U.S. vs. John Lennon, The Review

"U.S. vs. John Lennon, The" reviews

Movie

U.S. vs. John Lennon, The

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2009-03-06 22:06:02

Rating

3/5

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

History seems to repeat itself. This documentary about the late John Lennon and his anti-war attitude becomes a commentary on today's government.

Story

It's been a long time since John Lennon was gunned down in front of apartment building in New York City, and even longer since Richard Nixon held office, but U.S. vs. John Lennon focuses on how the then U.S. president tried to pull out all stops to discredit the famous Beatle and get him thrown out of the country. Ironically, although three decades old, this story seems like a fairly timely indictment on the Bush administration, as it looks at how right-wing fanatics label anti-war protestors as un-American even though free speech is what this country is founded on, as Lennon points out. Nixon's henchman, J. Edgar Hoover, tried drumming up all sorts of smut on Lennon. He and Yoko Ono were bugged, followed, threatened and nearly deported. Along the way, Lennon became a bit paranoid and myopic, even as he was opening his life to the press and offering interviews while in bed.

Acting

Some of the more important pundits during the Vietnam War era are trotted out to give some perspective. Injured war veteran Ron Kovic, Watergate journalist Carl Bernstein, protestor Angela Davis, writer Gore Vidal and a mellow Bobby Seale are among those who talk about what the world was like in the 1970s, the end of the hippie era and the crackdown by the government. For the conservative side, the only voice heard is G. Gordon Liddy, Nixon's former White House staff, who comes across as creepy and unsympathetic and even criticizes the Kent State shooting victims as students who got in the way and should have known what was coming. Some of the most fascinating moments are the footage from Ono's private vault, showing Lennon as a passionate and often angry guy who was alternately confused and amused by anger directed at him for preaching peace.

Direction

Filmmakers David Leaf and John Scheinfeld offer a very biased viewpoint, as they play heavily on the anti-war images and how it is relevant today. They don't really explore any of Lennon's troubles with the break-up of the Beatles, or the criticism of Ono, which were going on around the same time. No, U.S. vs. John Lennon is about one thing and one thing only: Lennon's public fight to keep his visa and remain in the U.S., while exercising his right to protest. The documentary is illuminating, timely and almost as frightening as Al Gore's global warming Inconvenient Truth. There's Lennon on the Dick Cavett and Mike Douglas shows, as well as footage of the ex-Beatle being attacked by a reporter, which he handled with a bemused calmness. Although it isn't as dire, or as apocalyptic, U.S. vs. John Lennon is just as important. Lennon ultimately did give peace a chance.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 3 stars.

Movie

The US vs John Lennon

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2006-11-30 16:00:25

Provider

Review

This documentary tells the story of how John Lennon journeyed from being a Beatle to an anti-war activist campaigning for peace during the Vietnam era - and how President Nixon's government allegedly tried to silence him.

Made by the studio behind Michael Moore's controversial film Farenheit 9/11, the documentary weaves together archive footage of Lennon with 'talking head' interviews by his widow Yoko Ono and notable musicians, politicians and historians.

The film moves at a steady pace, introducing enough Lennon biography to help better understand his motivations, quickly moving through John's childhood, Beatles years, and marriage to Yoko. John is quoted as saying that all that he really wanted to do was to make music. But the escalating violence in Vietnam made him an outspoken critic of the war, who used his global fame to generate massive publicity for the peace movement, even staging a well covered eight-day love-in for peace on his honeymoon. The film grippingly displays how he was targeted by the Nixon government who thought he was a threat, and how the Liverpudlian ultimately won a protracted legal struggle to stay in America in a David and Goliath-type battle.

Political parallels between Nixon's Vietnam war and Bush's Iraq war are unavoidable: proving that political history is just as relevant now as the music of The Beatles turned out to be. Depending on your age, the original footage will spark nostalgia for the flower-power days of the '70s, remind you of some of the most notable world events of the 20th century or even educate those born after Lennon's tragic murder in 1980.

Of course the music is as important as the images, and this soundtrack consists of forty Lennon tracks - 37 from his solo career - including classics like Revolution, Give Peace A Chance, Working Class Hero, The Ballad Of John and Yoko and of course Imagine.

Ultimately John's mantra 'War is over, if you want it' rings as resonantly today as it ever did: The US versus John Lennon is both a poignant tribute to a twentieth century icon and a reminder of his message.