Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau
Amazon Instant Video
Directed by David Gregory
Starring Richard Stanley, Fairuza Balk, Marco Hofschneider, and Rob Morrow
Severin Films
Not Rated | Running Time: 97 Minutes
Release Date: February 27, 2015

Twenty years ago, the visionary South African filmmaker Richard Stanley, adored by cult and horror audiences around the world for his uncompromising features Hardware and Dust Devil, ventured into a lush, remote region of Australia to make a film version of a book he had cherished since his youth: The Island of Dr. Moreau, by H.G. Wells. The finished film was released in the summer of 1996, the time when the alien invasion blockbuster Independence Day ruled the box office, but what audiences saw was radically different from what Stanley set out to make. That’s because he didn’t direct a single frame of the film.

The more experienced journeyman John Frankenheimer (Ronin, The Manchurian Candidate) was called in to replaced Stanley only a few days into principal photography for reasons that have since become legend. David Gregory‘s new documentary Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau aims to tell as much of the horrific story behind the operatic unmaking of Stanley’s grandiose and grotesque vision for the latest cinematic iteration of the classic Wells novel as the living participants are willing to recall.

Batkid Begins: The Wish Heard Around the World
Directed by Dana Nachman
Written by Dana Nachman and Kurt Kuenne
Starring: Miles Scott, Natalie and Nick Scott, Eric Johnston, and Mike Jutan
Running Time: 87 Minutes
KTF Films
Release Date: June 26, 2015

A few years ago, in mid-November, you may have found yourself locked into your favorite social media to witness a little wish come true as Make a Wish gave little Miles Scott his wish to be Batman for one day. They transformed parts of San Francisco into Gotham, and what started as a small project turned into something much, much bigger than anyone had expected.

A few years later, thanks to Dana Nachman (Human Experiment) and Kurt Kuenne, we get a look into how that idea turned into something that affected everyone who saw or heard about it in the documentary Batkid Begins: The Wish Heard Around the World. I can say just thinking about seeing him the first time, the emotions begin to flow and the goosebumps and the teary eyes are soon to follow, which is sort of ironic considering the same could be said for another movie that Kurt Kuenne was involved with, Dear Zachary, a movie that will tug and pull at your emotions as well.

Turn down the lights and stare at the screen. New imagery appears, promising a positive movie experience. Over the past few weeks, Disney has released a bunch of trailers for forthcoming projects from Brad Bird, Marvel, Disney Channel, Lucasfilm and, yes, even Disneynature.

The time has come to break down these trailers and determine their worth through rating them in a Disney-like manner. I am assigning the best type of trailer an “E-ticket,” akin to the most popular Disney attractions, whereas the most unappealing trailer receives an “A-ticket,” much like the rides and shows people could enter for free.

Monkey Kingdom
Directors: Mark Linfield and Alastair Fothergill
Narrator: Tina Fey
Disneynature
Rated G | 82 Minutes
Release Date: April 17, 2015

Lions and sharks and bears, oh my! Disneynature’s collection of films have chronicled the stories of these creatures — no central focus on tigers just yet, I’m afraid — but until now, this documentary label had yet to venture into a society dominated by toque macaque monkeys.

Practically every April brings a new Disneynature film to theaters, and Disneynature’s Monkey Kingdom embodies the series’ awe, compassion and discovery in a neatly wrapped (just under an) hour-and-a-half experience. It’s entertaining, yes, and as documentaries aim to inform, you will indeed walk away learning many, many fascinating facts that you can bring up at your next party.

Knock Knock, It’s Tig Notaro
Director: Michael LaHaie, Christopher Wilcha
Starring: Tig Notaro, Jon Dore
Documentary
Release date: March 17, 2015 (SXSW)

In Knock Knock, It’s Tig Notaro, comedian Tig Notaro (In A World) sets out on a cross-country road trip, bringing her singular style of comedy to the living rooms, barns, back yards, and trailers of her most devoted fans. Like any road trip, all the jokes are inside jokes, the stories are better when you’re there, and basically you just have to experience it.

Jon Dore (Funny As Hell) joins Tig on the road as her show opener for audiences that are rarely over 15 people. They make comedy happen in the places where people really live, without stage lights (unless tractor headlights count), standing on homemade stages or no stages at all, in living room lounges, with the audience at arm’s length. Notaro and Dore, together with directors Michael LaHaie and Christopher Wilcha, capture the mortifying vulnerability of live performance. It’s magnified in the small settings, but they literally open the front door and walk right in.