A few nonfiction films worth checking out as cinematic self education

While some of the movies being released this fall are aimed at a more "serious" audience, many folks do tend to tune out anything that doesn't offer a sweet escape from reality right away.

That's doesn't mean you should feel bad about seeing a film strictly for fun but a fact based movie,whether it's a documentary or simply a "based on the true story" feature,can be just as inviting and intriguing to enjoy.

One documentary is certainly getting a lot of promotional love from critics and the media these days,due to it's theme of our troubled educational system. Waiting for "Superman" goes over the vast inequalities of public education and focuses on families trying to get their kids into a better situation as well as educators in the field working on solutions.

Even if you no longer have children of school age,this is a concern for all of us as education helps to create the present and future society in which we all share:





For those who think that cooking competitions are all hot oven hype,the dead seriousness of the 16 chefs who spend three days of baking,sculpting and strenuous sugar art in order to win the top prize of Master Craftsman in France as depicted in Kings of Pastry may change your culinary outlook there.

This isn't about personality clashes or game playing for the cameras;the real drama is in each piece of pastry that doesn't measure up in taste or a collapsing sweet sculpture which could cost someone the chance to showcase their skills as one of the best in their field and in the world:





For a fictional take on the facts,let's start with Howl,starring James Franco as controversial beat poet Allen Ginsberg as his most infamous work is being tried in court as part of an obscenity case against indie book store owner and publisher Lawrence Ferlingetti in 1957.

The movie blends pieces of Ginberg's life and times in New York as he begins his literary career,along with the trial and an animated depiction of the title poem.

I'm not into the whole beat generation thing myself but this flick looks like a good introduction to that scene and an unique way to get a handle on what it was all about:





Last but certainly not least,animal lovers and sports fans alike can get together to watch Secretariat,with Diane Lane as owner Penny Chenery ,who along with eccentric trainer Lucien Laurin(John Malkovich), reared the legendary race horse that won the American Triple Crown back in 1973.

That horse was the first to do so in twenty five years,amidst several odds including bias against women in horse racing circles,the financial woes of the stables that Penny took over from her ailing father and the sheer boldness in attempting to have one horse win all three races.

Yes,this is a Disney movie so the tone is your typical triumph over adversary but isn't that a good vibe to tune into every once in a while?:



Whether partaking of one of these movies or any other nonfiction flick,be sure not to assume that all of the facts are fully featured on film. Even a documentary feature can have their material shaped to suit the filmmaker's agenda and while it's a nice start to learning more about a certain subject,scoping out the sources on your own is a smart idea(also,don't be too quick to believe everything you find on Wikipedia either,folks):