Colibel Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Micransix Crappy film

Borserie it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

nomoons11 Unfortunately in our time of mass consumerism and where everything is widely available, the feeling of getting to see something rare or hard to find is gone. There was a time when it existed and that time was the early 1970's in southern California. The only way to see rare and forgotten films was Z channel.Where I think this doc shines is the mentioning of so many rare films. You'll need a pen and piece of paper to write em all down cause there are so many worth seeing. You'll be searching the net to find the uncut version of "1900" or the uncut version of "Heavens Gate". There are so many foreign films mentioned you barely have time to take it all in.On the flip side of this fascinating story we get the Zen Master of films lovers in Jerry Harvey. The basic story of his life comes down to a guy who loves film to a degree that he makes it his life. The problem is that he has an underlying mental/psychological issue that pretty much makes him a little off kilter to everyone he met/knew. Most just threw it aside and said..that's just who he is. You get to get deeper into his past and find out that he and his family have had a troubled history. The end of his life shouldn't have been a surprise because his family history foresaw what his life was gonna end up like. He just happened to be a guy who loved rare/foreign art films like some of us do but without that...he was pretty much mental hospital bound if he didn't. Right up until the end, he held it together but when Z Channel started to change, it was too much to deal with.Only see this doc if you are a serious "film" lover. If you just like "movies', pass this one by...you just won't understand it.

MartinHafer The casual viewer may have little interest in this documentary, but for true lovers of cinema, this is a must-see. Back in the 1970s, when cable was in its infancy and home videotape was unknown, movie lover Jerry Harvey contacted his local cable company to complain about the horrible programming. In an odd twist, they hired him to be a programmer! Soon after this, the new Z Channel hired him to be their head programmer. Harvey went from being a complete unknown to becoming a cult-like hero to a small group of California subscribers (where the channel was shown). This is because he was very brave in his choices--often showing art films, unknown films, extended director's cuts (a first) and unappreciated films. It seems that his biggest fans were the film makers themselves, as he helped to give exposure to many films that would have otherwise gone into oblivion.Seeing and hearing all the accolades for this cable pioneer was really interesting, but as I said this probably would hold little interest to the casual film viewer who could care less about Truffaut, Berman or Antonioni (among others). However, what becomes fascinating for ANY viewer is the man himself. Harvey was a very disturbed man who had a lifetime of demons and personal baggage--so much that he ultimately killed his wife and then himself. The film's examination of why this occurred is interesting, but also very unsatisfying because so little is known about his childhood. His two sisters killed themselves (though there is a tiny doubt about what happened to one of them), his father is dead and his mother is very emotionally constricted. So the film chooses to spend much of its focus on the impact of this murder-suicide on those who knew him. What I appreciated was that although many voiced their sadness at his passing and talked about what a great person he was, some others (particularly in the very end of the film) were understandably angry about what he did and find it wrong to elevate this guy to sainthood--after all, he did murder his wife. As a psychology teacher and ex-psychotherapist, this reaction is by far the most fascinating part of the film.By the way, although this is a wonderful film, the film maker Ms. Cassavetes chose a lot of clips for the documentary that are NOT family-appropriate. While there's quite a bit of nudity, most of it isn't salacious and is from art films. However, some of the scenes are borderline pornographic and the scene of Rutger Hauer masturbating makes this a film you DON'T show your kids. Too bad the film included one or two of these clips--it might alienate some in the audience and wasn't needed to tell the story.

bob.decker This is a documentary for people who like documentaries done from an insider point of view. It is a documentary for people who love movies. It is a documentary for people who love Los Angeles. When you sit down to watch it, you might wonder whether the biography of the program director for an early "pay TV" station would be sufficiently interesting to span two hours. You won't be wondering when it's over. From any point of view, the subject matter is extraordinarily difficult. No one under 40 (and no one from anywhere but L.A.) will remember what Z-Channel was. The life of the story's hero came to an end in a murder-suicide. It is notoriously difficult to put across in a movie ideas about taste and aesthetics. In fact it is quite easy to become annoyed at listening to other people talk about the cinema and what it means to them. But in this documentary Alexandra Cassevetes has succeeded admirably on all counts and delivers one heck of an emotional wallop besides.

preppy-3 Back in 1974 a pay TV station was started in Los Angeles. It was the Z channel--it showed movies uncut with no commercials. It was a pioneer--years before Showtime, HBO and Cinemax. But Z channel showed films no one else would air--foreign films, independent features. A lot of important film were discovered (or rediscovered) on this channel. It ran the uncut "Heaven's Gate" after the disastrous cut version was released; the same with "Once Upon A Time In America"; it introduced "Bad Timing" to an audience after it's minor theatrical release; "McCabe and Mrs. Miller" found its audience here; the complete 9 hour version of "1900" was shown here and on and on. Also, some of these films had X ratings--but Z didn't cut them. MANY clips of the various films are shown here.It's also about it's owner and programming director--Jerry Harvey. It explains what drove him and how he singlehandedly found these films and showed them. Unfortunately he was also suffering from personal demons which ended up killing him.I didn't know anything about this station--and I'm upset that I grew up on the East Coast and not the West Coast. The programming this station had was fascinating and is inter cut with people who worked there and directors it helped. This is an absolutely fascinating look at the kind of pay TV station we'll never see again and the men and women who ran it. Just great--a definite must-see! A 10 all the way.