Search - American Experience - Las Vegas - An Unconventional History on DVD


American Experience - Las Vegas - An Unconventional History
American Experience - Las Vegas - An Unconventional History
Actor: Michael Murphy
Director: Stephen Ives
Genres: Television, Documentary
NR     2005     3hr 0min

Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 11/08/2005

     
1

Larger Image

Movie Details

Actor: Michael Murphy
Director: Stephen Ives
Genres: Television, Documentary
Sub-Genres: Television, Documentary
Studio: Pbs (Direct)
Format: DVD - Black and White,Color,Widescreen
DVD Release Date: 11/08/2005
Original Release Date: 01/01/2005
Theatrical Release Date: 01/01/2005
Release Year: 2005
Run Time: 3hr 0min
Screens: Black and White,Color,Widescreen
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Total Copies: 0
Members Wishing: 1
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Languages: English

Similar Movies

Modern Marvels - Las Vegas
History Channel
?
   NR   2005   0hr 50min

Similarly Requested DVDs

The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring
Platinum Series Special Extended Edition
Directors: Joel Gallen, Michael Pellerin, Peter Jackson
   PG-13   2002   3hr 28min
   
The Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers
Platinum Series Special Extended Edition
Director: Peter Jackson
   PG-13   2003   3hr 43min
   
Uncle Buck
Director: John Hughes
   PG   1998   1hr 40min
   
Gone Baby Gone
Director: Ben Affleck
   R   2008   1hr 54min
   
True Crime
Snap Case
Director: Clint Eastwood
   R   1999   2hr 7min
   
The Notebook
   PG-13   2005   2hr 3min
   
From Dusk Till Dawn
Dimension Collector's Series
Directors: Robert Rodriguez, Sarah Kelly
   R   2000   1hr 48min
   
Star Trek II The Wrath of Khan - The Director's Cut
Two-Disc Special Collector's Edition
Director: Nicholas Meyer
   PG   2002   1hr 56min
   
Dave
Director: Ivan Reitman
   PG-13   1998   1hr 50min
   
The Blues Brothers
Collector's Edition
   R   1998   2hr 13min
   
 

Movie Reviews

Terrific Perspective of Sin City's History...
Kim Anehall | Chicago, IL USA | 11/20/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)

"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Under the impression of this slogan many visitors believe that they can bring out their wild and uninhibited self while fulfilling their wildest imaginations and fantasies in Vegas, as no one would ever find out. For this reason many pilgrimage out to this oasis of sin and pleasure, as it would allow them to be completely free. The PBS documentary Las Vegas: An Unconventional History offers the audience a historical perspective to how Las Vegas has become the resort for personal desires.

Today, Las Vegas is a booming modern metropolitan city that is amidst a flowering period where money stream into the city through a constant flow of tourists. It has, ever since the completion of the railway that runs through Las Vegas, been a city friendly to strangers. However, the kindness towards strangers has always been reciprocal, as the city provides pleasures while the strangers dropped their hard earned money in a few minutes of hope and desire for something better. Through gambling and prostitution Las Vegas exchanged money for dreams with the visitors, and this is how people helped build this concrete giant.

Despite the banning of gambling, the bars and gambling spots continued to provide the service for the visitors. The building of the Hoover Dam and the development of the atomic bomb also helped boost the number of visitors to Las Vegas, as there was nothing else to do in the arid city than to drink booze, party, and gamble. Thus, the city became a hot spot for those who sought some escape from the hard reality outside its city limits. Soon the mafia world also discover this golden goose that simply was ready for the picking of anyone that knew the business, which lead to a migration of wise guys from Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, and Miami. The mobster Bugsy Siegel changed the future for Las Vegas by building the first luxurious hotel - The Flamingo Hotel - with all of the modern amenities including entertainment. Later the Rat Pack would also honor the city with its legendary performances.

The constant flow of money made many people willing to turn their eyes the other way, as politicians and other people of significance allowed hardcore crooks to become respectable businessmen in the desert city. However, the sweet dance could not go on forever, as politicians began to seek justice. In addition, the NAACP began to protest the Jim Crowe laws that were in place, which quickly were removed as it influence the flow of cash. Even the rich philanthropist Howard Hughes bought his way into Las Vegas when he was order an eviction, and his money was cleaner than his predecessors, which again made many close their eyes.

In Las Vegas: An Unconventional History, the audience gets to see the history while it also touches on many of the negative aspects of the city such as water shortage, overpopulation, gambling addiction, and its consequences. It is a clever narrative that follows a traditional linear approach while every now and then returning to present day through some interview with different aspects of the city. When it all comes together it is a very enlightening two part piece that stretches over three hours, which will offer the viewer a decent understanding of how Las Vegas grew up from first being a small railroad intersection to the gambling Mecca of the world."
The modern part is not included
I. Chiang | Silicon Valley, CA, USA | 02/02/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)

"The overall content of this DVD is fine. It goes through a desert town with water supply, rising due to Hoover Dam, Bugsy and the mobs, Howard Hughes, the fires of MGM and Hilton and the challenges of Atlantic City. Then it stops here in spite of its being released in 2005.

This is disappointing since it is kind of distant from what we see today. After I've visited Las Vegas twice and watched this film, a gap is certainly there and I just cannot bridge them together. I'd like to know more about Steve Wynn, how these latest casinos are built, what they look like inside...etc.

So if you really intend to know the history of Las Vegas, it is a fine piece. But if you are in the case like me more preferring in the modern part of Las Vegas, you should leave it aside."