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Favorite part: the match/cut from the school shooter in Gus Van Sant's Elephant to a Ferguson cop.
It's pretty great to uncover Baldwin's unfinished manuscript, but the most powerful juxtaposition with modern-day racism are actually done with archival footage of Baldwin himself. The Dick Cavett interview where he argues against the idea of us ignoring someone's skin color is more relevant than ever in an age that many claim to be post-racial.
Saw the trailer a while back and thought it looked fascinating. Definitely going to try to catch this one.
Yeah, I'm looking forward to this, too. It's been a good year for films about race relations.
BTW, Does this need to be moved to the 2016 forum? It is nominated for Best Documentary at the Oscars this year.
Whoa, Nelly ... this certainly delivered. What an extraordinary human being Mr. Baldwin was. I especially loved the parts where you hear his own voice. Such intellect and such a masterful communication style. It is not an exaggeration to say it's a movie that everyone should see.
It occurs to me as well that Baldwin's rhetoric moves me on a deeper level than MLK or Malcolm X because it comes from a place of religious ambivalence. I consider the other two important, admirable figures, but King's Christianity and Malcolm X's connection to Islam are distancing factors for me. Baldwin's thoughts totally connect with me. I understand how his brain operates and I love his philosophical approach.
My rating might be more for Baldwin than the film, but ah well.
Baldwin's words and thoughts resonated with me tremendously as well. And this film was just wholly superb. The usual documentary juxtaposition of audio and video is both fleet and piercing here. Several parts moved me to constant tears until the scene had passed. While this is likely one of Jackson's finest "performances," the footage or voiceover of Baldwin himself are all standout moments. The Cavett interview coda where the old white philosophy dude comes out to offer his rebuttal was a bit of a shocking moment if only because his arguments have by now become rather cliched racial discourse totems for whites, the hoary attempts at dismissal we've heard for years and years and years now--to the point that they've become near-jokes to many. Baldwin's answer sears, though.
Also, Irish should like this because it talks about the black man's junk, if briefly.
no context
This moment received applause at my screening.Quote:
Originally Posted by Wryan
Wait ... what? :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Wryan
The footage of Baldwin himself is magnificent--his manner of speaking is both intellectual and conversational in a way that is very rare. What an incredible humanist. But here is proof that a great subject does not always equal a great doc.
First of all, Jackson delivers Baldwin's prose as if he were reciting divine poetry, when in fact the whole movie hinges on Baldwin's decision to stop being an armchair philosopher and "get his hands dirty." Not only is it a garish tonal disconnect, but some of the clarity is lost from Baldwin's oftentimes no-frills ideals. A couple times during some of Jackson's more lethargic moments he would say something to the effect of, "...And that is the number one obstacle facing racial reconciliation in America," and I would have to rewind to put the pieces together--whereas when Baldwin himself would say a similar phrase I knew exactly what he was talking about because it was delivered with passion, directness, even anger.
Second of all, the film is much more successful when depicting images/movies/stars directly referenced by Baldwin rather than providing Eisenstein-ian cuts, overlays, and commentary-by-association. When Baldwin describes how he idolized Gregory Peck and John Wayne as a child only to realize that all the Native Americans we watched them massacre were actually him, that was a very effective, lucid use of stock footage. But all the footage of white people acting super white, damning scenes of contemporary reality TV (yaaawn), or a hard cut from Doris Day to slave lynchings simply aren't elegant enough filmmaking techniques to do Baldwin's ideas justice.
I figured this one to be an ace in the hole. I'm disappointed to say that if someone I knows shows interest I will most likely recommend they cut the fat and simply watch Baldwin on youtube.
Unable to rep, so commenting just to say that you make some good points, particularly in regards to cutaways to supporting footage.
This is streaming for free until the end of the month (US only):
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/v...ot-your-negro/
I agree with this. I don't want to Nay the movie because I learned a lot from it since I had no idea who Baldwin was, and it's true that his points of view are more current than ever. But the documentary as a film did nothing succesful stylistically or thematically to enhance the experience of coming in contact with the author.Quote:
Originally Posted by Idioteque Stalker