Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World 2026
Directed by Sasha Waters · 91 mins · 1,742 views
Synopsis
Trailers
Reviews (103)
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AAbbidale Snowman 8 月 26, 2026
Proof there’s nothing better than a gives-no-fucks lesbian with a tender tender heart
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LLarry Karaszewski 8 月 26, 2026
“I tell you that ant is very alive! Look at how he fusses at being stepped on”
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Ttoughlovelace 8 月 26, 2026
John Waters reveals the reason Mary Oliver turned to the church after her partner of 40 years died… she was attempting to cruise the hot woman priest in ptown.
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(t/f yr 5, film 5) mary oliver was saved by the beauty of the world and i was saved by mary oliver
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Jjay 8 月 26, 2026
mary oliver can be a tough poet to talk about. in general, widespread appeal is a red flag for any poet unless they’re long dead. but the popular ones usually fall victim to that dreaded S-word: Sentimental. bleh. it’s that dirty trick in the poet’s arsenal to get the most appeal for the least effort, like a chef using too much butter. to that end, many of oliver’s most famous poems have one line that is such a zinger that it’s easy to throw the rest of the poem away. i’m talking about that “wild and precious life,” or how “you don’t need to be good” – how’s the rest of that one go? but there‘s a difference between oliver…
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C
An extremely conventional documentary elevated by both Mary Oliver’s poetry and a gossiping John Waters
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A real treat. Finding out that Mary Oliver and John Waters were besties just rules so fucking much.
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fine. very made-for-tv (which it kind of was, I guess?) Best parts were 1) John Waters—they should have cut like half of the talking heads to make room for more John Waters—and 2) anytime Mary Oliver was reading her own poetry. Why in god’s name they kept cutting off footage of Oliver’s readings to have the poem continued by one of the talking heads, I have NO idea….sorry Oprah, Stephen, Lucy…you’ll just never be her, I fear… With the constant shuffling between unrelated found footage, the distracting celebrity appearances (again, not john waters! need more john waters!!), and the compact runtime, the film never really gets a moment to breathe, and isn’t that kind of Mary Oliver’s whole thing? learned a lot!
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Adored this. Nicely put together.
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You don’t have to be good (I’m always saying this!) you do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert repenting you only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves (we come from the earth and we return to the earth and you have the choice! You always have the choice!)(you are a wild thing! A wild and beautiful thing! Please do not feel the guilt of your own beauty!)
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cried multiple times watching this. such an inspiring life, makes me want to disappear to an ocean town and make art. also lucy dacus reading mary oliver nearly killed me
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why the fuck was stephen cobert in this what the fuck does he know
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What a life, and such moving words.
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Lli 8 月 25, 2026
a reminder to pay attention
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The poems obviously do a lot of the heavy lifting but would’ve been interesting to learn more about her. But damn was her writing incisive
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I cried like 5 times it’s not even funny. What the fuck.
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RRBFS 8 月 25, 2026
Celebrate the life and career of Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Mary Oliver. Shaped by a solitary childhood and rising literary fame, Oliver published more than 30 collections of poetry and essays on nature, beauty, and love.
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Lovely overview of Oliver and her work that situates her poetry within the context of her life and times.
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K
as a poet i totally understood all of this
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oh, mary o!
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I’m regrettably uninformed about poetry and im sad to say that I hadn’t heard anything about Mary Oliver before today. WOW that woman could write! Great made-for-tv documentary. Celeb cameos perhaps felt a little gratuitous and insincere but it worked for me Provincetown is the best and most important place in the world.
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Ssophia 8 月 25, 2026
of her late partner molly: “we were talkers. it was a 40 year conversation” definitely made for TV; i felt like the visuals and narration were very incongruous. i liked that they had lucy dacus read the love poems and that it seems like mary was constantly with dogs
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One of the most beautiful parts about living with your grandparents for a moment is slowing down. So when PBS comes on you get to sit down and watch a documentary about none other than a woman who writes with such beauty and grace that when you read her work you have no choice but to absorb it into your soul.
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For someone as prolific and important as Mary Oliver, she deserves something better than this. It’s not bad by any stretch, but it does feel pretty mediocre at times and very much like a made-for-television documentary. I hope one day she gets the definitive film her life and work deserve, but for now, I was just glad to see her receive some meaningful attention. It was fun seeing all the celebrities pop in to read poems and share stories about…
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The first fish I ever caught would not lie down quiet in the pail but flailed and sucked at the burning amazement of the air and died in the slow pouring off of rainbows. Later I opened his body and separated the flesh from the bones and ate him. Now the sea is in me: I am the fish, the fish glitters in me; we are risen, tangled together, certain to fall back to the sea. Out of pain, and pain, and more pain we feed this feverish plot, we are nourished by the mystery.
