Image not loading

American Beauty Ltd.

1989-01-01

de

Released

Documentary

From the turn of the century - as emigrants to a New World - through the twenties and through the thirties - with great industry and the Great Depression - and finally during Detroit's heroic period in World War II - working in the armaments industry, the "arsenals of democracy." What remains when such men's dreams become real?

Similar Movies

Louder Than Love: The Grande Ballroom Story

The greatest untold story in Rock and Roll history as revealed by the musicians,artists and people that lived it

Never Stop - A Music That Resists

Featuring the pioneers of techno music Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Carl Craig, and Jeff Mills, Never Stop takes us into the fascinating universe of techno labels in Detroit. This film highlights the deep roots of the creation, more than thirty years ago, by each of the African-American pioneers of techno music, of their own record labels.

Boblo Boats: A Detroit Ferry Tale

For over 85 years, steamship Ste. Claire transported generations of Detroiters to Boblo Island, an amusement park nestled in the waters between the US and Canada. When the vessel comes under threat of ruin, a doctor, psychic and amusement park fanatic unite to save their beloved steamship from the scrapyard. Interweaving local lore and mythology, "Boblo Boats" explores the whitewashed history of amusement parks and one crew's crusade to bring back the memories.

Detropia

Detroit’s story has encapsulated the iconic narrative of America over the last century – the Great Migration of African Americans escaping Jim Crow; the rise of manufacturing and the middle class; the love affair with automobiles; the flowering of the American dream; and now… the collapse of the economy and the fading American mythos.

MC5: A True Testimonial

This documentary, made over a period of eight years, tells the remarkable story of an extremely influential rock'n'roll band. Starting from their mid-60's garage band roots (sounding amazingly like the Sonics), the Motor City 5 deveoped into an icon for a brand of loud, crushing music reflecting their industrial roots. Even if you don't care for their music (and you're bound to like even a few of their songs), their story is fascinating. It combines 60's protest, youthful braggadocio, and a style of music that would help carry one to the likes of Iggy and the Stooges (not to mention certain aspects of punk rock). This film is clearly a labor of love, combining extraordinarily rare live shows, still shots, a nearly-continuous backdrop of MC5 tunes, penetrating interviews with the remaining members and their spouses, and even FBI surveillance shots. It's the ultimate testimonial to a band that only gains in stature as time goes on.

Spook House

Filmed in the white working-class suburbs of Detroit, Spook House reveals a community reveling in the macabre. Front lawns are transformed into cemeteries, kitchens become mausoleums and dismembered ‘bodies’ are prepared for cannibal feasts. Cameron Jamie’s camera tracks the celebrants as the nights become longer and darker.

Searching for Sugar Man

Two South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock 'n' roller, Rodriguez.

Burn

A character-driven, action-packed documentary about Detroit, told through the eyes of the Detroit firefighters, the men and women charged with the thankless task of saving a city that many have written off as dead.

Do You Think A Job Is the Answer?

In response to the Detroit riots of 1967, where racial tensions in the city reached a breaking point, the city decided that the way to resolve these tensions would be to put more resources into employing Black people. Namely, chronically unemployed Black men who they refer to as "the hardcore." And predominantly, employing them on the line in auto assembly plants. But in the words of Lloyd Love, a young Detroiter interviewed in the film, this PBS documentary poses the question, "Do you think a job is the answer?" The film explores this question in 1968, by speaking with workers, unemployed people, union activists, students, people who implement city-run employment programs, members of DRUM (Dodge Revolutionary Union Movement), and the Detroit Industrial Mission.

MC5: Kick Out the Jams

Kick Out the Jams features many never before seen films of the MC5 as created by Leni Sinclair & conceptual artist Cary Loren during the peak of their career. Featuring: Looking At You, Ramblin' Rose, Kick Out The Jams, Black To Comm, I Want You Right Now, Rocket Reducer No. 62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa), The Pledge Song, Come Together, Starship, Motor City Is Burning, Shakin' Street, John Sinclair Interview 2003

Detroit Connection Pt. 3: Last Man Standing (Demetrius Holloway)

A reputed Detroit drug kingpin who once staged his own kidnapping and assassination to disappear for several months, was killed.

