The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee

Aug 9, 2024

1h 43m

★ 7.5

Aristocrat. Scholar. Swordsman. Spy. Nazi Hunter. Opera Singer. And then... He became a film star.

Overview

Aristocratic Italian roots, a close family connection to James Bond novelist Ian Fleming, wartime experiences in the British and Finnish military, post-war Nazi-hunting adventures and a side career as a heavy metal rock singer. And one of the most iconic actors of all time.

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Canal Cat Films

Trigger Films

BFI

The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee Trailers

Cast

Self / Various (Archive)

Christopher Lee

Self

Joe Dante

Self

Peter Jackson

Self

John Landis

Self

Harriet Walter

Self

Paul Maslansky

Self

Caroline Munro

Self

Jonathan Rigby

Self

Juan Aneiros

Christopher Lee (Voice)

Peter Serafinowicz

A film crew crisscrosses England trying to unravel the mystery surrounding a record released 30 years earlier, 'Spirit of Eden', that defined the passage from light to shadow of its makers, the band Talk Talk and its lead singer Mark Hollis. From overwhelming obstacles to unpredictable encounters, their journey soon turns into an organic quest. With silence as a horizon line. And punk as a philosophy, thinking that music is accessible to all and that the human spirit is above the technique.

8.0

Doris Dörrie - Die Flaneuse

May 4, 2024

Why does Doris Dörrie have a bag on her head in the interview? Consistent in the sense that in her works she always poses the question of how we want to be perceived. Dörrie takes us through the most important stages of her life, her films, her work as a mentor and teacher, and also addresses existential themes: Identity, motherhood, her role as a woman. And she talks openly about fears, setbacks and crises, such as the untimely death of her partner and cameraman Helge Weindler. "Shut up and breathe", the advice of a Tibetan lama, carries her through life - even beyond the screen.

8.0

Our War

Jun 11, 2025

Between February and April 2025, filmmakers Bernard-Henri Lévy and Marc Roussel filmed the Pokrovsk and Soumy fronts in eastern Ukraine, following the fighters of the Anne de Kyiv Brigade, armed by France. They filmed the daily lives of the inhabitants, bombarded by Russian forces terrorizing civilians on the eve of possible negotiations. They interview President Zelenskyy, who is reluctant to travel to Washington, and then watch the rebroadcast of the meeting with Ukrainian soldiers in a bunker. For the real heroes are the anonymous fighters and civilians who hold their heads high in the face of adversity and suffering, and who are filmed on a daily basis. The final part of Lévy’s “Ukrainian Quartet”, Our War is a diary, peppered with flashbacks in which the author recalls the high points of this war that began in 2014.

7.3

Jean-Claude van Damme: Karate King

Mar 17, 2023

An American low-budget action film celebrated an unexpected worldwide success in 1988: "Bloodsport". With its, the world of film fans and martial arts cinema discovered a new idol: Jean-Claude Van Damme. In the 1970s there was Bruce Lee, but at the end of the 1980s a Belgian won the day. Van Damme was a karate master and had unparalleled strength and flexibility. For ten years he was one of Hollywood's hottest action stars. But excessive overconfidence and drugs bring him down again. At home in Europe he becomes a laughing stock on talk shows. Only with "JCVD" does he manage to get back on his feet, playing his character with perspective and self-irony, but without ever giving up the reputation that his action films brought him and which has been a cult for several generations. The highs and lows of his eventful life are told through archive footage and contributions from people close to the popular Belgian actor.

8.0

Women, Maasai and rangers - The lionesses of Kenya

Nov 6, 2022

Leah and Purity are rangers in the Kenyan bushland. They roam around Amboseli National Park every day to track down wildlife. The Maasai shepherds also have their villages here. Conflicts can hardly be avoided. The young women are often called to missions to mediate or comfort. The two Maasai women themselves have to fight against discrimination

10.0

Avenida

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A place with stairs, but that leads to walls. A place with lots of space, but no one fights for it. And a place with lots of owners, but so empty that no one wants to enter.

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0.0

Starring Sigmund Freud

Nov 1, 2012

Starring Sigmund Freud is a video memento for Sigmund Freud's little-known film career. Based on an essay John Menick published in Frieze in 2011, the video collects the dozens of appearances that the character of Sigmund Freud has made on small and big screens. After the 1950s, when pill vials replaced analytic couches, the father of psychoanalysis found a second career impersonating himself in everything from a John Huston clunker to a Star Trek episode. The video suggests that maybe it is in front of the camera, alongside surgically enhanced starlets and CGI chimeras, that “Herr Doktor” will find his final resting place. This video was produced by the Kadist Foundation and commissioned by dOCUMENTA (13).

