Search - Strange Culture on DVD

Artistic freedom and political urgency

John Downing | Carbondale, IL, USA | 02/28/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Strange Culture
I've seen this docudrama twice now. It offers a penetrating yet quite understated commentary on the emergence of what author Bertram Gross once described as "friendly fascism" - not the jackboots, uniforms and screeching rhetoric, but our 'friendly protection' from terrorism, and at the same time our 'protection' from lingering anxieties concerning genetically modified foods. You wouldn't think all this would come together in a single FBI case, currently pending. But it has. In Buffalo, New York.

One of the poignant features of this film is the determinedly honest picture it paints of the warm but intermittently irritable relation between Steve Kurtz, the central surviving character in this tragedy, and his wife of many years (played by Tilda Swinton), the day before she suddenly died. So is the portrayal of the acute fears of a student of 'Middle Eastern' origin, as he decides whether or not to sign a petition of support for Kurtz, one of his most respected university instructors.

Ask not for whom the bell tolls... This film needs knowing."

Most moving film I've seen so far

W. Johns | Houston, Tx | 02/23/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I watched this film on IFC, and immediately ordered a copy. I plan on showing this movie in all ART classes and CRIMINAL JUSTICE classes at my university. This documentary tears the roof off our 'friendly loving' government and shows the reality of the situation. We're all 100% guilty until proven innocent. Even then, being proven innocent means nothing, just that they'll try to get you on a different more BS charge!

Buy it! Watch it! Join the mailing list- This is happening right now, and YOU can make a difference! Take a look at CAE_Defense (at) yahoogroups.com for the fastest and most current updates."

Must see film...especially now

Marcia G. Yerman | New York City | 03/01/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"At a time when the country stands at a crossroads, the more information
we have, the better. When I watched this movie, I took notes with the hopes
of doing a piece about it as a freelance writer. Editors thought the story had been sufficiently told. Ironically, I pitched it the week that CIA tapes mysteriously disappeared. One of the quotes from the movie is
"Freedom is knowledge." If we don't educate ourselves about
what is happening in our country, we are doomed. Luckily, we have courageous documentary film makers that are willing to put themselves on the line to
make sure that the rest of us know what is going on."

As the title reads...STRANGE

Larry D. Cooper | 08/17/2008

(2 out of 5 stars)

"
No doubt a good review of what can happen in our paranoid times. BUT, it takes a great deal of patience to stay with this film. Also the switching back and forth from the film lead and the actual man involved in this story can be confusing.
I am afraid after a half hour I found myself numbed by the prologue and turned the film off."