Stranded at the Corner

The Detroit Tigers played baseball at "The Corner" of Michigan and Trumbull avenues every summer from 1896 through 1999, a span of 104 summers. When team owner Mike Ilitch moved the Tigers into Comerica Park in 2000 with the help of public funds, it marked the end of an era -- but it didn't erase the affection many fans still hold for one of America's last remaining classic-era ballparks. This documentary celebrates Tiger Stadium's rich history, recounts the long struggle to keep the team from abandoning the old park, and takes a critical look at its current state of neglect.

Detroit Pistons: 1988-1989 NBA Champions - Motor City Madness

The 1989 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1988–89 National Basketball Association (NBA) season, and the conclusion of the 1989 NBA Playoffs. The series was a rematch of the previous year's championship round between the Eastern Conference playoff champion Detroit Pistons and the Western Conference playoff champion Los Angeles Lakers.

The Legacy of J Dilla

In his short lifetime, J Dilla was a musician, producer and visionary who profoundly influenced rap and hip-hop. Given how prolific he was in his 32 years, why didn't his accolades come sooner?

Iggy Pop: Jesus? This Is Iggy

2002 Some of the excellent footage includes: excerpts from the 1970 Cincinnatti Pop Festival, famed for the Ig's clambering onto the audience, being hoisted aloft, and walking on a sea of hands, a feat unduplicated back in the day or since in the rock world; earliest Stooges B&W archival snippets showing Iggy right out of the chute as theatrical, quasi-modern dance iconoclast; the Ig enjoying his own private listening party to the original recording of "No Fun" years later; and lots of late-'90's/early 2000's audience interaction, sloppy kisses and all. 1 Lust For Life 2 TV Eye 3 I'm Alright 4 Dirt 5 Search & Destroy 6 Funtime Featuring – David Bowie 7 Nightclubbing 8 Lust For Life 9 China Girl 10 Bla, Blah, Blah 11 Lust For Life 12 I'm A God 13 Natural Feeling 14 Louie, Louie

Detroit Lives

Before its economic decline, Detroit was a major metropolis. Now, in the 2000s, the young people of the Motor City are making it their own DIY paradise where rules are second to passion and creativity. Johnny Knoxville tours the city to meet some of the people who are creating a new Detroit on their own terms, against real adversity.

Henry Ford's America

A study of the automobile and its pervasive effect on the history of North America. Focusing on the Ford dynasty, from the original Henry car through to Henry II, the film demonstrates how society has adapted to fit the needs of the automobile.

Gimme Danger

No other band in rock'n'roll history has rivaled The Stooges' combination of heavy primal throb, spiked psychedelia, blues-a-billy grind, complete with succinct angst-ridden lyrics, and a snarling, preening leopard of a frontman who somehow embodies Nijinsky, Bruce Lee, Harpo Marx, and Arthur Rimbaud all rolled into one. There is no precedent for The Stooges, while those inspired by them are now legion. The film will present the context of their emergence musically, culturally, politically, historically, and relate their adventures and misadventures while charting their inspirations and the reasons behind their initial commercial challenges, as well as their long-lasting legacy.

Dope, Hookers and Pavement

"Dope, Hookers and Pavement" is a lively and unfiltered account of the early days of the Detroit hardcore punk scene, circa 1981-82, in the notorious Cass Corridor, arguably one of the worst neighbourhoods in the city at the time. Featuring over 70 in-depth interviews — including John Brannon (Negative Approach), Tesco Vee (Meatmen, Touch and Go), Ian MacKaye (Minor Threat, Dischord Records), pro skater Bill Danforth, scene kids, and members of the Necros, The Fix, Violent Apathy and Bored Youth — and never-before-seen Super8 footage of the Freezer, "Dope, Hookers and Pavement" is both hilarious and reflective, and an overdue record of a nearly invisible but magic little moment in the long history of Detroit rock'n'roll.

Portrait of a City

Celebratory film from Ford commemorating Detroit's 250th anniversary. Reenacts scenes from the city's history and presents a tour of its streets, parks, skyscrapers, factories, and waterfront. NOTE: The film was broadcast on Detroit television and distributed through Ford's film libraries. Revised in 1961.

;