Category Archives: Biography

Paul Goodman Changed My Life (2011)

Paul Goodman Changed My Life poster“Paul Goodman, whose best-selling 'Growing Up Absurd' made him the philosopher of the New Left in the 1960s, was also a brilliant poet, out queer (and family man) in the 1940s, radical pacifist and visionary. His ideas and stubborn integrity helped many find a moral compass in the '60's — and can do so again today.”

  • Director: Jonathan Lee
  • Release Date: (USA)
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Documentary / Biography / Drama / History

Moneyball (2011)

Moneyball poster“The story of Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane's successful attempt to put together a baseball club on a budget by employing computer-generated analysis to draft his players.”

  • Director: Bennett Miller
  • Writer: Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin
  • Release Date: (Singapore)
  • Runtime: 133 min
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Biography / Drama / Sport
  • MPAA Rating: PG-13
  • Tagline: What are you really worth?
  • Also known as: Die Kunst zu gewinnen – Moneyball
  • Cast: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright, Chris Pratt, Stephen Bishop, Reed Diamond, Brent Jennings, Ken Medlock, Tammy Blanchard, Jack McGee, Vyto Ruginis, Nick Searcy, Glenn Morshower, Casey Bond

Machine Gun Preacher (2011)

Machine Gun Preacher poster“The story of Sam Childers, a former drug-dealing biker tough guy who found God and became a crusader for hundreds of Sudanese children who've been forced to become soldiers.”

  • Director: Marc Forster
  • Writer: Jason Keller
  • Release Date: (UK)
  • Genre: Action / Biography
  • Cast: Gerard Butler, Michelle Monaghan, Michael Shannon, Madeline Carroll, Kathy Baker, Inga R. Wilson, Joshua Drew, Justin Michael Brandt, Souleymane Sy Savane, Brett Wagner, Corey Large, Barbara Coven, Judy Stepanian, Richard Goteri, Peter Carey

The Iron Lady (2011)

The Iron Lady poster“Tells the story of a woman who smashed through the barriers of gender and class to be heard in a male-dominated world. The story concerns power and the price that is paid for power, and is a surprising and insightful portrait of an extraordinary and complex woman.”

  • Director: Phyllida Lloyd
  • Writer: Abi Morgan
  • Release Date: 16 December 2011 (USA)
  • Country: UK
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Drama / Biography
  • Also known as: A Dama de Ferro
  • Cast: Meryl Streep, Harry Lloyd, Jim Broadbent, Anthony Head, Richard E. Grant, Roger Allam, Olivia Colman, Susan Brown, Nick Dunning, Alexandra Roach, Julian Wadham, Michael Pennington, Hugh Ross, Russell Balogh, Richard Dixon

Hit So Hard (2011)

Hit So Hard poster“HIT SO HARD follows the journey of Patty Schemel, the openly gay drummer of Courtney Love's seminal rock band 'Hole.' As a young girl who always knew she was 'different' from the other kids in her farm town home outside of Seattle, Patty never dreamed she would one day have her picture on the cover of 'Rolling Stone.' But she also never fathomed that she could lose it all. A true survivor of what we now know was the disaffected 'slacker' generation, Patty found herself, like her friend Kurt Cobain, embraced by the dark side.”

  • Director: P. David Ebersole
  • Writer: P. David Ebersole, Todd Hughes
  • Country: USA
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Documentary / Biography / Music
  • Tagline: The Life & Near Death Story of Patty Schemel
  • Cast: Patty Schemel, Courtney Love, Eric Erlandson, Melissa Auf der Maur, Kurt Cobain, Kristen Pfaff, Larry Schemel, Gina Schock, Debbi Peterson, Kate Schellenbach, Nina Gordon, Roddy Bottum, Joe Mama-Nitzberg, Phranc, Sarah Vowell

The Devil's Double (2011)

The Devil's Double poster“Bagdad, the playground for the rich and infamous, where anything can be bought – but for a price. This is Uday Hussein's world and with his depraved lust for debauchery and immorality, he helps himself to whatever turns him on. When army lieutenant Latif Yahia, is summoned to Saddam's palace, he is faced with an impossible request – to be Uday's 'fiday' – his body double, or have his family condemned to death. In a world entrenched in betrayal and corruption knowing who to trust becomes a matter of life or death for Latif, as he battles to escape from his forced existence.”