4.0

Voices in Wartime

Mar 4, 2004

Voices in Wartime is a 2004 documentary that explores the human experience of war through poetry. Combining interviews with soldiers, journalists, and historians, it reveals how war affects individuals and societies across time and place. The film features poets from around the world – from Homer and Wilfred Owen to Shoda Shinoe and modern writers in Iraq and Nigeria – showing how poetry expresses the pain, trauma, and truth of conflict. By linking verse with real-life accounts, Voices in Wartime highlights how poetry helps us understand the emotional and moral impact of war.

10.0

Ohio Walnuts

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A feature documentary about Ohio-based artist Sparks McFly and his friends as they attempt to conceptualize, write, record, and produce a rap album over the course of just 7 days.

0.0

Untied! Reflections on Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!

Aug 19, 2014

Produced in 2014, this documentary about the making of TIE ME UP! TIE ME DOWN! features interviews with director Pedro Almodóvar; actors Antonio Banderas, Victoria Abril, Loles León, and Rossy de Palma; producer Agustín Almodóvar; production manager Esther García; and cinematographer José Luis Alcaine.

0.0

61 Suns

Invalid Date

A filmmaker’s meditation on loss and grief. A digital eulogy and swan song to his creative partner and best friend. Mixed media woven into the fading daydream of their time together.

0.0

Say My Name

Invalid Date

People from different ethnic backgrounds with "difficult" names by Western standards share their experience with moving through the world with an identity that challenges others to simply just say their name. A short social docu-film by Mariam Meliksetyan, “Say My Name” is a meditation on identity, otherness, assimilation, community, and ancestral roots.

7.7

Inside Job

Oct 8, 2010

A film that exposes the shocking truth behind the economic crisis of 2008. The global financial meltdown, at a cost of over $20 trillion, resulted in millions of people losing their homes and jobs. Through extensive research and interviews with major financial insiders, politicians and journalists, Inside Job traces the rise of a rogue industry and unveils the corrosive relationships which have corrupted politics, regulation and academia.

0.0

Madeleine McCann: The Unseen Evidence

May 7, 2025

Documentary following an investigation by The Sun into Madeleine McCann's disappearance, which uncovers further evidence that could point towards the prime suspect's involvement in this unsolved crime

0.0

Apostles of Cinema

Aug 6, 2023

Apostles of Cinema follows Frank, DJ Black, and Rehema — three devoted film workers in Tanzania — as they reintroduce a classic piece of the country’s film history to their audiences of working class cinephiles. We join them, alongside Maangamizi: The Ancient One (2001), on a journey through the labyrinth of informal libraries, studios, and cinemas that exist to keep film and film culture alive. A testament to the profound cultural value of film when made truly accessible.

0.0

The Human Voice Q&A With Pedro Almodovar And Tilda Swinton, Hosted By Mark Kermode

Nov 6, 2020

A recorded Q&A hosted by Mark Kermode, where Pedro Almodóvar and Tilda Swintondiscuss the inspirations they drew on for the film, how THE HUMAN VOICE fits within the 'Almodóvar oeuvre', and what Pedro will be making next - including a great surprise for Tilda. Recorded under lockdown conditions, the discussion features visual references and clips to create a dynamic and interesting companion piece to the short film.

0.0

The Making of All About My Mother

Jan 1, 2012

A documentary from 2012 on the making of the film, featuring interviews with Pedro Almodóvar; Agustín Almodóvar; actors Penélope Cruz, Marisa Paredes, Cecilia Roth, and Antonia San Juan; production manager Esther García; and author Didier Eribon.

6.7

The Death of "Superman Lives": What Happened?

May 1, 2015

The Death of 'Superman Lives': What Happened? feature film documents the process of development of the ill fated "Superman Lives" movie, that was to be directed by Tim Burton and star Nicolas Cage as the man of steel himself, Superman. The project went through years of development before the plug was pulled, and this documentary interviews the major filmmakers: Kevin Smith, Tim Burton, Jon Peters, Dan Gilroy, Colleen Atwood, Lorenzo di Bonaventura and many many more.

7.5

Touching the Void

Sep 5, 2003

The true story of Joe Simpson and Simon Yates' disastrous and nearly-fatal mountain climb of 6,344m Siula Grande in the Cordillera Huayhuash in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.

6.9

Into Great Silence

Sep 4, 2005

An intimate portrayal of the everyday lives of Carthusian monks of the Grande Chartreuse, high in the French Alps (Chartreuse Mountains). The idea for the film was proposed to the monks in 1984, but the Carthusians said they wanted time to think about it. The Carthusians finally contacted Gröning 16 years later to say they were now willing to permit Gröning to shoot the movie, if he was still interested.