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Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant and infuriating,
By
This review is from: Birth of a Nation (DVD)
I show this movie, or at least the last 40 minutes of it, to students in my classes as part of our debate on artistic freedom and censorship -- because I know I can count on it to offend them. In fact, the reason I have bought a copy of the DVD is that the department's old video copy is worn out by now from the number of times it's been used in class. By every possible moral measure, this movie is incredibly offensive, with its crude racial stereotypes, its rewriting of American history to portray white Southerners as the "victims" of Blacks who claimed their political rights as voting citizens after the Civil War, and its glorification of the Ku Klux Klan. And it can't be dismissed as "just a movie," because its release had real consequences, leading to race riots, lynchings, and worst of all, the re-formation of the Klan, which had almost entirely died out before the movie was released. And yet, as any historian of cinema can tell you, it was technically and artistically a landmark, the first movie epic, the first really ambitious effort at complex story-telling and spectacle in the new medium. Every movie epic that has been made since then owes something to this film. All of this makes for some very lively classroom discussions: should this movie still be shown to public audiences? If someone wanted to show it on this campus as part of a program on the history of cinema, would you support their right to show it, or would you protest the use of your tuition and fees for a purpose like that? Do we want to be accused of "political correctness?" Do we want to be accused of inciting to riot? So, do I admire this movie or hate it? Well, both. That's why I split the difference between 5 stars for artistic merit and 0 stars for political irresponsibility, and averaged them out at three.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A brave and prophetic work,
By thechosen_1 "thechosen_1" (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Birth of a Nation (VHS Tape)
The film is a brilliant masterpiece. While most silent films that we see on TV are of the silly comedic type, this is probably the only silent film that I can watch and enjoy. I am moved by the battle scenes and the love stories--the music can move you to tears. This is probably my favorite war movie of all time, it is even better than "All Quiet on the Western Front" and "Das Boot".As for the pablum-eating meally-mouthed PC types who criticize the second act for its virulent "racism"; I don't know how accurate is this film's portrayal of the post-war South. But it is quite possible that the radical Republicans of the North could have imposed stringent voting laws in South Carolina (which had a 45% black population at the time) that favored Blacks thus electing a Black majority in their legislature at the time. If you look at this film's portrayal of majority Black rule, it is not that far removed from today's Zimbabwe or post-apartheid South Africa. The only thing different today from back then is that Whites then were not continually brainwashed with self-hatred as they are by today's "media".
5.0 out of 5 stars
How about adding Descriptive Video Service for the blind?,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: D.W. Griffith's Birth of a Nation [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)
Even though this is a silent movie, adding Descriptive Video Service for the blind should be an excellent idea because it will show exactly what happens in the movie. Even voice narration should be terrific. These should also add to Mel Brooks's Silent Movie.
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