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R
For many many reasons I have always felt connected to Mary Oliver. As a writer, I’ve always admired what she’s chosen to see in the world. Her own experiences seldom bleed into the natural world, but she understands just as well that she is part of it; that we are all a part of this natural world. That’s just how she loved and how she lived. “We were talkers, it was a 40 year conversation” made me so emotional. Her…
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okay documentary on a remarkable (lesbian) human being “Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting — over and over announcing your place in the family of things.”
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L
A beautiful reflection on Mary Oliver’s life and artistry. Deeply revealing and taught me even more of what wisdom Mary Oliver has to give the world.
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Aace / al 🐙 8 月 25, 2026
i don’t know exactly what a prayer is. i do know how to pay attention.
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Rripbrandymelville 8 月 25, 2026
i too was once a young girl in the woods of ohio. she could’ve been my great auntie tf!
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Honestly worth watching for the John Waters commentary alone.
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Poetry is just not appealing to me in general so I’m just not the audience for this at all. Thought I’d give it a shot to see if anything stuck but it kinda just didn’t. Also just a bit generic as a documentary. Not really a fan of watching 100 minutes of hearing “they were so great” over and over again regardless of who it is. Even so, happy that Mary’s fans get to celebrate her through this. Thank you John…
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grieving both dolly parton and mary oliver today ugh 😔😔😔
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I wish I got to see this in a lil theater gosh
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felt i was browsing online for free stock footage of random stuff
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KKaya 8 月 25, 2026
“you do not have to be good. ” an all time poetry genius, no rating would be good enough for her
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it’s been a long time since i’ve watched a pbs documentary but wow, mary’s got me thinking so much. “you do not have to walk on your knees a hundred miles for a hundred miles through the desert to repent” hits so hard for someone who considered doing it for 60 ft to see if it makes you feel any better. “determined to save the only life you can save” makes me feel so melancholy and angry and i’ll spend…
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I would have much preferred it without the celebrity readings, but I love Mary Oliver enough to ignore that.
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How can you watch this and not feel a little bit better about life and the world? We’re treated to 90 minutes of celebrity fans and a handful of poets reading some of Mary Oliver’s best works and talking about what her poetry means—to them and to the world at large. I came into the film with a passing familiarity with Mary Oliver and her work, and I left with a deep appreciation for how she saw the world and…
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It feels ironic to give this movie a rating given the movie is about Mary Oliver, but this movie was so good and touching. I didn’t know that much about Mary Oliver before this movie and I really enjoyed learning about her and her poems. Honestly will be thinking about it for a while. The documentary itself felt piecemeal, and some of the cameos didn’t feel immediately clear why they were included. Overall, great movie about a wonderful human being!
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weird editing choices, obviously good poetry / loved seeing archival footage of molly + mary’s life great decision to include john waters / terrible decision to include stephen colbert lol @ their coverage of anne, poor woman what did she do other than make them move to florida, we never found out
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SSanthosh Guru 8 月 24, 2026
Neither great nor bad, but it handed me one idea worth the whole runtime: attention is the beginning of devotion. You love something, you pay attention to it. You pay attention to something, you start loving it. I still cannot fully access her poems but watching movie made me think of Wild Geese as an attractive one to get started with. Being wild is not hard.
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BBearToothAK 8 月 24, 2026
Mary Oliver has such a command of the written word, that anytime her poetry is read in this documentary, it has such a powerful impact. Even for non-poetry lovers, I think her take on nature will really resonate with a lot of Alaskans. A remarkable look at a remarkable talent, make sure you don’t miss this documentary! (Even if it could use more John Waters)
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The soft animal of my body loved this.
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my little sister and i immediately went to the closest book store and bought a collection of marys poems in celebration. there’s something in mary that’s in me too. this incredible awe and peaceful humility that arrives in the presence of the sublime. i’ve never known how to capture that feeling outside of pure present observation. i feel like sometimes the poem is in front of me. how do i bottle it? mary oliver knows how and its power is explosive. i cant wait to read these poems to the loves of my life
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Beautiful documentary. Was pleasantly surprised to see lucy Dacus and Helena bonham Carter read some of her poems! Really love the sense of belonging and love you feel from her writing. Need to read more of her poems! Cried when she finally read wild geese, but I knew it was coming. By the end, most of us were sniffling. And just learned she lived in Ptown for most of her life after spending the weekend with my guncles! And went thrifting in the church she went to AA in? What a wild world we live in.
