Street fight documentary

Sign In Sign In. New Customer?

Other credits include Rory Kennedy executive producer , Liz Garbus executive producer , Mary Manhardt additional editor , Marisa Karplus associate producer , Catherine Jones associate producer , and Adam Etline story consultant. The film details the hard-fought mayoral campaign by a young community activist and City Council member Booker against a year incumbent mayor James with a powerful political machine. The documentary follows Booker and several of his campaign workers from their early days of door-knocking on Newark streets through the campaign's dramatic conclusion. Through the course of the film, Booker's living conditions, race, ethnicity, religion, sexuality, political affiliations, and position in Newark are questioned. From to , Booker lived in Brick Towers, one of the city's worst public housing buildings, which some accused to be a tactic for acceptance by his constituents. As the election campaigns escalate, Booker receives endorsements from Spike Lee , Cornel West , and other prominent African American figures.

Street fight documentary

Cory Booker at a campaign in Newark, N. There's a saying that democracy is a contact sport. The Academy Award-nominated film Street Fight gives you a ringside seat. Even if you know the outcome from national reports, or lived in Newark at the time, this insider's chronicle of the race for mayor in Newark, New Jersey is riveting, delivering a dramatic account of youthful energy and ideals running headlong into old-guard machine politics and racial demagoguery. These opposing forces are, of course, nothing new in American elections. But, in Newark in , a black mayor was using these tactics against a black challenger. Early on, a staffer for Cory Booker, the upstart challenger in the race, warns that this election will be decided in the streets. Street Fight lives up to the staffer's prediction -- and to its own title -- as the campaign between Booker and four-time Mayor Sharpe James devolves from dirty tricks to intimidation to the threat of worse. The film crew itself becomes a target for Mayor James' supporters -- and the mayor himself -- who see everyone as either for them or against them. At first, the year old Booker, a recently elected councilman for the city's poor Central Ward, mounts a rather respectful challenge to the incumbent. In Newark, after all, politics are non-partisan, and both men are Democrats. Booker recognizes that the mayor, representing a first generation of black politicians who came up the hard way, is personally popular and has raised Newark's stature with corporate, downtown-centered development, including a new Performing Arts Center and minor-league baseball stadium. But Booker questions the value of the mayor's policies to the city's poorer neighborhoods and residents. Booker suggests that it's time for a new generation to bring Newark's downtown "renaissance" to all the city's residents.

Moxie Firecracker.

Back in , Chris Hegedus and D. Pennebaker's The War Room showed how spin doctors in backrooms managed Bill Clinton's presidential campaign. Both are Democrats, and both are black, but that is where the similarity stops. While the Yale-educated year-old idealist Booker fights his battles with facts and arguments, the year-old self-made James plays on sentiment. But this is not all. Curry reveals how the city police, as the strong arm of incumbent James, play a dubious role in the campaign.

Other credits include Rory Kennedy executive producer , Liz Garbus executive producer , Mary Manhardt additional editor , Marisa Karplus associate producer , Catherine Jones associate producer , and Adam Etline story consultant. The film details the hard-fought mayoral campaign by a young community activist and City Council member Booker against a year incumbent mayor James with a powerful political machine. The documentary follows Booker and several of his campaign workers from their early days of door-knocking on Newark streets through the campaign's dramatic conclusion. Through the course of the film, Booker's living conditions, race, ethnicity, religion, sexuality, political affiliations, and position in Newark are questioned. From to , Booker lived in Brick Towers, one of the city's worst public housing buildings, which some accused to be a tactic for acceptance by his constituents. As the election campaigns escalate, Booker receives endorsements from Spike Lee , Cornel West , and other prominent African American figures. The movie brings to light many issues plaguing minority communities in Newark and reveals how the city government has failed to acknowledge these issues. The film also raises questions of race and what it means to be "black", as Sharpe James questions Booker's African American heritage and roots to his community. Curry captures on film corrupt attempts by James and city employees, including both police and code enforcement, to sabotage Booker's campaign by using tactics that include shutting down local businesses that hold Booker fundraisers, demoting city workers who support Booker and demolishing Booker signs in violation of a standing order by a federal judge , in what becomes a true urban political "street fight".

Street fight documentary

The year may have been known for Michael Jackson marrying Lisa Marie Presley and the first genetically engineered tomatoes being available for sale, but a more pivotal moment in human history occurred. It was the release of Steven E. William Guile and Raul Julia as M. The video game adaptation was slapped by critics harder than E. While "Street Fighter" wasn't universally accepted at first, and became a prime example of the video game movie curse , many people have softened their stance on it in the years after its release. After all, it boasts incredible quotes, such as, "For you, the day Bison graced your village was the most important day in your life, but for me? It was Tuesday. The film is carefree chaos on screen, and the history of its production is largely the same. Considering what happened behind the scenes, it's remarkable that it even made it to cinemas in the end.

Umd alumni association

It's a tough film to watch, because we all want to believe that our democracy is flawless when, in fact, it has so many problems and shady dealings as to make one ill at the prospect. The film also raises questions of race and what it means to be "black", as Sharpe James questions Booker's African American heritage and roots to his community. From to , Booker lived in Brick Towers, one of the city's worst public housing buildings, which some accused to be a tactic for acceptance by his constituents. Curry portrays how James expresses hate towards Booker by using empty accusations and hateful speech. Marshall Curry, the director of the documentary, follows Cory Booker, the challenger to long-term incumbent, Sharpe James. Shot with a hand held camera and edited on a Mac, Curry the film-maker mirrors the determination and resolve of his main subject, political challenger Cory Booker. Even though my husband has worked under five NYC mayors and could relate to how bureaucracy can be politically manipulated, he felt there was not enough insight on campaign strategy, preferring the approach in "The War Room", which I haven't seen completely and wasn't able to find to watch in a timely fashion for review comparison. See the list. By what name was Street Fight officially released in Canada in English? Curry captures on film corrupt attempts by James and city employees, including both police and code enforcement, to sabotage Booker's campaign by using tactics that include shutting down local businesses that hold Booker fundraisers, demoting city workers who support Booker and demolishing Booker signs in violation of a standing order by a federal judge , in what becomes a true urban political "street fight".

An urban David and Goliath story, the film chronicles the young man's struggle against the city's entrenched political machine, which routinely uses strong-arm tactics to hold onto power. The battle sheds light on important questions about democracy, power, poverty and race.

Videos 2. Curry's camera is pushed around time and again, his microphone broken, and he's denied access to Sharpe James entirely. Tools Tools. Ultimately, Curry concludes that politics are far more than who has the best agenda. Kashika's 5 Picks for February. On July 1, , Booker was sworn in as the 36th Mayor of Newark. Dirty politics, dirty government, and a dirty city badly in need of repair. Next to Illinois, New Jersey has the stench of political corruption on the city level so much so John Sayles created a fictional NJ town in his film, City of Hope, to showcase the rampant malaise affecting his berg. How this guy James became mayor is beyond my comprehension as he is so loud, brash, a racist against his own. Though Curry only shows footage in support of Booker, it is not difficult to distinguish the actual differences between both candidates' approaches.