnancy</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 1306</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 44</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 110</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Sun, 20 Sep 2009 05:22:12 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>1306</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>44</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>110</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:doctor</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/doctor/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/doctor/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>doctor</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 736</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 24</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 63</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:47:27 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>736</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>24</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>63</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:abortion</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/abortion/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/abortion/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>abortion</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 255</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 21</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 34</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:10:27 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>255</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>21</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>34</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:grief</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/grief/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/grief/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>grief</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 539</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 20</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 32</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 12 Aug 2009 13:02:59 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>539</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>20</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>32</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:morality</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/morality/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/morality/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>morality</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 277</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 15</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 25</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 23 Sep 2009 22:40:47 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>277</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>15</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>25</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:ethics</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/ethics/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/ethics/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>ethics</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 331</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 12</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 18</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:07:18 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>331</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>12</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>18</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:interview</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/interview/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/interview/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>interview</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 1477</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 11</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 21</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 19 Aug 2009 21:04:19 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>1477</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>11</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>21</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:protest</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/protest/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/protest/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>protest</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 79</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 10</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 25</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Sat, 20 Jun 2009 16:21:32 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>79</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>10</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>25</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:regret</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/regret/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/regret/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>regret</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 79</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 10</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 18</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:53:37 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>79</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>10</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>18</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:debate</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/debate/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/debate/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>debate</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 145</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 8</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 11</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:13:22 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>145</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>8</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>11</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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      <title>Spout Tag:doctors</title>
      <link>http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/doctors/MemberTagFilms.aspx</link><description><![CDATA[<div style='display:block;height:120px;width:400px;font:10px/10px Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;'><a href='/members/0/tags/doctors/MemberTagFilms.aspx'>doctors</a>
<strong><br/> Number of films tagged:</strong> 11</br><br/>
<strong>Number of people who tagged:</strong> 6</br><br/>
<strong>Number of times used:</strong> 12</br><br/>
</div>]]></description><pubDate>Wed, 08 Apr 2009 01:59:40 GMT</pubDate><spout:numFilms>11</spout:numFilms><spout:numPeople>6</spout:numPeople><spout:timesUsed>12</spout:timesUsed><spout:type>Tag</spout:type></item>
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