Peter Murmann

Gurrumul

No Comments 10 July 2018

You may have never heard of Gurrumul. I certainly had not when I was asked to see this biopic. After the first 10 to 15 minutes, you realize that you are for a very special story that is deeply moving. It is a remarkable piece of work and I put up there on the level of Searching for Sugar Man, which is my all-time favorite documentary of a musician. The Gurrumul story is so different from Sugar Man that it feels in no way repetitive. But what they have in common individuals whose music and poetic vision is so strong that they find against to odds a large audience.

Movies, Drama

Foxtrot

No Comments 10 June 2018

The first third of this Israeli film is almost too hard to bear. A father and mother are visited by the military representatives who bring the sad news that their son has been killed in the line of duty. The next 40 minutes we are shown the horrific emotions that a father would go through at this moment. I was saying to myself, “I am not sure if I want to watch this for another hour or so.” But then the film takes an unexpected turn and we get a break.

Movies, Documentary

The Shop around the Corner

No Comments 31 May 2018

Today successful Hollywood actors are widely admired. This was not always the case. Some years ago, I visited LA and learned about the surprising history of Hollywood. The good society of LA looked down on actors. They were only seen as slightly better than prostitutes and so they were not allowed to live in town. The actors needed to move outside the city in a new area called Hollywood. I was reminded of this history in the opening minutes of The Shop around the Corner, which was produced in 1940.