Pins & Needles: The Orchard Take “Crocodile Gennadiy” into Their Own Hands

Despite the Tribeca Film Fest only being at the halfway mark it would appear that we have already have a critical darling and front-runner among the doc selections with Steve Hoover’s sophomore doc leading the charge. Much like how they looted Sundance, and walked away with the top doc of that fest in Cartel Land, The Orchard folks now have the much buzzed about Crocodile Gennadiy in their future line-up. Offering back to back heart-warming and heart-wrenching portraits, Hoover (who we met less than two years back) who saw his Blood Brother win both the Audience and Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary at the 2013 edition of the Sundance Film Festival looks poised to make a mark on the docu film world yet again.

Gist: Gennadiy Mokhnenko has made a name for himself by forcibly abducting homeless drug-addicted kids from the streets of Mariupol, Ukraine. As his country leans towards a European Union inclusion, hopes of continued post-Soviet revitalization seem possible. In the meantime, Gennadiy’s center has evolved into a more nebulous institution.

Worth Noting: Atticus Ross is the composer on the film.

Do We Care?: Our Jordan M. Smith calls this 4-star doc a “gorgeously composed, bracing and laudably intricate portrait of off-the-grid heroism, Hoover poses some incredibly hard questions while commending a man for his extreme efforts in the face of utter despair – an admirable act in its own right.”