15 Most Powerful Documentaries Of The Decade (So Far)

14. Stories We Tell

The notion of the role of the documentarian comes to the fore in Sarah Polley's Stories We Tell, in which her camera and own presence completely discards the notion of filmmaking objectivity and instead becomes central to the narrative she unfolds. Polley examines her family life and the revelation that she was the product of an extramarital affair between her mother and a Canadian film producer, using her own interviews with family members, her father's memoir, Super-8 home movies and recreations shot to resemble the same. The result is a richly textured collage which captures the subjective nature of perception and memory. Polley, who has a background in acting, succeeds in revealing her personal history one layer at a time - the result is one of the most uniquely structured documentaries in recent years.