Elvis Presley grew up to become the biggest star in music, thanks to a staggering range of influences that created a revolutionary sound in his lifelong search for self-expression. This two-part documentary reveals his creative journey from childhood through his final recording sessions in 1976. It features more than 20 new, primary source interviews with session players, producers, engineers, directors and other artists who knew him or who were profoundly influenced by him. It also features never-before-seen photos and footage from private collections worldwide, and an original score by Pearl Jam lead guitarist Mike McCready. The first part begins with his early life in Tupelo, Mississippi, and his unprecedented rise to fame over a single year.
The second part of this series begins with his return home after his discharge from the army, and how he dealt with a rapidly changing pop scene. The picture is more complicated than even a fairly serious Elvis fan may understand. Priscilla Presley, who made some appearances in the first part, offers much more here, helping us understand how being forced into making a string of lousy movies was one kind of artistic prison, and then being ensconced in casino hotels for his famous Las Vegas residency was another. The man who had so carefully created his original persona was now stuck in the shallow roles others forced him to play.
From Patrick Kennedy's emigration in 1849 to the death of JFK Jr. in 1999, the films charts the family's rise from poor Irish immigrants to an all-powerful dynasty, exploring the lives, careers, personal tragedies and scandals that have given rise to the idea of a Kennedy curse. Featuring interviews with family members, and including rare archive, photos and letters, 'The Kennedys: A Fatal Ambition' sets the events in historical context, examines the family's unique characteristics and asks what part they may have played in many of the misfortunes.
Peter Jackson's poignant WWI documentary 'They Shall Not Grow Old' to commemorate the centennial of the end of the first World War. The acclaimed documentary is an extraordinary look at the soldiers and events of the Great War, using film footage captured at the time, now presented as the world has never seen. By utilizing state-of-the-art restoration, colorization and 3D technologies, and pulling from 600 hours of BBC archival interviews, Jackson puts forth an intensely gripping, immersive and authentic experience through the eyes and voices of the British soldiers who lived it. Jackson recorded a special introduction to the film offering his perspective on why the film is important for audiences, who have never experienced WWI footage as anything but grainy black & white, and silent. Jackson opens a window to the past in a way that has never been seen or heard before, noting, 'Restoration is a humanizing process.'
New York, 1980: three complete strangers accidentally discover that they are identical triplets, separated at birth. The 19-year-olds' joyous reunion catapults them to international fame, but it also unlocks an extraordinary and disturbing secret that goes beyond their own lives - and could transform our understanding of human nature forever.
When the followers of the Indian so-called 'guru of sex', Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, start to build a utopian city in the Oregon desert, a massive conflict with local ranchers ensues; producing the first bioterror attack in US history, the largest case of illegal wiretapping, and the world's biggest collection of Rolls-Royce automobiles. In the first episode, under the watchful eye of his secretary, Ma Anand Sheela, spiritual leader 'Osho' moves his ashram from India to Oregon in 1981.
The first part begins with his early life in Tupelo, Mississippi, and his unprecedented rise to fame over a single year.