While the feature length documentary has enjoyed increased theatrical visibility in recent years, the documentary short remains in the shadows, mostly bound to the film festival circuit. This welcome DVD-only collection makes accessible seven films culled from Full Frame, the premier documentary festival in the United States. Ranging in length from three to 30 minutes, these magnificent seven are more humanist than activist, offering intimate looks at people Hollywood films generally ignore (elderly Jewish women who meet each week for Mah Jong in "We Got Us"; the residents of one of the Bowery's last flophouses in "The Sunshine"), or peeks at other cultures ("The Laughing Club of India" by Monsoon Wedding director Mira Nair). "Lucy Tsak Tsak," comprised solely of film slates, pays homage to an anonymous woman who toiled in the Bulgarian film industry for 30 years clapping slates, and whose image appears on 382 hours of film. "Mojave Mirage" will make you want to jump in your car and head for the Mojave Desert, where a lone phone booth, installed years ago for now-vanished local miners, has become a cult tourist attraction. Finally, the Oscar-nominated "Why Can't We Be a Family Again?" focuses on two foster care brothers trying to reunite with a drug addict mother, while "Family Values" introduces viewers to a lesbian couple who have the unusual occupation of cleaning up crime scenes. Truth may or may not be stranger than fiction, but these films are infinitely more rewarding than much of what is offered at the local multiplex. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. [Note: Why Can't We Be a Family Again? is also available separately on VHS only w/PPR from Filmakers Library for $295, and Mojave Mirage is also available separately on VHS only w/PPR from Carousel Film & Video for $179.95.] Aud: C, P. (K. Lee Benson)
Full Frame Documentary Shorts
(2003) 174 min. DVD: $24.95. Docurama (avail. from most distributors). Color cover. ISBN: 0-7670-5569-1. Volume 18, Issue 4
Full Frame Documentary Shorts
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