So many things come together to make this a worthwhile, if not essential, commentary on an aspect of American life that should disturb everyone, no matter what side of the political fence they're on. First, there are the images -- the joyous marches, the street theater. And then it all unravels, and we're now watching the indignation and fear of passionate citizens finding themselves facing off against an army of police in riot gear, wielding their cans of pepper spray as though they're trying to disinfect their enemy into painful submission.
One-man production crew Thompson spent half his life as a news cameraman, and it shows. He doesn't aspire to the standard, shaky-lens look you might expect from such guerrilla film-making. Instead, his carefully rendered images are composed as though he'd storyboarded them weeks in advance. He captures an astonishing amount of activity from those three days, with a patient eye and an instinct for detail. Sharp editing -- Thompson again -- helps remind you that he was right in the thick of the action; not just shooting it, but caught up in everything going on around him. One particular interaction he has with a policeman is as troubling as anything I've ever seen in a documentary, and continued to play over and over again in my head long after I'd watched the film.
Another strength is Thompson's narrative, in which he examines his own difficulty in sorting out the information and issues behind all the mayhem, and trying to figure out where he stands. He delivers a film that clearly chastises the actions of the police, but comes away willing to ask more questions than he answers.
I've watched this film twice with different groups of friends, and both times we couldn't stop talking and debating about what we saw when it was over. Time well spent.