documentary

The Greatest Movie Ever Sold is a perfect display of what Spurlock’s brand personality analyst calls his mix of "playful and mindful" qualities. He sells himself with a shit-eating grin, riding the wave of his own charm, which is a force unto itself—fueling the camera equipment, feeding the crew, somehow exempting him from an icky breakdown of integrity even while dressed in a suit jacket cluttered with corporate sponsor decals. He convinces you that the film’s corporate doublespeak tagline ("he’s not selling out, he’s buying in") is actually true, that there is a difference.

Time for a link exchange! Here's a glimpse into what we've been reading:

• Hopping mad about the misleadingly-named Independent Women's Forum's misinformation about the pay gap? Feministing tells it like it is.
• Also at Feministing, check out this report from the 2011 Civil Liberties and Public Policy Conference with video and quotes from the Transfeminisms panel.
• Bitch contributor Chally Kacelnik finishes her series in response to the question "Where are you from?" on Feministe.
• Shark-Fu at AngryBlackBitch powerfully responds to the streak of racist billboards attacking black women. (via Bitch Flicks)
• AfterEllen's Dorothy Snarker cheers on Sundance's acquisition of feminist favorite My So-Called Life!
• Bitch contributor Emily Manuel opines on what the term "pro-life" should actually mean at Tiger Beatdown.
• Speaking of Tiger Beatdown, their founder Sady Doyle (who is also a Bitch contributor) writes about convicted assaultant Jeffrey Gray, who was elected to office despite his crimes against women. (Trigger warning for domestic abuse and rape.)
• The Huffington Post reports on the discovery that middle and high schools in New Jersey were filtering QUILTBAG-related content from school computers. The filter is being removed thanks to the ACLU.
• Amanda Marcotte has a new recording up at RH Reality Check about the Slutwalk, the claim that "uterus" is a dirty word and more!
• Jill does a hilarious takedown of Dove soap's advertising on I Blame the Patriarchy.
• Ms.' blog interviews the women behind the feminist play The Panza [Spanish for "belly"] Monologues!
• In the WTF category, Queerty shares the U.K.'s new, but still bizarre and revealing, rules about gay men giving blood.
• ColorLines addresses the Grammy Awards' recent decision to cut some of their awards categories and how this may affect artists of color.
• The annual Austin queer music day party GayBiGayGay is releasing a book! That comes with a free CD of bands that play! Check it out or pre-order your copy today!
• Also check out the environmental documentary Vanishing of the Bees, likely headed to a theatre or classroom near you!

I have some misgivings about entering into the fourth week of the series and only now addressing a picture with a transgender protagonist. These concerns are made worse by the cruel dramatic irony that the main character in Southern Comfort is a man who dies of ovarian cancer. It is complicated by the fact that the selection in question is also the first documentary I have considered for the Bechdel Test Canon. I meet most documentaries with incredulity, encountering components like editing with skepticism rather than regarding the finished product as truth.

Wif-pdx (Women in Film-Portland, natch) is part activist organization, part information network, and part event sponsor. This very week, for example, they are joining up with NW Documentaries, another kick-ass grassroots film center in Portland, to screen an as-yet-unfinished documentary called Austin Unbound. And if you're in town, I think you should go see it.

[Warning: MASSIVE SPOILERS for the movie Catfish FOLLOW. It will be much less fun to watch if you have read the spoilers. However, if you don't plan to see it, have already had it spoiled and/or don't care about spoilers, read on.]