Archive | September, 2026

Hard Times

28 Sep
John Wilson in THE HISTORY OF CONCRETE

Documentaries come in all shapes and sizes. 

Over the years, we’ve seen everything from traditional historical retrospectives, concert films, and intimate portraits of celebrities, to sweet human-interest stories, hard-hitting investigative exposés, and explorations of offbeat subjects — some that leave you guessing about how real they actually are. Heck, in 2021, a movie called My Octopus Teacher won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature.

And then there’s The History of Concrete, John Wilson’s weird and wonderful documentary about, yes, concrete. The stuff we walk on, build with, and generally don’t give a second thought to unless somebody trips over a sidewalk or a bridge collapses.

But if you’ve seen Wilson’s TV series, How To with John Wilson, which ended its run on HBO in 2023 and is currently available to watch on HBO Max, you know that the subject is really just the beginning. This is a filmmaker who could make a documentary about watching paint dry and somehow turn it into a hilarious, existential journey through the absurdity of being alive.

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“American Doctor” Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story

18 Sep
AMERICAN DOCTOR

Poh Si Teng’s American Doctor is a film that’s designed to make viewers angry. Specifically, to make them angry at Israel. 

Of course, it’s not unusual for a documentary to take a side and have a point of view. Usually, a clear perspective is a distinguishing factor for a documentary. And it’s not unusual for filmmakers to use selective editing to make their case.

But in the case of this documentary, the point of view borders on propaganda. (Not unlike NAZA, the controversial film that garnered a lot of attention at the recent Venice Film Festival, but we’ll talk about that one another time.)

American Doctor follows three American physicians — one Palestinian, one Jewish, and one Zoroastrian — who treated patients in Gaza during Israel’s military campaign that was in response to Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. But you wouldn’t know that cause-and-effect from watching the film. Through the experiences of Dr. Thaer Ahmad, Dr. Mark Perlmutter, and Dr. Feroze Sidhwa, the film shows viewers the destruction of Gaza’s medical infrastructure and argues that Israel and the United States bear sole responsibility for the humanitarian catastrophe that took place over the last three years.

So, yes, it presents the consequences of the Israel-Gaza war, which are real and undeniable. But it gives insufficient attention to the circumstances that led to the war in the first place or the responsibility that Hamas has for so much pain and suffering. That lack of important context means the film is, fundamentally, a prosecution of Israel — and its biggest weakness is the part of the story it leaves out.

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It’s Complicated

6 Sep
Dakota Fanning and Jake Johnson star in THE SUN NEVER SETS

To cut to the chase: I liked The Sun Never Sets. I didn’t love it, and I’m not sure I’ll be thinking about it much a week from now. But for most of its running time, I was perfectly happy watching it.

That’s not exactly a ringing endorsement, I know. But sometimes “likable enough” has to be a perfectly legitimate review.

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