Review: I rented Howard Zinn: You Can't be Neutral on a Moving Train because I had seen How to Draw a Bunny and Noam Chomsky: Manufacturing Consent and was hoping to see something in the vain of these two documentaries. Unfortunately, Deb Ellis and Denis Mueller's film seemed to combine the ingredients of the other two movies without capturing any of the magic. To start with, the technical qualities of this movie were fairly bad. During one very interesting interview, the camera actually readjusts its shot at least twice in the middle of his story. In case you are an aspiring filmmaker: don't do this! Ironically, the error probably could have been easily covered with stock footage and no one would have noticed, but instead it was left in. There are similar problems both visually and audibly as the film appeared to ignore the artistic merits their subject allowed them to explore. There were some touching scenes between Zinn and as wife, but these are few and far between, and are sadly underdeveloped. However, when they are shown they are touching and really drew me into the film. Because of these scenes, I will must praise Ellis and Mueller for including these bits of romance at the beginning and end of the documentary as sort of romantic bookends to an otherwise intellectually known man. The documentary is also proof that some subjects can remain interesting despite the filmmaking mistakes. Most the film focuses on stories recalled by men and women touched by the words and actions of Howard Zinn and, when they are allowed to speak, the truth and beauty start to really come out. If you've seen How to Draw a Bunny, you'll understand the magic of this film style and will wish the stories could have been allowed to flow more freely here. Conversely, the documentary tries to give a more intellectual biography of Zinn, but unlike films focusing on Noam Chomsky, it never really reaches the informative level it truly could have achieved. Jumbling between interviews with Zinn, Chomsky, countless other activists and former students and narration. Now I can get to Matt Damon's narration and my best response to it: why? As in, why was he even used? Damon does not fill in the biographical gaps, nor does he set the stage for various stories, but rather occasionally recites lines from various Howard Zinn works. While I enjoyed these works, I wonder why the staff didn't just ask Zinn himself to read them. He is after all a great speaker and I always believe the author knows what words to best emphasize and could even provide a little commentary on why he wrote these passages. Damon, while a great narrator, does not compare to this opportunity, and his part only seemed to pull the audience away from the stories the film seemed to be emphasizing. As you can tell, my main problem with the documentary may be that my hopes for it were too high. I expected good things from a concise film that had interviews with several famous intellectuals and the support of several grants. Unfortunately, it did not live up to this level in any way. I must refrain from recommending this documentary unless you are truly interested in Howard Zinn or his ideals. Review by Matthew Abshire Informative: 2- At times seems more like a marketing stunt to increase sales on his latest books, but there is definitely some interesting stories to be heard. Entertainment: 3- Howard Zinn's ideas and stories are certainly interesting, but they are muddled in this documentary. Technical: 2- very weak camera work that at times distracts from the overall message Overall: 2- a cross between How to Draw a Bunny and Manufacturing Consent, but with very little of the magic the other two captured.
Howard Zinn: You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train
Format: DVD Year: 2004 Running Time: 78 Min Distributor: First Run Features Producer: Deb Ellis and Denis Mueller Director: Deb Ellis and Denis Mueller Date Reviewed: 5-7-2007 Story: Author of the pivotal A People's History of the United States, historian and activist Howard Zinn has been at the forefront of progressive thought in America for decades. Through archival materials, interviews with Noam Chomsky, Marian Wright Edelman, Daniel Ellsberg, Tom Hayden and Alice Walker, and commentary from Zinn himself, this documentary chronicles the influential thinker's inspiring commitment to social change (NetFlix).