Oscar-nominated documentaries center on acts of defiance

This year’s nominees for the Academy Award for best documentary feature emphasize acts of resistance, from confronting authoritarian regimes to challenging abusive systems and social norms, New York Times critic Alissa Wilkinson wrote. Cutting Through Rocks follows Sara Shahverdi, the first woman elected to her village council in a remote part of northwestern Iran; directors Sara Khaki and Mohammadreza Eyni show how she, a divorced former midwife who lives alone, works to protect women against patriarchal norms backed by the legal system.

Mr. Nobody Against Putin, directed by David Borenstein and Pavel Talankin, grew out of footage Talankin, a Russian schoolteacher, shot after officials required teachers to film pro-war lessons; he used that material to resist state propaganda and make the film. The Alabama Solution (HBO Max), directed by Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman, was largely shot by incarcerated men in Alabama over more than a decade using smuggled phones and documents appalling conditions to argue that falsehoods and willful ignorance enable widespread abuses.

The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix), directed by Geeta Gandbhir, uses body-camera, home-security and police-station footage to examine the 2023 killing of Ajike Owens and to critique Florida’s “stand your ground” laws.

Key Topics

Culture, Academy Awards, Cutting Through Rocks, Stand Your Ground, Iran