10. “Descendant”
The legacy of those brought to the United States in 1860 by the Clotilda, the last-known slave ship to arrive on our shores, is the heart of Margaret Brown’s “Descendant.” Decades after the passing of the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves in 1808, two wealthy white men in Mobile, Alabama, made a bet they could secretly sail to Africa and bring enslaved Africans back with them. After they succeeded, they burned the Clotilda and denied its existence. Arriving in Africatown, Alabama, in 2018 just as first of its kind search for the ship’s remains began, Brown’s interviews with the residents, whose ancestors trace their lineage to the ship, showcase the importance of storytelling to the community’s history. In contrast, the shocking interviews she films with the descendants of the ship’s white owners reveals just how insidious their family’s tactics were to keep that history buried. When the ship’s remains are finally discovered, the community’s memories become tangible, while larger legal ramifications are unearthed with it. (our review) – MG
9. “The Territory”
Known for his lyrical cinematography in “The First Wave” and “When Lambs Become Lions,” Alex Pritz’s feature debut as director of “The Territory” is a natural progression in his filmography. Made in collaboration with the Indigenous Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau tribe of Brazil, many of whom shot their own footage, the beguiling film documents the tribe’s resistance to invading land grabbers sanctioned by the country’s government. The tribe lived a primarily isolated existence until the 1980s when the Brazilian government first made contact with them. In the decades since, they’ve struggled to maintain their way of life as their population decreased from thousands to just a few hundred. The government has allowed farmers to deforest their Amazon rainforest home. In the wake of conservative president Jair Bolsonaro‘s election, the doc traces the protests of Environmentalist activist Neidinha and the efforts of Bítáte to save his homeland by harnessing modern technology. Gorgeous imagery of rainforest life is juxtaposed with the scorching fires destroying it, all amplified by the doc’s haunting sound design. The ecological trauma at the heart of “The Territory” reminds us just how vulnerable life on this Earth has become. (our review) – MG
8. “Is That Black Enough for You?!?”
Living legend Harry Belafonte finishing an anecdote about his career with, “Fuck you. I’m going to Paris,” in Elvis Mitchell’s directorial debut “Is That Black Enough For You?!?” will live rent-free in my head for years to come. Originally envisioned as a book, when publishers shamefully wouldn’t bite, filmmakers Steven Soderberg and David Fincher encouraged Mitchell to pursue it as a documentary. The result – which gets its name from Ossie Davis’ classic film “Cotton Comes To Harlem” – is part Mitchell’s own memories from his filmgoing youth and part a survey of the history of Blaxploitation cinema and its impact on film history as a whole. Along with Belafonte, Mitchell interviews myriad stars like Billy Dee Williams, Suzanne De Passe, Laurence Fishburne, Margaret Avery, Whoopi Goldberg, Samuel L Jackson, and L.A. Rebellion filmmaker Charles Burnett. Each shares stories of how seeing these films personally and professionally impacted their lives. With movies like “Shaft” and “Super Fly” being added to the National Film Archive, it’s about time their history and legacy are told with such detailed research and loving reverence. (our review) – MG
7. “Riotsville, USA”
Quarantine during the pandemic’s early days threw many filmmakers for a loop. For many documentarians, the limitations of working from home became creative goldmines, with many turning to archival footage as their cinematic clay. One of the most chilling uses of archival footage this year was Sierra Pettengill’s “Riotsville, U.S.A.,” which does not employ any traditional narration. This searing doc is mainly comprised of footage shot during the riot control training of law enforcement officers in the titular fake town built by the government to simulate the layout of America’s inner cities. Other archival material used explores how the Kerner Commission, whose study on the social unrest in urban areas during the summer of 1967 was nicknamed the Riot Report, has informed modern policing tactics. Pettengill allows the footage to speak for itself, showing how the brutality and targeted force we still see today towards communities of color can be traced directly to the suggestions made by the commission. The doc is an essential reminder that modern policing has roots in government-sanctioned white supremacy. (our review) – MG
6. “Bad Axe”
Sometimes a debut feature film can be so personal it’s alienating, but sometimes the singular vision makes a personal film universally transcendent. The latter is the case with David Siev‘s “Bad Axe,” which began from the filmmaker’s compulsion to document the everyday life of his family during the beginning of quarantine and evolved into an examination of the American dream in the wake of the ongoing pandemic and the presidency of Donald Trump. As the civil unrest in the wake of George Floyd‘s murder heightened political tensions across the country, a microcosm of this tension manifests at Siev’s family’s restaurant in Bad Axe, Michigan. When Siev’s sister participates in a Black Lives Matter demonstration, the family’s heritage — his father a Cambodian refugee, his mother of Mexican descent — makes them a target for racial slurs, boycotts, and even threats of violence from inhabitants of the mostly white small town. A love letter to the power of family — and community — “Bad Axe” peels back American society’s layers, exposing its not-so-hidden rotten core and its unshakably hopeful soul. – MG
