Netflix documentaries

[Funky]

I've been watching The Vow on HBO, I don't know if it counts, it's one of these true crime documentary series. it's actually the first true crime that I've watched. it's about an iffy cult so the subject's interesting but BY HEAVENS does it drag out. it could've been told in four strong episodes but we get NINE. and does that even wrap things up? no, we're getting a SECOND SEASON

oh I was going to watch this. Maybe not.

HAS EVERYONE SEEN THE JINX? Still the best true crime doc ever.

 

[Diddy]

@ZZ I’m surprised that out of This is Pop, it was the country episode that put you off!

from that initial high I had Britpop and now I’m on festivals. What straight content is this?!

 

[ZZ]

@Diddy it’s because I really really dislike country music and I knew nothing about festivals, so that episode was quite educational to be honest

 

[Ellie]

@Diddy it’s because I really really dislike country music and I knew nothing about festivals, so that episode was quite educational to be honest

I generally dislike watching documentaries about something I do know about because I’m constantly picking holes or wondering about glaring omissions, so if I get around to this I’ll probably start with the Country episode.

 

[Diddy]

@Diddy it’s because I really really dislike country music and I knew nothing about festivals, so that episode was quite educational to be honest

yeah I mean these are well constructed episodes, they are interesting to watch even when it’s not really something I’m that into.

but why call it This is Pop? The Britpop one seemed to be full of people who hate the tag, it was just a rock documentary in disguise (and there are no shortage of them). The festivals one wasn’t even slightly pop-adjacent!

 

[ZZ]

I generally dislike watching documentaries about something I do know about because I’m constantly picking holes or wondering about glaring omissions, so if I get around to this I’ll probably start with the Country episode.

I see. Interesting point.
I’m such a narcissist that I really like watching documentaries about things I know to prove to myself that I know more than the person talking about it and also to bring some affirmation that I like stuff that are generally liked by other people so that I feel I’m ‘one of the kids’
There you go! Some much needed insight into the strange world that is my head

 

[ZZ]

yeah I mean these are well constructed episodes, they are interesting to watch even when it’s not really something I’m that into.

but why call it This is Pop? The Britpop one seemed to be full of people who hate the tag, it was just a rock documentary in disguise (and there are no shortage of them). The festivals one wasn’t even slightly pop-adjacent!

I considered the title to just be what ‘pop’ really stands for: popular.

 

[Diddy]

I considered the title to just be what ‘pop’ really stands for: popular.

That’s a rather broad net you might as well have just called it This is Music!

 

[ZZ]

That’s a rather broad net you might as well have just called it This is Music!

I genuinely thought that’s what ‘pop’ stood for: the general type of music that is popular with most people and not a ‘niche’

 

[Diddy]

I genuinely thought that’s what ‘pop’ stood for: the general type of music that is popular with most people and not a ‘niche’

well I guess that’s true, but they’ve been drawing a fairly strong distinction between Pop and other genres, like in the Boyz II Men episode, and the… erm.. country episode

just feels like a bit of a Frankenstein series, especially the first set of episodes with a sort of host on a set, now it’s just narrators only

 

[Ellie]

For some reason the 1998 Holocaust documentary The Last Days has been remastered and turned up on Netflix. It won the Oscar that year so it's one to watch and tick off for my Awards tracking app.

So this was absolutely excellent. I'm sure a lot of people have seen many many Holocaust documentaries in the past, but this really is the best and most humane one I've ever seen.

 

[Phoenix]

The LulaRich documentary on Amazon Prime about a pyramids scheme was a fascinating watch

 

[Samanta TinAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaAAaaaA]

The LulaRich documentary on Amazon Prime about a pyramids scheme was a fascinating watch

LOVED THIS!

I'm a total sucker for anything MLM-related, and LuLaRoe is one of the most enjoyable as the product is SO HIDEOUS and the founders SO HATEABLE.

The Amazon doc is basically a deeper dive into ground covered in this Vice doc, and uses several of the same contributors (also well worth a watch alongside the Amazon one!)



I have no sympathy for the hun who was earning hundreds of thousands of dollars a month and is now flat broke however. She was scamming people for THAT MUCH MONEY each month and didn't think to save ANY of it?? Madness if true.

 

[Diddy]

I’m watching Age of Samurai: Battle for Japan, and it’s a LOT

I was expecting a documentary, but I got a full bloodthirsty dramatisation (emphasis on the drama) more like Game of Thrones mixed with every traditional honourable Japanese trope you can think of.

This is interspersed with talking heads done straight into the camera in black and white for more grittiness there are a lot of different people taking from all over the states and the UK, and two token speakers from Japan I don’t think anyone has been screen tested, they vary from wonky nerds to dramatic readings to someone who thinks they’re Alan Bennett