My taste in movies is a little eccentric – most of the time, I like documentaries better than “fiction film.” So a few days ago I was thrilled to stumble on Freedocumentaries.org, a website that streams hundreds of short and feature-length documentaries. Documentaries are divided by title, region or theme. There are a few weird ones thrown into the mix – 9/11 conspiracy videos and the like – but also a lot of big name documentaries, from Sicko to Shut Up & Sing. I was pleased to find Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch’s War on Journalism, a great little film about Fox News. Maybe this means I will finally get around to watching The Revolution Will Not Be Televised, a leftist favourite about Venezuela.
I have to say, though, that the legality of the site is a bit fuzzy. According to the frequently asked questions, they haven’t asked permission to host most docs, choosing instead to embed video from other, presumably sketchier, websites. That’s not to say that the site’s creators don’t have noble intentions – there are no ads, and they seem genuinely passionate about introducing their visitors to high-quality, educational films, and helping independent filmmakers get their work seen. But if copyright infringement really offends you, this won’t be your kind of site.
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Documentaries on demand
May 28, 2008 • Allison Martell
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