They are now older women, and their faces are reflected on the screen in the film Copa 71. The film rightes a terrible wrong and celebrates them and others who were young athletes striving to change the world.
Particularly powerful in an era that celebrates the achievements of female athletes such as Caitlin Clarke, Simone Biles, and Serena and Venus Williams (the latter two, not coincidentally, are the film's executive producers), Copa 71 is a long-overshadowed film. Unearthing the story A film clip from 1971, when women's soccer teams from around the world gathered for the first unofficial Women's World Cup. The film captures with great suspense the thrill of the match in Mexico City and the blatant sexism that overshadowed the entire scene. Modern day soccer star Brandi Chastain said, almost furiously, “Why didn't I know about this?” She and you will never forget it.
“Copa 71” is one of 10 films in this year’s Doc10 Documentary Film Festival. This energetic gathering will go a long way toward redefining what comes to mind when you think of “documentary.”
“Before we started, I would tell people I had made a documentary and just look them in the eye,” said Steve Cohen, co-founder with Steve Cohen of the Chicago Media Project, which organizes the festival. One Paula Freire says. This is my 9th year. “That's certainly not the case anymore.”
Founded in 2013, CMP has provided guidance and funding to documentary filmmakers and a variety of projects. The Doc10 festival is a highlight.
“Every year, we encounter and watch hundreds of films,” Floret said. “We (along with Cohen and senior programmer Anthony Kaufman) first come up with a shortlist and then fight like brothers over what will fill the 10 slots. It's not easy to cut that down to just 10.”
But I think it was a wise decision, this less-is-more philosophy, and I happily jumped at the chance to preview the three films. So I was thrilled to see “Copa 71,” and surprised and stunned by “Divo,” the movie that opens the festival on Thursday night.
I was never a fan of the band Devo. A group of musicians with scary sounds and red flowerpot hats. But that's not a hat, and as the band called it “Energy Dome,” I watched this movie and learned about “the most infamous band to ever appear on the planet.” And this band wasn't a bunch of idiots or drug-addicted kids, but thoughtful men with “a message that a lot of people never understood.”
I understand now, and I understand where this university came from, born on the campus of Kent State University shortly after four students were shot and killed by the National Guard in 1970. Influenced not only by the bloody era, but also by individual artists like David Bowie and Andy Warhol, this was a band with serious intentions and considerable intelligence.
Director Chris Smith uses excellent archival footage, colorful and exuberant footage, and thoughtful interviews with founders Gerard Cazale and Mark Mothersbaugh to help make 1980's chart-topping and new… It captures this six-member group that has broken into the mainstream despite having a wave image. Press “Whip It”.
At the time, they were difficult to categorize and far from easy listening. One of the raucous gang's first public performances can be seen in a 1973 concert. Mothersbaugh donned a monkey mask and watched the audience quickly dwindle from his 10 or so people to his about 2.
But the film, which was a huge hit at Sundance, makes a strong case that the band was more than a trivial novelty: it was a protest band worthy of attention and, like it or not, with a revolutionary message. The appeal is persuasive. Following the screening at the Davis Theater, some of the band members will speak with WXRT's Marty Lennertz.
“War Games'' was the last movie I saw, and it horrifies me because it poses the question, “What would happen if the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol gets even more out of control?'' To answer that, we are presented with a simulation set on January 6, 2025, a so-called “doc-thriller”. Renowned experts such as former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock will play a role in the hypothetical crisis.
“This feels like a thriller,” Freire said. “My heart started beating a little faster when I realized that what I was seeing might be a real possibility.”
It reminded me of the fictional 1964 political thriller Seven Days in May, starring Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster. But War Games is a documentary, and as Freire says, “Documents give us real people. We're drawn to it. We crave stories about people that we can find an emotional connection to. The lives of real people can inspire great movies.”
These films, along with 10 short documentaries, will be screened at the Davis Theater and Gene Siskel Film Center. Another full-length feature is “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story,” which airs Friday nights. A friend of mine who saw this film said, “It's heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time.'' I believe that word. Because we are in a golden age of documentary, and it's time for you to be a part of it.
rkogan@chicagotribune.com
The 9th annual Doc10 Documentary Film Festival will be held May 2-5 at the Davis Theater (4614 N. Lincoln Ave.) and Gene Siskel Film Center (164 N State St.). www.doc10.org
