Sunday, July 13, 2008
de Antonio Goes Underground
In May 1975 Emile de Antonio, Haskell Wexler, and Mary Lampson filmed interviews with five leaders of the Weather Underground. They were filmed in such a way for the faces of their fugitive subjects were not shown. The film later became a significant test of the First Amendment, and perhaps that is of more importance now than the film itself.
Thirty three years later, viewing Underground is a strange and somewhat quaint experience. This film truly is a product of its time. Wexler is seen filming into a mirror between Lampson and de Antonio while the backs of the five Underground members tell their story and speak their politics. Their conversations took place immediately took place after the fall of Saigon. They see it as a great victory and feel the validation of those events.
In an interview shortly before de Antonio's death that accompanies the new DVD release of the film he clearly states he makes films, not bombs. There is something undeniably profound about the scroll of all of the bombing actions attributed to the Weather Underground, which although did not lead to injury or death are significant actions against US infrastructure. De Antonio has a great talent for finding and utilizing film clips, most of which are from other political documentaries, that are very illustrative of time and place. The intercutting of footage from the Pentagon march, from the Attica riots and speeches from political leaders of the time, including the subjects of the film themselves help bring context to the statements and passions of the interview.
I was surprised to find Bernadette Dohrn, Bill Ayers and the others in the film say things sometimes quite profound, sometimes sensible, and reasonable. I believe it was the motivation of the filmmakers to give them an opportunity to have a forum to express who their subjects are. De Antonio and the others could be interpreted as being sympathetic, especially in the way the Weather Underground's views on class struggle are depicted--There is a longish segment of vintage footage of union violence set to a Pete Seeger song. But the mission of the film seems to be to let the Underground tell their own story beginning with the student movement, more male and posturing at first, through the Days of Rage demonstrations of the Democratic Convention, through their support of various revolutionary causes throughout the world and in the US, to a more Marxist grass-roots propaganda machine putting out the tract Prairie Fire and other publications.
Undeground is a time capsule curiosity. It is important that it is included in the de Antonio Radical Saint DVD collection as representative of one of his important works, but ultimately Siegel and Green's film Weather Underground will prove to be the document that best serves this topic in the future. After viewing this de Antonio's strangely staged forum for these radicals, I am finding a desire to go back and view that as well.
posted by well-executed buffet at 9:22 PM
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