Hacker Cinema
Searching for Sugar Man
2012 · Film · documentary · 85 min
Directed by Malik Bendjelloul
Two South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock 'n' roller, Rodriguez.
11 positive4 neutralfrom 15 commenters
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15 comments on Hacker News
Very different rent but this reminds me of the story of the US musician Sixto Rodríguez. Who became very popular in South African without him knowing. I recommend watching the documentary "Searching for Sugar Man" https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searching_for_Sugar_Man
Here is the list from the thread: --- 1. A Man Named Pearl
2. Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland
3. Microcosmos
4. Crip Camp!
5. Keep The River On Your Right
6. All The Beauty And The Bloodshed
7. Harlan County USA
8. Stay on Board: The Leo Baker Story
9. Good Night Oppy
10. We Met in Virtual Reality
11. All That Breathes
12. Still
13. Can’t Be Stopped
14. The Amazing Jonathan Documentary
15. Searching for Sugarman
16. AKA Mr Chow
17. The Pigeon Tunnel
18. Little Richard: I Am Everything
19. I Know That Voice
20. Genghis Blues
21. Kings of Pastry
22. 20 Feet From Stardom
23. Stevie
24. Anvil: the Story of Anvil
25. Searching for Sugar Man
26. King of Kong
27. The Gleaners and I
28. Touching the Void
29. Cane Toads: An Unnatural History
30. 20 Days in Mariupol
31. Minding the Gap
32. How to Survive a Plague
33. Speciesism
34. Free Solo
35. Jim Allison: Breakthrough
36. Seven Up! series
37. Bowling for Columbine
38. The Fog of War
39. Rivers and Tides
40. Capturing the Friedmans
41. Spellbound
42. King of Kong
43. Crip Camp
44. Jesus Camp
45. Jiro Dreams of Sushi
46. Flee
47. Man on Wire
48. Queen of Versailles
49. The Thin Blue Line
50. Time Indefinite
51. The Gleaners and I
52. My Life as a Turkey
53. Happy People
54. Grizzly Man
Hard work and/or luck. Usually both, but not always.
Occasionally you hear of someone (Rodriguez in Searching for Sugar Man) who makes it big despite doing nothing at all to promote himself.
And hard working folks who go nowhere.
I'm watching a documentary right now about Jonathan Ramie, who plays Jesus in The Chosen. He struggled for 20 years, not even having health insurance.
1) Clear your evening. 2) Do not Google, but rather jump straight to your favorite media platform, and locate a 2012 film named: “searching for sugar man.” 3) Watch alone because it’s impossible to watch without crying tears of joy
Clarence Avant is featured in the Searching for Sugar Man documentary about Rodriguez, who passed away last week: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searching_for_Sugar_Man
Netflix link: https://www.netflix.com/za/title/70229213
Searching for Sugar Man (2012)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searching_for_Sugar_Man
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2125608/
Searching for Sugar Man is a 2012 documentary film about a South African cultural phenomenon, written and directed by Malik Bendjelloul, which details the efforts in the late 1990s of two Cape Town fans, Stephen "Sugar" Segerman and Craig Bartholomew Strydom, to find out whether the rumoured death of American musician Sixto Rodriguez was true and, if not, to discover what had become of him. Rodriguez's music, which had never achieved success in the United States, had become very popular in South Africa, although little was known about him in that country.
Searching for Sugar Man won Best Documentary in 2013 and was partially shot on an iPhone.
There were a few milestone books, the kind that had such an outsized impact they spring to mind almost immediately:
1. The Goal/ E. Goldratt. I read this first when I was a teenager, and kept returning to it (and some of its sequels) again and again. Adopting a systems thinking mindset. When analysing problems looking for the bottleneck, then figuring out how to elevate that constraint.
2. Topics in Algebra/ I. N. Herstein. During the first summer at Uni I decided to read this book cover to cover and solve every single problem in it. Which I did. Sadly, twenty years on, my algebra game is poor. But that summer, of abiding in algebra, was a really spiritual experience. And it's left a mark.
3. The Orchid Thief/Susan Orlean. By my early twenties it was clear to me I enjoy non-fiction more than fiction. But I enjoyed it for the intellectual experience, it would never leave me rattled the way fiction can leave you. And then I read this book and my mind was blown. I was outraged that people in the world can write like that, and that I am not one of those people.
4. Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama/D. Goleman. I randomly picked up this book, it was lying around at this place I was staying at. This was my first intro to Buddhist analytical analysis and I came out of it a different person. Not a better one, sadly, but for sure one more determined to learn more, and to bring these principles into my own life. It's been a journey since, but that's where it started.
5. On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs: A Work Rant/D. Graeber. It's kind of funny that this essay, which was tongue-in-cheek and deliberately provocative, would end up being like a real thing. But by the time I read it (and later, the full book) I was really questioning what was wrong with me that made everything feel so...meaningless. In his lingo, I had shit jobs and I had bullshit jobs, and I was really struggling to see how I can productively manage decades to come of work if these are the only two choices. But airing this problem in this way also helped me, eventually, walk down a path I was more comfortable with. It took a long time, but I finally like the path I'm treading.
6. Not an essay, a film. Searching for Sugar Man/ M. Bendjelloul. I don't even know where to start on this one. I mean, the story's pretty radical as non-fiction goes (see above), but there were moments in and around it, where it's like someone comes and slaps you in the face to wake up. And then the meta aspect, of the director's own sad story. I spent A LOT of time thinking about this film.
And maybe she thinks she's been forgotten and erased but would be happy to know her contribution is being recognized?
We'll never know which it is if we don't ask. If she asks to be left alone, people should respect that but they shouldn't assume that.
As an example, I recommend the documentary Searching for Sugar Man.
For anyone who hasn’t seen the documentary about Rodriguez called “Searching for Sugar Man” - it is one of the best documentaries I have ever seen and tells a story unlike any I’ve heard.
I’m sad I didn’t discover him until today.
If you like this, you might like "Searching For Sugar Man" a documentary where 2 guys in South Africa search for this legendary musician from the US who was rumored to be dead. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Searching_for_Sugar_Man
"Searching for Sugar Man" is a fantastic film. I first watched it on a flight, w no idea what it was about -- which made it all the more impactful. Highly recommend same to anyone who wants to see a great film about music, just skip any trailers or reviews and just watch it.
Searching for Sugar Man, do not watch the trailer or read on it. It will spoil the documentary! If you like music, 60s, justice, Bob Dylan and feel good story its a must watch.
I just heard about Searching for Sugar Man after watching the 60 Minutes profile on the musician. I must say, it is a fascinating story and the reviews about the documentary have been nothing but positive. Note that I haven't seen the documentary myself.
I suppose it says something that Argo and Moonrise Kingdom are the only movies that I can remember really liking in 2012. Flight was also memorable, if you're into character dramas. I've also heard really good things about Searching for Sugar Man, but I didn't get a chance to see it in theaters.
Avengers was solid entertainment, but I wouldn't make a special trip to see it. Most of the other big releases with nerd draw were disappointments: Lincoln was overhyped Oscar-bait, Brave was forgettable, and the last Dark Knight movie was just bad (below average for summer movies, which is a low bar).