The Best Documentaries

Kevin Kelly just released the third edition of True Films. This book has one page reviews of 200 of the best documentaries available. Each review has a few screen captures and an indication of where to rent or buy the films. With a Netflix subscription you can probably rent 80% of these movies.

I've watched many of the films he lists in the book; they are all awesome. Some are even life-changing. None of them have been boring.

Happily, Kevin is testing out an free, ad-supported version of the book. You can download this version from his site as a pdf.

Link.

Listen to the Drabblecast

I always laugh when I listen to The Drabblecast. There aren't many podcasts out there that can do that.

The Drabblecast is about 80% flash fiction -- one to two thousand word stories. The tales are generally weird, sometimes gleefully repulsive. Norm Sherman performs all the narration himself, which is part of the appeal. His voices and sound effects are great.

Norm's commentary makes up the remaining 20% of the show. Following the theme, the commentary is also about the weird and absurd. Norm's take on "current events" is a riot, as are his reenactments. My favorite segment of all time has to be his coverage of the gruesome death of a duck in the lobby of an Embassy Suites. Listen to episode 35.

If you cherish the absurd and strange, give the show a listen. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Link.

Movie Trailers. From Hell. With Commentary.

Are you looking for an entertaining way to waste more time on your computer? Check out Trailers From Hell. On the site you can watch old trailers (that is, movie previews) with commentary from various directors.

The film previews run the spectrum from b-flicks to classics. Sometimes the commentators critique the film, sometimes they talk about its history, and sometimes they discuss the gossip. In any case, this site should excite both film buffs and MST3K junkies.

Link. Via Boing Boing.

Podcast Watch: Singularity

Technically, Bill DeSmedt's Singularity probably should get classified as an audio book. Professional narration of a novel doesn't quite meet my notion of a podcast. Still, the work is available on Podiobooks.com as an iTunes compatible or RSS podcast feed. For free too (with a suggested donation).

I started listening to the book on my last trip to Corpus Christi. It worked great. The fast pace and nearly constant excitement made the four hour drive go by in a flash.

The book is science fiction, but think Robert Ludlum meets Michael Crichton. Events hinge on speculative science, but it mostly occurs in the near future (well, the past's near future... the 1990's) with plenty of explosions and fights. It's full of crazy science, but most of it explained so that a layman can follow easily.

There are some anachronisms in the novel. Technology evolved a little differently in our future than what was expected when the book was written. Some of the computer science and hacking stuff seems a little off too. Still, it's worth cutting the book some slack.

And that professional narration? It seems to have been done by the author personally. Color me impressed. The accents and voices are all done quite well -- I swear he sounds like a professional narrator. Link.

Podcast Watch: TAGBBTNITBTOYL

Cory Doctorow has been podcasting his fantastic story in progress, There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow/Now is the Best Time of Your Life. If you enjoy Mecha battles, Disney lore, paleo-futurism, immortality, and the ethics of technology and progress, you'll probably enjoy this. In fact, your head will explode. Link.