Stonewall Uprising is a documentary film which premiered on US television (PBS) in 2010.
It is an episode of the long-running program American
Experience.
The topic of this film is the LGBT community in New York with special focus on the Stonewall Uprising in 1969 and events leading up to this moment in time.
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Directors: Kate Davis and David Heilbroner
** Writer: David Heilbroner
** Based on the book Stonewall: The Riots That Sparked the Gay Revolution by David Carter (2004)
** Language: English
** Subtitles: English
** Run time: 80 minutes
Several persons are interviewed in this film
Here are the names of the participants
The first group
Gay men and lesbian women
** Virginia Apuzzo (born 1941)
** Martin Boyce
** Raymond Castro (died 2010 - age 68)
** Danny Garvin (1949-2014)
** Jerry Hoose (died 2015 - age 69)
** Tommy Lanigan-Schmidt (born 1948)
** Dick Leitsch (1935-2018)
** John O’Brien
** Yvonne Ritter
** Frédéric André (“Fred”) Sergeant (born 1948)
** Martha Shelley (born 1943)
** Lucian Truscott (born 1947)
** Doric Wilson (1939-2011)
The second group
Observers of the case
** David Carter (1952-2020) – a writer
** William N. Eskridge – professor of law, Yale University
** Ed Koch (1924-2013) – councilman in New York, mayor of New York 1978-1989
** Eric Marcus – a writer
** Howard Smith – a reporter who wrote a regular column in The Village Voice for many years (1966-1984)
The third group
An officer from the NYPD
** Seymour Pine (1919-2010)
Very few photos were taken during the Stonewall
Uprising in 1969. Not much film was recorded. The visual evidence of this event is very limited.
In this film, some historical scenes have been reconstructed with actors.
In addition, the directors have used some old clips from similar events in order to illustrate the conflict between police and demonstrators.
Archive footage is used between the talking heads. Archive footage is used to support and supplement the statements made by the talking heads.
Archive footage includes excerpts from some remarkable propaganda films which were produced in the 1950s and the 1960s.
Archive footage allows us to meet some individuals who apparently played a significant role in the extensive public campaign against homosexual men and lesbian women, including the following:
** Dr Charles Socarides (1922-2005)
** Detective John Sorensen (1922-2003)
Stonewall Inn is the name of a popular gay bar in Manhattan, New York City.
On 28 June 1969, six officers of the NYPD raided this bar. They did not expect any trouble during this raid.
They planned to check the ID of each person inside. They planned to arrest some of them for violating the law.
At that time, homosexual activity was illegal in all US states except Illinois.
In most cases, customers in a gay bar did not cause any trouble when the bar was raided by the police.
Homosexual men knew they did not enjoy much support among the general population.
In most cases, they accepted their fate. But this time was not like most cases.
This time the customers refused to obey. This time they tried to resist. The police officers were surprised. They had not expected such a response. This was the start of an uprising which lasted for five days:
The Stonewall Uprising
Looking back, we can see that this was a pivotal moment in the history of the LGBT community in New York and in the USA.
This was the moment when gay men and lesbian women refused to accept the constant repression. This was the moment when they said:
Enough!
We will not surrender!
We are Americans!
We have rights!
We want to have the same freedom as other citizens of the USA!
In 1969, numerous popular movements had been
established, including the following:
** A civil rights movement
** A peace movement
** A feminist movement
** A hippie movement
** A student movement
Was there a movement whose purpose was to support the rights of gay men and lesbian women? The answer is there was next to nothing. But in the wake of the Stonewall Uprising, such a movement began to be created.
28 June 1970 was a Sunday. On that day, the first Pride marches were held in three American cities: New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
Thousands of people gathered in these three cities to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising and to demonstrate for equal rights.
In this film, the story of the Stonewall Uprising is told in great detail. The story is told by some of the people who experienced this pivotal event.
What do reviewers say about this film?
Here are some results:
72 percent = IMDb
74 percent = Meta
77 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
84 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
On Amazon there are at the moment more than 125 ratings of this product, including more than 25 with reviews.
The average rating is 4.6 stars, which corresponds to a rating of 92 percent.
The ratings are very good, as you can see. I understand the numerous positive reviews, and I agree with them.
The Stonewall Uprising is important. The story of this unusual event deserves to be told, and in this film, it is done very well.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).
REFERENCES
# 1. Film and video
The Times of Harvey Milk
(1984)
Ratings:
82 percent = IMDb
94 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
96 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
Before Stonewall
(1984)
Ratings:
75 percent = IMDb
94 percent = Rotten Tomatoes
After Stonewall
(1999)
Ratings:
75 percent = IMDb
100 percent = Rotten Tomatoes
Milk
A historical drama
(2008)
Ratings:
75 percent = IMDb
89 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
93 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
Stonewall
A historical drama
(2015)
Ratings:
09 percent = Rotten Tomatoes
(09 is not a misprint for 90)
30 percent = Meta
53 percent = IMDb
Killing Patient Zero
2019
Ratings:
75 percent = IMDb
100 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the audience)
100 percent = Rotten Tomatoes (the critics)
The Pride of Stonewall
2021
** Director: J. Miller
** Run time: 67 minutes
# 2. Books
Making History: The Struggle for Gay and Lesbian Equal Rights, 1945 to 1990
By Eric Marcus
(1992)
Gaylaw: Challenging the Apartheid of the Closet
By William N. Eskridge
(1999 = hardcover)
(2002 = paperback)
Stonewall: The Riots that Sparked the Gay Revolution
By David Carter
(2004 = hardcover)
(2010 = paperback)
Queer (In)Justice: The Criminalization of LGBT People in the United States
By Joey Mogul, Andrea J. Ritchie and Kay Whitlock
(2011 = hardcover)
(2012 = paperback)
How to Survive a Plague
By David France
(2016)
# 3. The following items are available online
Erin Blackmore
"Inside the first Pride parade - a raucous protest for gay liberation,"
National Geographic Magazine
25 June 2021
Grant Hill
"How the myth of patient zero was made,"
Whyy (the pulse)
17 February 2023
*****
Stonewall:
The Riots That Sparked
the Gay Revolution
By David Carter
(2004 = hardcover)
(2010 = paperback)
*****
New York City
28 June 1970
The first Pride parade
A call for equal rights for
gay men and lesbian women
*****
This poster was placed
in front of Fortune Town
A shopping mall in Bangkok
in June 2024
to celebrate the month of pride
55 years after Stonewall
*****
No comments:
Post a Comment