Re: [Marxism] request for political film suggestions

[Juan Fajardo <fajardos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Message: 9
> Date: Thu, 25 Nov 2004 12:31:09 EST
> From: Octob1917@xxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Marxism] request for political film suggestions
> To: marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Message-ID: <1fb.18cf42c.2ed770dd@xxxxxxx>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
>
> In a message dated 11/25/2004 8:19:12 AM Pacific Standard Time, einde@xxxxxx
> writes:
> "In the Name of the Father", a great film about the framing of the
> Guildford Four - it really brought back the period to me (and it has a
> brilliant soundtrack).
>
> I wouldn't include In The Name Of The Father. It strikes an anti-Republican
> stance, condemning the IRA. Much better is Some Mother's Son about the hunger
> strikes.

 I agree, as much as I like this movie.  It also doesn't give you a
context in which these events happen.

Costa Gavras' "State of Siege" is always a good one to show, esp. with
increased popular awareness in recent years of The School of the Americas.

Also interesting because of the personal political choices is raises is
"The Music Box" with Jessica Lange.  Roughly based on the Demjamjuk
(sp?) case, it portrays a lawyer (Lange) who defends her father in a
deportation trial for alleged crimes against humanity in WW II Hungary.
She believes his innonence --he *is* her dad, after all-- but there is
more to the story than she believed. Does she look into it?  What if he
really was a Nazi war criminal?  Should she --can she-- turn in her own
dad?  What does she tell her young son? What would we do?

Come to think about it, those two films shown together in that order
raise similar and related questions about those who "just carry out
orders" around the world.


Beyond that I would suggest:

-- "Black Shack Alley"  (French-language film set in early 20th C.
Martinique about the structural blocks that prevent the poor from
pulling ahead; the myth that it;s lack of individual effort that keeps
the poor poor)

- "A Dry White Season" -- Set in Apartheid South Africa, follows a white
school teacher's transition from obliviousness ["if the police stopped
him, he must've done *something*"] to a commitment to social change)

-- "Controlling Interest" a 1970s documentary on corporate domination of
US government and foreign policy.  A bit dated but will strike a chord
with the whole Halliburton/KBR thing these days.

- Juan










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