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Love Mary Oliver. Had no idea about the connection to John Waterd
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This documentary skimmed through Mary Oliver’s life. I’m not sure if there is actually not much that is publically known about her. I wish there was. I also wondered how documentaries on such artists, like poets, are so few. I remember one of Vinay Kumar Shukla. And then this. And how when you tell people you saw this documentary, there are not many who would know the people. This documentary was a good gateway to know the life of Mary oliver. She saved many lives. Hers was saved by the beauty of the world.
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Enséñales a los niños. Nosotros no importamos tanto, pero ellos sí. Muéstrales las margaritas y la pálida hepática. Enséñales el sabor del sasafrás y la gaulteria. La vida de los marineros azules, la malva, los girasoles, las flores de mocasín. Y las más vivaces: la zarzamora, el cenizo, los arándanos. Y las aromáticas: el romero, el orégano. Dales menta para que la guarden en sus bolsillos cuando vayan a la escuela. Dales los campos y los bosques y la posibilidad…
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Might be time to start reading poetry
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last of the MIFF programme! i enjoyed this, it didn’t try to do anything too exciting or unconventional for a documentary but it was a good time and nice to learn a little more about mary oliver’s life. however no documentary should be bookended by stephen colbert of all people he just kept popping up and i say this as someone who thinks he is the least annoying of the late night hosts!!!! shoutout to the man next to me who asked ‘is that paddington on your bag’ and when i said yes proceeded to tell me he was born next to paddington station in london
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oh my god this documentary was made for me cried probably about six times most memorably during a clip where lucy dacus was reading a post about molly, mary oliver’s lifelong partner i love mary oliver! that’s all!
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A woman I had little knowledge of, but one now I must devour all her work. A beautiful exploration of a true artist.
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cried the entire time
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Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World (2026)The packed Sunday afternoon house at the Plasa Theatre was filled with fans of poetry, literature, and the quiet comfort of public television, a screening fittingly sponsored by a local, not-yet-opened bookstore. Distributed by Kino Lorber, the film is receiving a select theatrical rollout across key cities (a strategic move to secure Oscar qualification) ahead of its broadcast premiere on PBS’s American Masters. Calling it a “PBS documentary” isn’t a slight; it’s…
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i dont know if ive ever cried harder & longer at a movie because i couldnt stop thinkin…. mary was writing for you all along.
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Genuinely galling editing lmao like delete Canva NOW. But may we all have someone like John Waters in our lives ready to call us a bit of a diva after we die. And may we always stay open to having a little cry reading a Mary Oliver poem.
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I would try to describe how Mary Oliver makes me feel but Mary Oliver describes the way Mary Oliver makes me feel better than I do “…We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left…” aeughhhh 🫂🫂 I am so nostalgic all the time I even miss the potential of the life I haven’t lived yet good thing it’s still there #NEVAKYSSSSS
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YYoshi 8 月 23, 2026
I cried the entire time. We are so lucky.
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solid 3.5-4? lovely and i learned a lot, but some of the b-roll footage was so random and out of place, particularly when the doc brought up her father and past. it kept moving the documentary from being its own coherent Work to just a collection of relevant clips of mary oliver and smart people talking about her that they put random footage over solely to hold our attention (instead it kept taking me out of it). really did learn…
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★★★½ I saw this at the Plaza Theater in ATL in a room packed mostly with older ladies, which was probably the perfect way to experience this film. First, I have to say Mary Oliver has been woven into my life and my current relationship for quite a while. When we started dating, my partner was reading a Mary Oliver poem every day, Devotions lived on her coffee table, and we started sharing poems with each other. I think “Snow…
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GGeorgia Mackie 8 月 23, 2026
I could listen to John Waters talk about Mary Oliver for hours MIFF 2026
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This documentary felt like a love letter to Mary Oliver. Friends, colleagues, poets coming together to tell the life of this private writer. The interviews and photos are interspersed with videos of nature, the very landscapes and animals that Oliver wrote about. The recited poems, the Mary Oliver clips, all pieced together a comprehensive portrait of Oliver. There were a couple things I would have liked to hear a little more about or have further explained, but overall excellent. I walked out of that theater changed.
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Llucyhcurtis 8 月 23, 2026
loved watching this on a sunny Sunday afternoon, surrounded by older women and younger queer people. obviously had a little silent cry a couple of times, I’m human after all. John Waters was such a delight in this, loved him absolutely spilling Mary’s tea (with the respect of a long time friend). Perhaps it could have had less Colbert and Oprah but whatever. Mary’s work is so special to me, as it is to so many, and I loved learning a bit more about the person behind the poems.
