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Young filmmakers document their colleague's budding online friendship with a young woman and her family which leads to an unexpected series of discoveries.
Directors:
Henry Joost,
Ariel Schulman
Stars:
Yaniv Schulman,
Ariel Schulman,
Henry Joost
Two documentary filmmakers chronicle their time in Sonagchi, Calcutta and the relationships they developed with children of prostitutes who work the city's notorious red light district.
Using state-of-the-art equipment, a group of activists, led by renowned dolphin trainer Ric O'Barry, infiltrate a cove near Taijii, Japan to expose both a shocking instance of animal abuse and a serious threat to human health.
Director:
Louie Psihoyos
Stars:
Richard O'Barry,
Louie Psihoyos,
Hardy Jones
Documentary about an aspiring filmmaker's attempts to finance his dream project by finally completing the low-budget horror film he abandoned years before.
Director:
Chris Smith
Stars:
Mark Borchardt,
Tom Schimmels,
Monica Borchardt
This documentary follows 8 teens and pre-teens as they work their way toward the finals of the Scripps Howard national spelling bee championship in Washington D.C. All work quite hard and practice daily, first having to win their regional championship before they can move on. Interviews include the parents and teachers who are working with them. The competitors not only work hard to get to the finals but face tremendous pressure as the original group of over 250 competitors is whittled down and the words they must spell get ever more difficult. Written by
garykmcd
While interviewing Harry in his room the boom mic is deliberately shown after Harry asks "Is that thing edible?" See more »
Quotes
Ted's Mom:
I think Ted's got the advantage of parents, who think he's great irregardless.
See more »
Crazy Credits
Special thanks to The Blitz Family, The Arenivar Family, The Brigham Family, The DeGideo Family, The Kadakia Family, The Lala Family, The Lieberman Family, The Natarajian Family, The Pagels Family, The Stagg Family, The Stoecker Family, The Thampy Family, The White Family, Linda Loeffler & Family and all the participants of The National Spelling Bee. See more »
Spellbound is a surprisingly moving film, because it is not really about spelling, but about hopes and dreams. There's a lot of love in the film, and it's interesting how different families have different approaches... all the way from hands-off parents to parents hiring drill coaches. The film does a good job of showing the backgrounds of the kids and presenting their personalities. I found myself trying to spell right along with them (unsuccessfully).
Spelling bees promote the worst kind of rote learning, especially when the kids are faced with words they will never use in real life. That's thousands of hours either totally wasted or to be less critical, hours that could have been put to better use, for example, learning creative writing or public speaking. Even so, as one parent says, this is practice to form a habit of perseverance for the future.
The pacing and music were perfect, the way the challenge was presented was clear and straightforward. Excellent film.
Who should see this film:
-- Kids of all ages
-- Everyone else. It's not at all boring.
I'll give Spellbound a perfect 10 out of 10.
16 of 17 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful to you?
Spellbound is a surprisingly moving film, because it is not really about spelling, but about hopes and dreams. There's a lot of love in the film, and it's interesting how different families have different approaches... all the way from hands-off parents to parents hiring drill coaches. The film does a good job of showing the backgrounds of the kids and presenting their personalities. I found myself trying to spell right along with them (unsuccessfully).
Spelling bees promote the worst kind of rote learning, especially when the kids are faced with words they will never use in real life. That's thousands of hours either totally wasted or to be less critical, hours that could have been put to better use, for example, learning creative writing or public speaking. Even so, as one parent says, this is practice to form a habit of perseverance for the future.
The pacing and music were perfect, the way the challenge was presented was clear and straightforward. Excellent film.
Who should see this film:
-- Kids of all ages
-- Everyone else. It's not at all boring.
I'll give Spellbound a perfect 10 out of 10.