A remarkable film

ramlmmjem

score 10/10

I grew up in the UK and entered my teen years at the time this film focuses on and the US politics of civil rights formed a significant part of the process of my political socialisation. This film is a powerful reminder to me of just why the US civil rights movement made such an impact on me (and on so many others).

In addition to powerful film footage, the documentary (which is what it really is) draws on interviews with the key political actors in and around the movement,to illuminate their positions and their assassinations. There are occasional cutaways to contemporary events which remind us that bigotry and irrational prejudice-based hatred continue to lie just beneath the surface of America.

The film also draws on Baldwin's precise and beautifully constructed prose (which loses none of its power for that precision and beauty) reminding us of just how poor our contemporary leaders are.

The message of the film? Simple. The US is a violent society that was built on violence and nothing short of a revolution will change it.

ramlmmjem 17 November 2019

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw5264255/