The Monthly is one of the boldest voices on politics, society and culture. As the proud home of the country’s finest writers and thinkers, the Monthly brings the very best in investigative reportage, critical essay and cultural commentary to Australians who seek a deeper understanding of the issues affecting the nation and the world.
Each month, in partnership with DocPlay, we’ll bring you five documentaries hand-picked by us here at the Monthly. For May – and for our very first selection – we spent some time getting to know the full DocPlay catalogue. Eventually we decided on a list of films we thought showed the depth of what’s on offer while highlighting the single quality that makes documentary filmmaking both exciting and essential. Here are five documentaries, on five very different subjects, that have one very important thing in common – fearlessness.
Man on Wire
On a windy day in 1974, Philippe Petit appeared high above the streets of Manhattan, balancing perfectly on a high wire strung between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.
This Is Not A Film
Censorship laws confine Jafar Panahi’s to his apartment in Tehran and he’s banned from making films for 20 years. Still under house arrest, this passionate and creative filmmaker just can’t help himself: he makes a film.
The Cove
In 2008, an elite team of scientists, filmmakers and free-divers embark on a covert mission to expose the shocking secrets of Japanese dolphin hunting. What they find is only the tip of the iceberg.
The Act of Killing
In this chillingly inventive documentary, unrepentant former members of Indonesian death squads are challenged to re-enact their many murders in the style of the American movies they love.
Silence In The House Of God: Mea Maxima Culpa
Four young deaf men set out to make their voices heard by exposing the priest who abused them, and so many others. The film documents a 30-year struggle for justice that ultimately leads to a lawsuit against the Pope himself.
