John Zaritsky was a Canadian documentary filmmaker. His work has been broadcast in 35 countries and screened at over 40 film festivals around the world; in 1983, his film Just Another Missing Kid won the Academy Award for Best Documentary. He graduated with degrees in English and History from the University of Toronto. His first job after college was as a police reporter for the Hamilton Spectator. He also worked for the Toronto Star and the Globe and Mail before beginning his film career at CBC television.
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Biography from TMDB.
- July 13, 1943
- March 30, 2022 (aged 78)
- St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
- Director and writer, also producer
- 4 on MovieCove · 11 credits in all
What are John Zaritsky's films like?
Across a limited sample of 3 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Society.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 3
Light 1 · Serious 1 · Dark 1
Grounded 3 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0
Gentle 2 · Charged 1 · Intense 0
Steady 3 · Shifting 0 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0
Casual 3 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 1 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 1
Resolved 3 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch John Zaritsky's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 4 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (3).
Subscription and free streaming for John Zaritsky's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
11 credits, 4 with a MovieCove page.
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
A Different Drummer: Celebrating Eccentrics (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
Do You Really Want to Know? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)
The Suicide Tourist (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films
Ski Bums (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)
Murder on 'Abortion Row' (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)
Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)
Into Thin Air(1985)
Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films
Tears Are Not Enough(1985)
Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Just Another Missing Kid (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)
Career shape
A full career of 11 titles from 1981 to 2016.
How do John Zaritsky's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 90th percentile, the median of all 4; across a limited sample of 3 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 91st percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up4
Shape of the crowd
2 of their 4 titles are Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved2
- Crowd Pleaser1
- Mixed1
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does John Zaritsky work with?
People who share at least 2 of John Zaritsky's MovieCove titles; Gordon McClellan shares the most, 2.
- Gordon McClellanShared titles: No Limits: The Thalidomide Saga (2016), Tears Are Not Enough (1985)See all 2 shared titles with Gordon McClellan