Giancarlo Parretti was central to one of Hollywood’s greatest scandals. In 1990, Parretti bought iconic James Bond studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists for $1.3B with high hopes. However, within weeks, the 17th James Bond film (GoldenEye) was put on ice, paycheques to Dustin Hoffman and Sylvester Stallone had bounced, and hundreds of staff were fired. Parretti soon faced an FBI investigation for alleged financial irregularities and his ownership of Hollywood’s most famous studio spiraled out of control.
The murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh by an Islamic extremist in 2004, followed by the publishing of twelve satirical cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed that was commissioned for the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, provides the incendiary framework for Daniel Leconte's provocative documentary, It's Hard Being Loved by Jerks.
Fifteen time ACM Award winner, acclaimed actor and entertainer Tim McGraw is handpicking the hottest music of summer and calling on his friends to help kick off the 2013 touring season. The two-hour star-studded concert event will feature performances and collaborations from country, pop, rock and more, as well as a few surprise special guests from the worlds of film and television. All proceeds will benefit ACM Lifting Lives, the charitable arm of the Academy, and an organization that McGraw was closely affiliated with over his last tour.
Women who fought back against Harvey Weinstein tell their stories.
Doctors of the Dark Side is the first feature length documentary about the pivotal role of physicians and psychologists in detainee torture. The stories of four detainees and the doctors involved in their abuse demonstrate how US Army and CIA doctors implemented the Enhanced Interrogation Techniques and covered up signs of torture at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Interviews with medical, legal and intelligence experts and evidence from declassified government memos document what has been called the greatest scandal in American medical ethics. Based on four years of research by Producer/Director Martha Davis, written by Oscar winning Mark Jonathan Harris, and filmed in HD by Emmy winning DP Lisa Rinzler, the film shows how the torture of detainees could not continue without the assistance of the doctors.
Piche, a bearded drag queen and rapper from a Gypsy community in Arles, rises from the rupture of her father cutting ties in adolescence to the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony. With her mother Nadia and twin brother Morgan by her side, she dares to defy norms and becomes a leading voice of the queer revolution.
Hollywood is a hot spot for celebrities, and tour guide Scott Michaels (E!'s "20 Most Horrifying Hollywood Murders," FindADeath.com) knows their, well, haunts. DEARLY DEPARTED is an all-access tour of the "backlots" of L.A. - locations where the most infamous murders, suicides and bizarre crimes involving A-listers have taken place. The Viper Room, the site where "The Black Dahlia" was discovered, and dozens more legendary spots are explored in this funny and equally shocking ride into L.A.'s seedy underground.
At the elite level, bridge - the world's most popular card game - has become a million-dollar cut-throat business. When the best competitive player is accused of cheating, the ensuing scandal confounds experts, criminal science, celebrities and basic belief in this hilarious true-crime thriller.
Livestreaming your life to a devoted audience is big business. What happens when the cameras are off?
This documentary recounts the dysfunctional state of the death penalty in the state of California by revisiting the crimes, arrest, trials and appeals of Lawrence Bittaker, a convicted serial killer who has been on death row at San Quentin since 1981.
The controversial bad-boy of comedy delivers a piercing look at his life, lifting the metaphorical smokescreen that he feels has clouded the public view, commenting on everything from the dangers of smoking to the trials of relationships, and unleashing a nonstop litany of raucous anecdotes, stinging social commentary and very personal reflections about life.
Three incredible stories of women who risked everything to tell the truth. Their stories became worldwide scandals and took a personal toll on each of their lives
The Rainbow Warrior was a Greenpeace ship that was bombed by operatives of the French government, in New Zealand in 1985, while heading to a protest against nuclear testing, tragically taking the life of photographer Fernando Pereira. Edward McGurn’s enlightening and exciting documentary uncovers a tangled tale of nuclear weapons, geopolitical coverups, and attempts to take action against impending environmental collapse. Was Pereira’s death an accident or part of a larger political plot?
In July 2016, Josée Boudreault had a stroke that turned her life upside down. This documentary follows her as she tries to regain her motor and verbal functions, tirelessly supported by her spouse Louis-Philippe Rivard. This touching story is foremost about the love that binds this unbreakable couple, despite the challenges of illness.
A benefit concert and telethon organized by George Clooney and broadcast uninterrupted and commercial-free by the four major television networks just 10 days after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and The Pentagon to raise money for the victims and their families,
Can you become a star without being a loudmouth? Absolutely, and Bourvil is proof of that. This discreet artist had many talents: he was both an actor and a singer, with equal success and enjoyment. First noticed for his songs and sketches, in which he created the character of the village idiot, he learned through experience the art of creating characters who were naive, certainly, but increasingly subtle. We propose to look back on the all too brief life of this man who was as endearing as he was discreet.
The story of Tasmanian-born actor Errol Flynn whose short & flamboyant life, full of scandals, adventures, loves and excess was largely played out in front of the camera - either making movies or filling the newsreels and gossip magazines. Tragically he was dead from the effects of drugs and alcohol by the time he was only 50 & the myths live on. But there is another side of Flynn that is less well known - his ambitions to be a serious writer and newspaper correspondent, his documentary films and his interest in the Spanish Civil War and Castro's Cuba
A film centering on the life and work of Ron Galella that examines the nature and effect of paparazzi.
To mark the 60th birthday of the multi-talented comedian, singer and author Hape Kerkeling, the two documentary filmmakers André Schäfer and Eric Friedler have created a quiet, thoughtful and entertaining portrait of this often anarchic humorist. The film tells of his rapid rise as a teenager, his time and the blows of fate during the AIDS epidemic, the controversial forced outing, his confident exit from the show business and his new beginning. The film is a sensitive insight into the family history and a fast-paced journey through the career stages of a formative figure in German TV entertainment.
Hackers Wanted explores the origins and nature of hackers and hacking by following the adventures of Adrian Lamo, and contrasting his story with that of controversial figures throughout history.