Herblock: The Black & the White, directed by Michael Stevens, is one the most powerful documentaries in the Tribeca Film Festival. It centers on the work and life of Herbert Block, a.k.a. Herblock, an editorial cartoonist for The Washington Post from 1946 until his death in 2001 at the age of 91. What made Herblock so unique? He drew cartoons that included very sharp political and social commentary during many of the major events in U.S. history, i.e., the Vietnam War, the Watergate scandal, McCarthyism and the civil rights movement. He had a moral conscience and wasn't afraid to use it, but more importantly, he was able to use critical thinking to see right through the government's bullshit/propaganda. Between showing you many of Herblock's witty, funny and pointed cartoons, director Michael Stevens infuses interviews with journalists such as Tom Brokaw, Ted Koppel and some of Herblock's colleagues who explain precisely what made Herblock such a brilliant cartoonist who devoted his entire life to his work--he even listed his address in the company directory as his work's address. Beyond his brilliance, though, like any good journalist should be, he was humble, and like any good cartoonish should be, he was essentially a kid at heart and maintained a sense of humor. Stevens uses an actor, Alan Mandel, to portray Herblock during re-enacted interviews. The doc particularly provocative when Herblock expresses how real, competent journalism has been in decline lately--and it still is to this very day with very little fact-checking and news that's filled with mindless entertainment, i.e. celebrities in rehab, instead of what's truly important, i.e. war, thereby dumbing the public down. Very few people truly listen to others who have different viewpoints, and everyone gets different info from different sources. This powerful doc ultimately manages be a provocative, illuminating and vital tribute to Herbert Block. It should be mandatory viewing for every young American.

      The doc Cutie and the Boxer is about Noriko and Ushio Shinohara, a husband and wife who struggle to make a living as artists in New York City. 80-year-old Ushio arrived at the USA back in the 1960's in hopes of becoming a successful artist, but his dreams weren't quite fulfilled. Noriko, 22 years his junior, pushed her own career as an artist aside when she met and fell in love with Ushio and took care of their child; instead she became his assistant. She and Ushio desperately needs the money to pay for rent, so now Ushio has a second chance to make his mark in the world of art, hopefully by selling some of his artwork. Meanwhile, their marriage becomes volatile. Director Zachary Heinzerling deserves praise humanizing Noriko and Ushio in such an engaging and unflinchingly honest fashion. The more you observe them, the more you learn about what makes them tick. The doc essentially blends two stories: Noriko and Ushio's struggles as re-emerging artists and their evolving dynamics as a married couple. In many ways, Cutie and the Boxer is a testament to the enduring power and complexities of true love through thick and thin. Heinzerling might as well have titled the film as "It's Complicated" given all of the hardships and dilemmas that Noriko and Ushio go through as a couple and as artists. He wisely avoids including himself in the footage like many self-indulgant directors mistakenly do. Moreover, by watching the couple creating their artworks---Ushio is a boxing painter while Noriko does sketchings and watercoloring---you're able to grasp their fervent passion as well as their talent for art. Cutie and the Boxer is the kind of documentary that you forget is a documentary while you're watching it because you're so emotionally absorbed. It's equally heartbreaking and heartwarming, and one of the best love stories in years. At a running time of just 1 hour and 22 minutes, it never overstays its welcome. TWC/Radius releases it in select theaters on August 16th, 2013.

      For those of you interested in docs that will make you equally enlightened and enraged, there's The Kill Team and Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia. The former is about Adam Winfield, a soldier in the U.S. Army who blew the whistle on killing sprees that his fellow soldiers committed on innocent Afghanistan civilians in 2010. They would plant weapons on the civilians to justify their killing---all just to escape boredom. Winfield finds it difficult to be a whistleblower, not surprisingly, because his superiors refuse to be held accountable for permitting such immoral behavior. Soon enough, Winfield and his three other soldiers face criminal charges of pre-meditative murder. Director Dan Krauss finds just the right balance between entertaining the audience and provoking them emotionally as well as intellectually---all in just 79 minutes. Prepare to get angry and shed a few tears at how our corrupt government is unjustly destroying the lives of the people that risk their own lives to protect it. In Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia, directed by Nicholas Wrathall, novelist/intellectual/writer/journalist Gore Vidal not only talks a lot, but says a lot. He comments and criticizes on many aspects of politics and society, and his observations are quite pointed, honest and even witty---he's got a very dry sense of humor, but a sense of humor nonetheless. Wrathall doesn't judge Gore Vidal; he lets him do the talking and you get to decide for yourself what you think about him. Whether or you agree with Vidal doesn't matter because, ultimately, he provokes something that's very rare in this dumbed-down culture: critical thinking. This doc, along with Herblock would make for a very interesting double feature and provide you with plenty of food for thought.