Mark Jonathan Harris Movies
- 2008
Doctors Without Borders (aka Medecins Sans Frontieres) is a medical aid organization that since 1971 has been sending doctors and nurses all over the world, working in over sixty countries to bring badly needed treatment to people whose lives are threatened by either man-made or natural catastrophes. Working in some of the poorest and most devastated corners of the globe, the men and women of Doctors Without Borders are willing to travel wherever they are needed, remaining non-partisan when working in a nation at war and providing care for all who need it regardless of religious, political or national affiliation. Filmmaker Mark Hopkins has created a powerful look at this organization and the people who make it work in the documentary Living In Emergency: Stories Of Doctors Without Borders. While a large number of medical professionals volunteer to work with DWB, the Paris-based organization accepts only a small percentage, having learned through experience that the demands of working in the midst of war, natural disaster or an epidemic is more than many of them are able to deal with. And while the film documents the group's many successes around the world, Hopkins and the healers he profiles are clearly aware of the high stakes they deal with, and that doing the right thing is sometimes an uphill battle with fewer rewards than one might hope. Living In Emergency was an official selection at the 2009 Miami International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Jon Dunham and Mark Jonathan Harris strive to create the definitive feature-length marathon film by focusing on the unique stories of five runners competing in the famed Chicago Marathon. Filmed on four continents, the documentary focuses on the remarkable perseverance and personal triumphs experienced by Boston runner Ryan Bradley, first-time marathoner Leah Caille, 2004 Olympic bronze medalist Deena Kastor, four-time marathoner Jerry Meyers, and world-class marathoner Daniel Njenga as they attempt to endure the grueling 26-mile event that demands nothing less than complete focus and dedication. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Ted Braun's documentary about Darfur showcases how six different people have each done their part in order to help stop the genocide in the region and bring humanitarian relief to the millions there who suffer. His subjects include a UCLA student who, with no political experience whatsoever, passes a state bill to stop any money from going to Sudan; the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court; Pablo Recalde, a central figure in the World Food Program; and actor Don Cheadle, the star of the movie Hotel Rwanda. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 2004
- Add The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing to QueueAdd The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing to top of Queue
The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Editing teaches the viewer how editors compile strips of film in order to create memorable moviegoing experiences. In addition to interviews with a variety of respected and award-winning editors, the movie offers clips form some of the most memorable films in the history of the artform. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kathy Bates
- 2003
Meryl Streep narrates this documentary which examines the facts behind the worldwide scandal of child labor. It is estimated that 246 million children work full-time jobs, most logging long hours for meager pay in nations where poverty forces parents to put their youngsters to work. Adding to this tragedy are the dangerous jobs and frequently inhumane working conditions, which children are far less likely to protest than adults. Using footage shot in eight different countries, Stolen Childhoods documents the ongoing crisis in child labor, as well as presenting strategies to improve the situation and discussing what Americans can do to help. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- 2002
- Add Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives to QueueAdd Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives to top of Queue
Among the tasks undertaken by the WPA's Federal Writers' Project in the 1930s was to transcribe the memories of those former African-American slaves who were still living. The result was a massive collection of notes, documents, and recordings, all of which found their way into the Library of Congress. Co-produced by the Library and the HBO cable channel, Unchained Memories: Readings From the Slave Narratives features a truly impressive array of black actors and actresses verbally recreating the reminiscences of those who lived under the yoke of slavery. The performers themselves appeared in modern dress, standing before a neutral background as they read from the transcripts, while directors Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon complemented the words with vivid and disturbing images culled from contemporary photographs of the years 1850-1935. Tied in with a traveling museum exhibit of photos and recordings, Unchained Memories was telecast during Black History Month, 2003. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2001
American filmmakers Tiller Russell and Loren Mendell direct Cockfight, a 45-minute documentary about the controversial sport of rooster fighting. The filmmakers talk to several people with a lifelong passion for the sport as well as those who are against it. Cockfighting has developed an underground culture in California, Arizona, and Mexico, where the sport has endured for generations. Journalist David Holthouse contrasts the grisly details of a typical rooster fight with the brutal realities of factory-raised chickens. Cockfight was nominated for a student achievement award from the International Documentary Association in 2001. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 2000
- PG
- Add Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport to QueueAdd Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport to top of Queue
On November 9, 1938, Adolph Hitler's ugly war against the Jews began in earnest with the "Kristallnacht," in which Nazi troops joined with angry mobs to attack synagogues, Jewish-owned businesses, and residents of predominantly Jewish neighborhoods. While Hitler did not initially make clear his plans for a genocide of Germany's Jews, he openly stated his desire that Germany be free of Jews. Few nations were willing to accept the large numbers of German Jews who now wished to expatriate in fear of their lives. However, Great Britain agreed to permit Jewish children between the ages of 5 and 17 to come to the U.K. -- without their parents. Between December of 1938 and August of 1939, some 10,000 German children gained refuge in the U.K. Most were adopted by British families, and many of the older boys served in the British Army, fighting against the Nazis, but the majority were never to see their birth parents again. Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport is a documentary that looks at the "Kindertransport," which ferried the children to Great Britain, and what became of the children once they arrived in England. Judi Dench narrates. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judi Dench
- 1997
- NR
The struggles of European Jews during WWII have been well documented, but this film (produced with the cooperation of the Simon Weisenthal Center) makes it clear that the ordeal of those who suffered during the Holocaust did not end with the liberation of Europe. The Long Way Home uses interviews with Holocaust survivors, newsreel footage, and readings of letters, journals, and news reports, to tell the story of the hardships faced by those freed from concentration camps in 1945. Often riddled with disease, suffering from malnutrition, and remorseful over having survived while their loved ones perished, many survivors soon discovered that they no longer had homes to return to, and many European nations, struggling with their own post-war poverty, would not accept the refugees. Some found themselves in Displaced Persons camps, which were often only marginally better than the camps from which they had been freed, while others attempted to flee to Palestine, over the objections of the British government, who then held the territory as a colony. The establishment of the Zionist state of Israel was widely seen as the best solution to bring dignity, self-determination, and a homeland back to the refugees, but the notion was widely opposed at first, particularly by the British government. The Long Way Home is narrated by Morgan Freeman. Martin Landau, Edward Asner, Helen Slater, David Paymer, and Michael York contribute readings to the soundtrack. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Morgan Freeman
- 1985
Using historical footage, old newsreels, interviews, still photos, radio broadcasts, and narrative voiceover, this documentary by Steven Schechter takes a solid look at changes for better or worse that were forced on American society because of World War II. Schechter especially highlights women and Afro-American men who suddenly found jobs that had been closed to them in the past. From 1941-1943, a total of 5 million women went to work in factories and other service areas that had previously been off-limits to them (consciously or not). Although Afro-American men were not at first as easily accepted into jobs as women (examples are cited), the war took such a toll on the white work force that prejudice buckled under expediency. Ironically enough, Afro-American men were able to hold onto the employment gains they made in World War II, but the women were forced to give up their jobs to returning soldiers, or to just give them up, period. Negative results of the war are also broached: the shameful round-up and mistreatment of Japanese Americans as they were herded into detention camps and their properties, in many instances, confiscated or lost to them. Urban blight and crime was also on the rise, and America was never the same again.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
