Public Employee Press

Movie review
In a time of war, labor movie series targets warfare

As the 2007-2008 segment of its continuing Labor Goes to the Movies program, the Professional Staff Congress will show 10 films about war. The “Cinema and War” series aims to create a forum to stimulate discussion about war within the labor movement and strengthen labor’s opposition to the war in Iraq. PSC is the union of faculty and professional staff at the City University of New York. The screenings will be at the PSC union hall, 61 Broadway, 16th floor in Lower Manhattan.

The films will be shown on Fridays at 6 p.m., except for an extended program on Saturday, Jan. 12 at noon.

A CUNY professor and/or activist will introduce each film and lead a discussion after the screening. There is a $2 suggested donation, and the PSC provides light refreshments.

The film series mixes films from around the world using a variety of approaches, including fiction and documentary, classic and experimental. Classics such as “Year of the Pig” and “Paths of Glory” are juxtaposed with newer films such as the Palestinian and Israeli documentaries.

Coming films include:
“Culloden,” Nov. 9, the 1964 film by Peter Watkins that draws a parallel between the Vietnam War and the last battle fought on English soil, which pitted Highland Scottish forces against the ruling Hanoverian dynasty in 1746.

“Ride with the Devil,” Dec. 14. Director Ang Lee (“Crouching Dragon, Hidden Tiger”) takes on the U.S. Civil War, exploring the effects of this national conflict upon divided families and communities.

“Kippur” and “Paradise Now,” Jan. 12 at noon. “Kippur” presents the Israel army without the usual heroics as it follows two reservists in the 1973 Yom Kippur War through chaos, pain, noise and bone-numbing fatigue.

“Paradise Now” shows the work, families and romances of two Palestinians chosen for a suicide bombing mission. The film contrasts the world of the resistance with the soaring high-rises of Tel Aviv.

The schedule for the rest of 2008 includes:
Feb. 22: “Frantz Fanon: Black Skin, White Mask” (1996, Isaac Julien)
March 14: “Rome, Open City” (1945, Roberto Rossellini)
April 11: “In the Year of the Pig” (1968, Emile de Antonio) May 9, “Paths of Glory” (1957, Stanley Kubrick)

More information is available at the PSC Web site, http://www.psc-cuny.org/Movies/LaborMovies.pdf.

See you at the movies.

— Ken Nash
DC 37 Education Fund Library