  • Director: Lee Tamahori
  • Writer: Michael Thomas, Latif Yahia
  • Release Date: 29 July 2011 (USA)
  • Runtime: 108 min
  • Country: Belgium
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Action / Biography / Drama
  • Tagline: Play the part or suffer the consequences
  • Cast: Dominic Cooper, Ludivine Sagnier, Raad Rawi, Mem Ferda, Dar Salim, Khalid Laith, Pano Masti, Nasser Memarzia, Philip Quast, Selva Rasalingam, Mark Mifsud, Mimoun Oaïssa, Stewart Scudamore, Jamie Harding, Akin Gazi

Bill Cunningham New York (2010)

Bill Cunningham New York poster“Chronicles a man who is obsessively interested in only one thing,the pictures he takes that document the way people dress. The 80-year-old New York Times photographer has two columns in the paper's Style section, yet nobody knows who he is.”

  • Director: Richard Press
  • Release Date: 16 March 2011 (USA)
  • Country: USA / France
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Documentary / Biography
  • Cast: Bill Cunningham, Tom Wolfe, Anna Wintour, Carmen Dell'Orefice, Annette De la Renta, Mrs. Vincent Astor, John Kurdewan, Iris Apfel, Josef Astor, Editta Sherman, Anna Piaggi, Shail Upadhya, Thelma Golden, Howard Koda, Kim Hastreiter

127 Hours (2010)

127 Hours poster“127 Hours is the true story of mountain climber Aron Ralston's remarkable adventure to save himself after a fallen boulder crashes on his arm and traps him in an isolated canyon in Utah. Over the next five days Ralston examines his life and survives the elements to finally discover he has the courage and the wherewithal to extricate himself by any means necessary, scale a 65 foot wall and hike over eight miles before he is finally rescued. Throughout his journey, Ralston recalls friends, lovers, family, and the two hikers he met before his accident. Will they be the last two people he ever had the chance to meet?”

  • Director: Danny Boyle
  • Writer: Danny Boyle, Simon Beaufoy
  • Release Date: 6 January 2011 (Kuwait)
  • Runtime: USA: 94 min
  • Country: USA / UK
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Adventure / Biography / Drama / Thriller
  • MPAA Rating: R
  • Tagline: Every Second Counts
  • Also known as: 127 Horas
  • Cast: James Franco, Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn, Sean Bott, Koleman Stinger, Treat Williams, John Lawrence, Kate Burton, Bailee Michelle Johnson, Rebecca C. Olson, Parker Hadley, Clémence Poésy, Fenton Quinn, Lizzy Caplan, Peter Joshua Hull

Mahler on the Couch (2010)

Mahler on the Couch poster

  • Director: Felix O. Adlon, Percy Adlon
  • Writer: Felix O. Adlon, Percy Adlon
  • Release Date: 7 July 2010 (Germany)
  • Runtime: Germany: 98 min
  • Country: Germany / Austria
  • Language: German
  • Genre: Biography / Drama
  • Cast: Johannes Silberschneider, Barbara Romaner, Karl Markovics, Friedrich Mücke, Eva Mattes, Lena Stolze, Nina Berten, Karl Fischer, Mathias Franz Stein, Max Mayer, Michael Dangl, Michael Rotschopf, Manuel Witting, Simon Hatzl, Johanna Orsini-Rosenberg

Wagner & Me (2010)

Wagner & Me poster“Actor and writer Stephen Fry explores his passion for the world's most controversial composer – Richard Wagner. But Stephen is Jewish and lost family members in the Holocaust, so can he salvage the music he loves from its dark association with anti-semitism and the Nazis? Shot on location in Germany, Switzerland and Russia, the film includes unique behind-the-scenes access to the Bayreuth Festival, the annual extravaganza of Wagner's music held in the composer's own purpose built theatre. Animated by Stephen Fry's trademark wit and intelligence, and featuring a soundtrack of Wagner's extraordinary music, this is a fantastic introduction to the life and legacy of one of the most important composers ever, and a must-see film for those who already know and love his music.”

  • Director: Patrick McGrady
  • Country: UK / Switzerland / Russia / Germany
  • Language: English
  • Genre: Documentary / Biography / History / Music
  • Cast: Stephen Fry