DVR_Brale
There are two realities we usually don't think about a lot. The first one is deprived part of a subculture where drugs and violence occur regularly. The other one is a scope where some individuals and groups give themselves for the sake of others.All of this is nicely portrayed in this film. Steve Hoover balances portrayals of rock bottom of our society and endearment throughout the movie.Mokhenko (Pastor Crocodile) is probably not going to be liked by some people. He is a tough guy vigorously pursuing his kind goal. Nevertheless, he is a charismatic leader capable to inspire the you.I would've given a better grade if the movie were half an hour shorter. Documentary should provide just enough insight to some topic; not attempt to develop a plot no matter what.
mandy-1
In "Almost Holy" we follow Ukraine Pastor, Gennadiy Mokhnenko, as he works according to his own sense of what is holy and what is not. He inspires us with his charismatic personality and passion for saving lives and souls from the living hell of alcohol and drug addiction, especially for the very young and vulnerable among us. While I am grateful to the filmmakers for bringing the material to us, the fragmented editing and repeated close shots that never showed where we were and what was going on left me wishing someone else had been in charge.I gave it a high 8 stars because it is still an informative, inspiring and thought provoking look at a part of our world we know too little about.
Ethan Race
This is truly one of the best documentaries of recent times with enough artistic merit to rival such great titles as The Act of Killing and F**k for Forest.It tracks the story of a Ukrainian pastor as he struggles to get child drug addicts off the street. Set to the backdrop of the Ukrainian revolution and recent war in Crimea, there is an increasing sense of dread throughout the film.Some of the situations that unfold between the pastor and the people he attempts to help are so astoundingly unbelievable that they seem like they were written for a fiction film, not a documentary. Gennadiy is a truly larger than life character and his charisma permeates the entire piece.Stylistically, this documentary is better put together than the majority of fiction films out there. There is not a single shot that does not blow you away with its aesthetic power, metaphorical depth, and complexity of meaning.Steve Hoover is a number one director to look out for and I can't wait to see what he comes up with in the future. Would love to see him direct a fiction film.
Jackson Walker
Crocodile Gennadiy is a character driven documentary, and boy did they pick one hell of a character. The titular Crocodile Gennadiy is clearly a man who enjoys being on camera and knows how to carry himself in front of one. The subject matter of this film is not for the faint of heart, and contains some dark imagery, but it's a darkness that Gennadiy helps you navigate through. You see this hell he lives in and how he copes with it, you really begin to admire him, despite the fact that his actions frequently walk the line between humanitarianism and vigilantism. And on top of this all the film team did an amazing job capturing this man and his environment, the cinematography is top notch essentially creating a "beautiful hell" in the same vein as other great documentaries like Detropia and The Act of Killing.But that last point is the one thing holding me back from a perfect rating. It's a bit TOO much in the style of other great docs to come out recently. It's a lovely style no doubt, but it'd be nice to some work try and slip away from it a bit into either new territory or old territory that has been abandoned.
AD
