Celebrating the documentary by MATTHEW HAYS Though there has been a resurgence of interest in the documentary form of late, it remains the case that there are less than a handful of feature doc box-office successes per year. For anyone else who's interested in seeing--or making--docs, the task can be difficult. Many are relegated to TV, where key scenes may be cut or feature versions are butchered to meet time constraints and make way for ads. A group of esteemed film types intent on championing the form have joined forces this year to present the first annual Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal, this Wednesday, December 2 until Sunday, December 6 at the NFB and the Cinémathèque québécoise. The first edition of the event has been timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the UN's declaration of human rights, thus much of the mission of the event surrounds human rights issues. Spike Lee's documentary about racism, Four Little Girls, will be screened, as will Nettie Wild's A Place Called Chiapas and Volker Koepp's Wittstock-Wittstock. As well as screenings, organizers have arranged for discussions and workshops. Admission is $4, an all-sessions pass is $30. The workshops and forums are free. Info: 270-8042. The stars will indeed be shining bright this weekend when MusiMax has a festival of the A Star Is Born movies. The 1937 version, which airs on Friday, November 27, at 9 p.m., features Frederic March and Janet Gaynor in an exquisite production. The legendary Dorothy Parker co-scripted. Cut to 1954, when queer director George Cukor took the helm, with Judy Garland and James Mason filling the lead roles (the remake airs Saturday, November 28, at 7 p.m.). Beautiful musical numbers populate this film, which was restored in 1983 to its original splendor. Twenty-one years later came the very worst of the lot, the Barbra Streisand - Kris Kristofferson vehicle, which airs Sunday, November 29, at 9 p.m. Babs is thoroughly annoying when she's not singing (and, come to think of it, mildly annoying even when she is). There's plenty of shlocky scenes and dialogue; this one must have done much of the damage to Kristofferson's career. Still, worth a glance for the camp value. The first film will be screened in English with French subtitles while the remaining two will be aired in French dubbed versions. I ventured to see Enemy of the State earlier this week, and witnessed a fight breaking out among a couple of audience members in the middle of the cinema. A rather bizarre experience, especially as it was during the crucial opening moments of the film, when plot points were pivotal. As it turns out, the fight was among the most exciting things that happened in that two hours. Will Smith plays a lawyer who inadvertently gains possession of key evidence in a politically motivated murder, and soon a government agency is out to ruin his life. The film attempts to make points about our loss of privacy in an age of computer surveillance; Gene Hackman is cast with a clear nod to his brilliant turn in Francis Ford Coppola's '70s conspiracy classic The Conversation. The two films make for a depressing comparison: Coppola's gem was an indication of just how clever, chilling and timely conspiracy movies could be; Enemy of the State is an indication of just how lame they've become. COMMENTS: matt_hays@babylon.montreal.qc.ca