Check out these documentaries! "Julia," "Alice is Still Dead" and "Mayor Pete"

This weekend was a big movie watching weekend for me, and I want to focus on some of the documentaries that I saw. Three very different films, all worthy of your viewing.

Julia

The first is “Julia,” the new Sony Pictures Classics film about Julia Child, directed by Julie Cohen and Betsy West.

JULIA tells the story of the legendary cookbook author and television superstar who changed the way Americans think about food, television, and even about women. Using never-before-seen archival footage, personal photos, first-person narratives, and cutting-edge, mouth-watering food cinematography, the film traces Julia Child's surprising path, from her struggles to create and publish the revolutionary Mastering the Art of French Cooking (1961) which has sold more than 2.5 million copies to date, to her empowering story of a woman who found fame in her 50s, and her calling as an unlikely television sensation.

I, like many of my generation, was turned on to Julia Child from the book/movie, “Julie and Julia.” In case you aren’t aware, that is the story of Julie Powell and her blog cooking through all of Julia Child’s recipes from “Mastering the Art of French Cooking.” I loved both the book and the film, which led me to my own mini journey through the book making the likes of her famous BOEUF BOURGUIGNON which I revisited without alcohol for my own cooking show on youtube last year. Many have said that they would have preferred the story with only the Julia parts, and here, with this documentary they get it.

Although I enjoyed so much of this film, it seems to ignore the impact Julia and her cookbook truly had on all of us. It’s mentioned of course, with many chefs and cooks from today commenting on how she opened the door for them to become food network stars, but somehow the film feels like it is only scratching the surface.

The best parts focus on the logistics of writing “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” as well as her later life, never leaving the spotlight until her body simply would not allow her to do so anymore.

“Julia” releases in NYC and LA on Friday, November 12th

Alice is Still Dead

The strongest of the three is the film I was the least aware of, “Alice is Still Dead,” directed by Edwin P. Stevens.

In an intimate and unflinching account dealing with grief, 'Alice is Still Dead' tells the story of a murdered loved one from the victim's family’s perspective. From the detective's notification to her family, to facing the killer in court, we see the pain, anger, and heartbreak a family must endure while the nightmare is investigated. The filmmaker is the brother of the late Alice Stevens and, in this tribute, he ultimately asks if it's even possible to move forward after such a traumatic event.

In the past few months I have had to process the loss of a dear friend of mine, and I chose to do so in a somewhat public way on TikTok as well as making my own short film that is a tribute to her. As an artist, creating art is how I’ve always expressed myself when I didn’t know how to do so otherwise. I found great comfort in seeing Director Edwin Stevens do justice by his sister while also, very vulnerably putting his own grief on display. I also greatly connected to Alice herself. I couldn’t help but wonder had things gone in a slightly different way in my own struggles, could I have ended up murdered on the steps to my apartment.

“Alice is Still Dead” is available on demand now.

Mayor Pete

Mayor Pete is a 2021 American documentary film directed and produced by Jesse Moss (Boys State). It follows Pete Buttigieg as he runs for President of the United States.

One of the most fascinating things I have found observing film criticism over the years is the fact that if someone doesn’t fully understand a character, they often discount it and the film. The most recent example for me was “Ammonite.” I personally connected deeply with Kate Winslet’s character, yet others discounted the entire film as cold because they couldn’t seem to understand a person like her would exist. Cold? I don’t think so. Not everyone queer person is a brimming with overt sexuality.

I’ve also seen some critics say that “Mayor Pete” doesn’t show us much about Pete Buttigieg. I could not disagree more. It shows us a man who was closeted for years into adulthood and came out in a very public way, becoming the first out LGBTQ person to run for the office of President of the United States. The moments where his political analyst Lis Smith as well as husband Chasten Buttigieg bring to light the fact that he is closed off emotionally, say everything we need to know about the Pete of today. I found that he was very open considering all of this. Perspective, I guess.

Unfortunately the film is also suffering from a very disturbing trend of late on IMDB. The user ratings are being review bombed by people on the right. People who have not seen the film, but who disagree with his political party. I hope greatly that IMDB will do something about this because it appears that humanity isn’t going to regulate itself on its own any time soon.

“Mayor Pete” is available on Amazon Prime Video