This Beggar's Description

2006•1h 5m

Documentary

It's a sensitive, moving doc chronicling the life of Tétrault's brother Philip , a Montreal poet, musician and diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic. A promising athlete as a child, Philip began experiencing mood swings in his early 20s. His extended family, including his daughter, share their conflicted feelings love, guilt, shame, anger with the camera. They want to make sure he's safe, but how much can they take?

Open in PickFlick

Production

ONF | NFB

Language

EN

Status

Released

Release Date

Cast

Phil Tétrault

Self

Recommended

Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind

Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind

A funny, intimate and heartbreaking portrait of one of the world’s most beloved and inventive comedians, Robin Williams, told largely through his own words. Celebrates what he brought to comedy and to the culture at large, from the wild days of late-1970s L.A. to his death in 2014.

Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind

2018

7.9

Titicut Follies

Titicut Follies

A stark and graphic portrayal of the conditions that existed at the State Prison for the Criminally Insane at Bridgewater, Massachusetts, and documents the various ways the inmates are treated by the guards, social workers, and psychiatrists.

Titicut Follies

1967

7.2

Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond

Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond

Offbeat documentarian Chris Smith provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Jim Carrey adopted the persona of idiosyncratic comedian Andy Kaufman on the set of Man on the Moon.

Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond

2017

7.5

Blue

Blue

Against a plain, unchanging blue screen, a densely interwoven soundtrack of voices, sound effects and music attempt to convey a portrait of Derek Jarman's experiences with AIDS, both literally and allegorically, together with an exploration of the meanings associated with the colour blue.

Blue

1993

7.1

Ozzy: No Escape from Now

Ozzy: No Escape from Now

Ozzy Osbourne faces his identity and mortality after his world stops. Dealing with health issues and Parkinson's, he questions if he can perform again while music remains his life's cornerstone.

Ozzy: No Escape from Now

2025

8.4

Belushi

Belushi

Using previously unheard audiotapes recorded shortly after John Belushi’s death, director R.J. Cutler’s documentary feature examines the too-short life of the once-in-a-generation talent who captured the hearts and funny bones of devoted audiences.

Belushi

2020

7.0

Harmontown

Harmontown

A comedic, brutally honest documentary following self-destructive TV writer Dan Harmon as he takes his live podcast on a national tour.

Harmontown

2014

6.6

Naqoyqatsi

Naqoyqatsi

A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.

Naqoyqatsi

2002

6.1

Salinger

Salinger

An in-depth investigation into the private world of the American writer J. D. Salinger (1919-2010), who lived most of his life behind the impenetrable wall of a self-imposed seclusion: how his dramatic experiences during World War II influenced his life and work, his relationships with very young women, his obsessive writing methods, his many literary secrets.

Salinger

2013

6.3

Tarnation

Tarnation

Filmmaker Jonathan Caouette's documentary on growing up with his schizophrenic mother -- a mixture of snapshots, Super-8, answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, and more -- culled from 19 years of his life.

Tarnation

2003

6.8

The Arbor

The Arbor

The lives of the late Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar and Lorraine, one of her daughters, and the community of Bradford, in the 30 years since the 18-year-old Andrea penned a play about growing up in the community titled "The Arbor".

The Arbor

2010

7.2

Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski

Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski

Artists in LA discover the work of forgotten Polish sculptor Stanislav Szukalski, a mad genius whose true story unfolds chapter by astounding chapter.

Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski

2018

7.5

Similar Movies

Ada: My Mother the Architect

Ada: My Mother the Architect

A deeply moving portrait of an architect tested by the impossible choices between career, country and motherhood

Ada: My Mother the Architect

2025

An Intervention

An Intervention

Chelsea Bledsoe and her husband Graig throw a surprise intervention for her old high school boyfriend, Henry, with a mismatched group of acquaintances from back in the day to fill out the guest list.

An Intervention

2021

10.0

Mahmoud Darwish: As the Land Is the Language

Mahmoud Darwish: As the Land Is the Language

Accompanying from a place to another the poet who spent years in exile far from his native land of al-Birwa, in Haifa, Cyprus, Tunis, Amman, Paris, Cairo and Ramallah.

Mahmoud Darwish: As the Land Is the Language

1998

War of Words: Battle Rap in the UK

War of Words: Battle Rap in the UK

WAR OF WORDS is an energizing, controversial and inspiring feature documentary that lifts the lid on the fast growing UK Battle Rap scene. The documentary is an examination of an exciting subculture of youth in the UK today; their creativity and work ethic, their passion for language and ability to control their own destiny. It investigates freedom of expression and respect for other cultures and lifestyles. While the language is often harsh and unflinching, the 'anything goes' philosophy of the battle arena results in one of the most harmonious and creative scenes in youth culture. The film is a truly entertaining expose on how the UK has embraced this American art form, creating one of the most exciting youth subcultures happening right now.

War of Words: Battle Rap in the UK

2017

8.5

Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie

Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie

Documentary about the making of ’Spring Break Zombie Massacre.’

Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie

2021

6.7

Zumiriki

Zumiriki

Is it possible to travel twice to the same memory? The filmmaker built a cabin on an isolated riverbank, just opposite his childhood island, which had disappeared under the water after the construction of a dam. The goal was to go back to that place, which had become invisible. Only the trees of the island where he’d played stood firm in the middle of the water, like the masts of a broken toy boat, so the air was the only space left, the only vestige of the past to be conquered. This film is a diary of a castaway in memories: four months of a Walden experience in a lost paradise with two hens, a small vegetable garden and a clock that stopped forever at 11.36 and 23 seconds.

Zumiriki

2019

Lima Barreto: Trajetória

Lima Barreto: Trajetória

Short film about the life and career of the notorious Brazilian writer Lima Barreto.

Lima Barreto: Trajetória

1966

Evangeline's Quest

Evangeline's Quest

Explores the creation of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem, “Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie,” and the phenomenon it became.

Evangeline's Quest

1996

The Happy Ones

The Happy Ones

A love letter to Mar del Plata made of images, times and a road trip. "The Happy Ones" is an experimental short documentary composed of past and present family footage. It portrays a place in the summer, the city of Mar del Plata, with a span of 20 years between past and present images (January 2000 and 2020). Despite the time that passed by, it's beaches, essence and people remain, always willing to keep dancing.

The Happy Ones

2021

The Book of Conrad

The Book of Conrad

About the poet C.A.Conrad, an eccentric Elvis worshiping poet and tarot card reader, who confronts his violent past and the suspicious death of his boyfriend, Earth. The film attempts to unravel the mystery of Earth's death, while Conrad wrestles with his inner demons through a series of unconventional rituals and a tour of the deep South.

The Book of Conrad

2016

Jailbreak: Love on the Run

Jailbreak: Love on the Run

An Alabama corrections officer falls in love with a man awaiting trial for murder and risks it all to help him escape.

Jailbreak: Love on the Run

2024

6.4

After You

After You

"My mother is spending all her time with her dying father. I’m spending all my time filming her. As the end is getting closer, my mother and I start doing the filming more and more together. It becomes our way of dealing with the time we have left." —Marius Dybwad Brandrud

After You

2013

PickFlick Assistant

Hi! I'm your PickFlick Assistant. Ask me about movies, TV shows, IPTV sources, or anything about PickFlick.

Powered by CopilotKit