March 20, 2008
Street Fight (2005)
Should I see it?
Yes.
Perhaps I'm a sucker for underdog stories, but I found this documentary about the 2002 mayoral campaign in Newark, New Jersey fascinating. Young, idealistic Cory Booker runs against the city's mayor-for-life Sharpe James. The film is heavily tilted toward the young upstart and James' camp comes off seeming as thuggish as possible . This is partly due to the fact James' camp does appear to be populated with thuggish individuals, (James was indicted on conspiracy charges in July 2007). To be fair, the documentary does hold its thumb on the scales in Booker's favor but this doesn't detract overall from the power of the piece.
Yes.
Perhaps I'm a sucker for underdog stories, but I found this documentary about the 2002 mayoral campaign in Newark, New Jersey fascinating. Young, idealistic Cory Booker runs against the city's mayor-for-life Sharpe James. The film is heavily tilted toward the young upstart and James' camp comes off seeming as thuggish as possible . This is partly due to the fact James' camp does appear to be populated with thuggish individuals, (James was indicted on conspiracy charges in July 2007). To be fair, the documentary does hold its thumb on the scales in Booker's favor but this doesn't detract overall from the power of the piece.
How's that for moral confusion? I first say the film is tilted to the benefit of one party and then dismiss this as if it weren't a big deal. That's so two-faced, maybe I should be the one running for office.
The fact is that there is enough genuine moments of note in this piece to make it worth seeing. The brutal confrontations and tricks many identify with national campaigns can be found in this simple local election. This film paints a disturbing portrait of American politics.
Related Reviews:
Documentaries
The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara (2003)
The Goebbels Experiment (2005)
Other Critic's Reviews:
MetaCritic
All Movie Guide
Labels: documentary, election, film, movie review, politics, President Bill Clinton, Spike Lee
posted by Michelle Obama's Left Nut at 5:00 PM
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