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oh goodness gracious my heart
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Gripes to get out of the way: – Whoever decided to cut off Mary Oliver reading her own poem in favor of f*cking Oprah reading it deserves jail time – The b-roll footage was super on the nose and uninspired. – TikToks??? In a documentary about Mary Oliver??? – It was too long Now… I love Mary Oliver, and I don’t care one bit that it makes me basic A Sunday afternoon at a sold out Plaza Theater with a…
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hard not to feel inspired and grounded by this, made me cry for all the english major reasons you’d imagine, honestly reminded me why i want to pursue my career path during an existential crisis. i am inspired by how she was both singular and connected in the best ways, whereas, these days, most of us feel like both of those things in the worst ways.
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AAem 8 月 23, 2026
On Mary Oliver’s simplicity This documentary made me think of how her poetry reached and touched the lives of many and it’s quite a rare achievement. Her poetry is considered “ too accessible” and she is often criticized for not seeking artistic risks and not aiming for complexity; an avid poetry reader may find this deterrent, especially when such minds are almost wired to interpret and look for the deeper subtext,and i’m not saying that such thought provoking ideas are…
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In tandem with colbert Email and password, a new account for emma Tears stride along my cheeks during wild geese I cried in tandem with Colbert The backside of leaves, bleached by afternoon beams
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Mary Oliver remains one of the greatest poets of all time. This is a fascinating, honest, and beautiful look into the life of a once-in-a-generation figure. Every person on earth should read Mary Oliver
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i bloody love this woman so i loved this but really only because they kept reading her poems, not because the documentary itself was particularly special. i wish it had just been archival footage/interviews with her and molly… i don’t need oprah or stephen colbert giving their 2 cents on everything ngl. cried a lot and thought about how much i want to write poems in the woods and live with one woman for 60 years. pleeeeeeeeease that’s all i want to do with my one wild and precious life!!!
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I loved this!! I didn’t know anything about Mary Oliver or her work and this doc was a great introduction. Loved John Waters. W mom 🙂
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Poetry and lesbian drama – the perfect combination.
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love is attention and i love to look at this beautiful world we share ♥️ cried for the entire 90 minutes
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I love Mary Oliver so much, y’all.
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Wild at my big age to have no idea that John Waters and Mary Oliver were good judies
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As a documentary pretty straight forward, hence the stars. As a document of Mary Oliver and her incredible self all the stars.
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all my homies love mary oliver
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CCallie 8 月 22, 2026
certainly great moments and i adored mary oliver and john waters! however i think the actual production of this felt a little lacklustre, i didn’t love some of the people they threw in here and also would’ve preferred more footage of oliver herself reading i think. alas still left with a healthy mixture of melancholy and hope so success.
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You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and…
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Parts of this were very good, but other than John Waters (and to a far lesser extent Maria Shriver), the celebrity interviews felt completely random and unnecessary. I enjoyed some of the poets, but I would say 75 percent of the people did nothing for me. And the b roll was often totally disconnected from the interviews! This felt intolerably long, which is very sad to me given how rich a life she led. The John Waters interviews were absolute…
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J
3.5 doc, 4.5 subject and info. Loooooove me some Mary Oliver.
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SSophie 8 月 16, 2026
Watched this alone on my birthday feeling anxious about everything! I thought this would save me (it didn’t!). After a week sitting with it, what this documentary gave me is a better grasp on Mary Oliver as a human being, and a queer woman. Please go hug a tree. We all need it.
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K
Provincetown’s forever artist-in-residence Mary Oliver gets a loving and at times critical rundown of her life, her mores, and her words, by those who knew and loved her. Good year for Ptown-themed cinema.
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L
as a young boy i was one of those Mary Oliver haters, once, but no more, not after this. I’m sorry Mary Oliver, you’re so cool, so American bard, I love you and am grateful for your life’s work.
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S
Mary Oliver was a force and an inspiration. Lovely documentary that reinforces the ideas and values Mary writes about in her poetry. The John Waters commentary is the best; reads her and spills the tea but with utmost love and admiration.
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I cried less than I thought I would. Director voice: John waters this is not a comedy dammit
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Saved by the humor of John Waters
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Goosebumps from the very beginning! I loved hearing the stories about her, especially from John Waters, who had some fun ones. Loved the nature footage interspersed. Truly a special human who showed us how to pay attention to nature and revere it.
- Synopsis
- From a lonely childhood to literary fame, her life was shaped by devotion to nature, paying attention, and the long journey toward learning to love and to be loved. If poetry had a pop icon, Mary Oliver would be it.
- Director
- Sasha Waters
- Studio
- Pieshake Pictures, American Masters Pictures
- Country
- USA
- Language
- English
- Year
- 2026
- Runtime
- 91 mins
- USA05 Mar 2026
- Australia14 Aug 2026
- USA03 Jul 2026
- USA28 Jul 2026
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