With the start of the Democratic National Convention today, it seems a great time revisit a story NPR did back in February about Brett Morgan’s Chicago 10 - a film that uses a archival footage, animation and music to tell the story of the 1968 Democratic National Convention and the protesters who were arrested and tried during it.

Up on NPR is an interview where, “Morgen plays court audio recordings from the 1968 trial, rarely heard since the trial. And he explains his film’s title, which echoes an observation from lawyer Jerry Rubin, who recalls that attorneys William Kunstler and Leonard Weinglass received contempt sentences in connection with the case.”

Also up is a piece from Fresh Air where they recollect the 1968 convention and play some old awesome audio from the time. Listening to the beginning of the piece, it’s hard to imagine something like this being able to happen today - even with the similarities between the times.

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May 68 happened 40 years ago…

While we primarily think of France when we think of the time period associated with student protests and a general sense of shaking up old society, events were happening throughout the world. Like the heightened sense of political involvement, cinema was also a source of motivation and inspiration during this time and May 68 was heavily documented by filmmakers everywhere.

GreenCineDaily has a great post up about the different film series that are happening around the world in honor of the 40th anniversary of the events in 1968. Here in New York City:

“New Yorkers can mark the occasion with two rich and wide-ranging programs that aim to capture, on screen, the spirit of that bygone age,” writes AO Scott in the New York Times. “One, at Film Forum (Friday through June 5), is devoted to [Jean-Luc] Godard in the 1960s, when he was at the height of his influence, productivity and creative power. The other, at Lincoln Center (Tuesday through May 14), stretches across geography, time and genre:

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There’s actually a lot of good stuff in the theaters today and below are the Top 5 New Releases in Theaters that Spur Social Action.

All of the films are playing in New York City but don’t worry if you don’t live here - click on the “take action” links below each trailer to find out when the film might be coming to your area.

1. Chop Shop : Ramin Bahrani’s examination of what life is life for a boy named Alejandro living and working in a piecemeal auto repair joint in Queens (a “chop shop”) says more about courage, family and childhood spirit than any film I’ve seen in a long time. Reminiscent of Kiarostami, the film says a lot about the systems that effect kids like Alejandro in urban environments without ever needing to address the subject directly.

to see if Chop Shop is coming to a theater near you.

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Hey movie fans - Chicago 10 opens today! There’s no better way to spend one’s weekend then revisiting the powerful past that was Chicago in 1968. I really enjoyed the film when I saw it a few weeks ago - it re-energized me politically which is important with elections around the corner. This isn’t to say the movie is perfect, but it’s been far too long since I’ve seen something like Chicago 10 on the big screen, something that speaks to revolution and the forces that try to stop it. It seems that I am not the person who felt this way though:

In Chicago, J.R. Jones at the Chicago Reader has this to say about the movie:

Chicago 10, an electrifying new “mash-up documentary” by Brett Morgen, vividly reconstructs the battles on the street and in the courtroom, and it couldn’t come at a more opportune moment.

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Last night at the Director’s Guild of America Theater in New York City, I got to see a sneak preview of Brett Morgen’s powerful new documentary, Chicago 10. Morgen, best known for his 2002 documentary on Robert Evans, The Kid Stays in the Picture, decided he wanted to make a more political film after the invasion of Afghanistan about 5 years ago. The events of today brought him back to the year he was born, 1968, and he decided to tell the tale of Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Bobby Seale, David Dellinger and the other 4 men that were put on trial after they encouraged people to non-violently protest the war in Vietnam at the 1968 Democratic Convention.

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