All told, another fine year at Hot Docs. Even going to movies full-time for a week, it was impossible to see everything I wanted — but when that's my biggest complaint things are arguably going pretty well.
Like anyone, I do have a few petty gripes, though. The website, which seems to be based on the same web architecture over the past several years, is getting pretty creaky. The search function is irritatingly non-functional — quite often, if you type in the exact title of a film, it will be buried on the third or fourth page of results. And more worryingly, there was a lack of quality control on the website — on at least four occasions, I found the wrong time listed for a film. With more people relying on mobile devices for scheduling information, that just won't do. And, of course, I got sick of the car advertisement before the films rather quickly — I took off my glasses at the start of every screening, so I never actually saw the odious thing.
The addition of the Lightbox was a net gain for the festival — and now there's one more planning consideration in the back of my mind, as going to see a subtitled movie in the deeply-tiered seats is so much more satisfying than trying to peer around the back of someone's head at the ROM or Cumberland.
While all the movies are still somewhat fresh in my mind, I did a quick ranking, from most to least satisfying. Despite the programmers' claims at the start of every screening, there are a few duds that make it to the festival, but happily not too many.
I have written capsule reviews for everything I have seen — you can find them if you click on the "hot docs" tag below.
Excellent
How are you doing, Rudolph Ming?
How to Die in Oregon
Give Up Tomorrow
The Interrupters
Flying Anne
Very Good
Redemption of General Butt Naked
Bury The Hatchet
Battle for Barking
Project Nim
Knuckle
Timothy Findley: Anatomy of a Writer
Vinyl
Good
Family Portrait in Black and White
I, Curmudgeon
Two's a Crowd
Koundi and the National Thursday
Magic Trip
45365
At the Edge of Russia
Mama Africa
Matchmaking Mayor
Family Instinct
Cinema Komunisto
Surpriseville
Black Power Mixtape
Something to Tell You
Hand to Toe: An Exploration in the Art of Giving
Vinyl: The Alternate Take
Decent
Bobby Fischer Against the World
Open Secret
The Good Life
Ears, Open. Eyeballs, Click.
Vodka Factory
Out of Reach
Up Against the System
Lumberfros
Love Crimes of Kabul
A Little Dull
Waidmannsheil: Hail to the Good Shooter
Heartquake
Only Sky & Water
At Night, They Dance
Our Newspaper
Flops
Pirate Tapes
The Naked of Saint Petersburg
Housing
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