All about anarchism in Tancrède Ramonet's fine French TV doc, NO GODS, NO MASTERS

As good an overview of and introduction to the ideas, philosophy and history of anarchism throughout much of our world over the century-plus that spanned 1840 until 1945, NO GODS, NO MASTERS (Ni dieu, ni maître, une histoire de l'anarchisme) is a thorough and eye-opening 160-minute documentary made for French and Swiss television that is now available in a two-disc, dubbed-for-English-speaking-audiences version from Icarus Films Home Video. This very necessary documentary is a singular treat, important in a number of ways.

The work of writer/ director Tancrède Ramonet, shown at left, the three-episode series tracks the history of anarchism throughout the world, western and eastern, via its various philosophies and the actions stemming from those ideas.

Many of us grew up with the idea planted in our collective head that anarchism stood only for violence and chaos and thus could never be allowed to take the upper hand. One of the great strengths of this documentary is how it demolishes that idea. Yes, violence was sometimes part of the anarchist plan but this was never, ever toward chaos. Instead, it was always with the idea of bringing the working class into the sphere of power and influence commensurate with justice.

This series may very well leave you feeling that Communism has utterly betrayed the very ideas and philosophy of the betterment of the working class that it constantly espoused and then undercut at almost every opportunity via its insistence on hierarchy coupled to abuse of power.

From Pierre Joseph Proudhon (above) -- said to be the only 19th Century revolutionary theorist to actually come from the working class -- to Prince Peter Kropotkin (the Libertarian Communist whose books on revolution and anarchy were translation into many languages) to Sacco and Vanzetti (below), the series covers the well-known to the not-so-known figures who carried anarchist ideas into the mainstream.

And, yes, these ideas were indeed mainstream during the 19th and even into the 20th centuries, which will probably come as much of a shock to some viewers, as it did to TrustMovies. Those ideas were then too-often co-opted by the Communists, and not only during and after the Russian revolution but especially during the revolution in Mexico and later in during the Spanish Civil War.

How all this happened is made clear by No Gods, No Masters in a forthright and entertaining manner. The documentary is so full of information that you will occasionally want or need to rewind a bit to hear something again. My biggest complaint about this English "translation" is that the original language has been "overlayed" or maybe over-dubbed in such a way that you can still hear the French, Spanish or Italian language being spoken underneath the English translation. This is unwieldy at best and actually makes it more difficult to fully understand the English, which should be louder on the soundtrack and the original language either much softer or maybe blotted out entirely. (I don't understand why English SDH subtitles were not provided, which would have solved both this problem, as well as making the series accessible to the non-hearing population.)

In any case, No Gods No Masters proves to be a combination of narration divided between a number of talking heads (historians and philosophers, one of whom is shown below) and archival photos and film (much of which I had not previously seen). The content of both narration and film is what keeps the series not merely afloat but deeply and consistently interesting, allowing us to see and understand how, as just about always since the Industrial Revolution, the proletariat has been kept in its place via Capitalism, assisted by government and either (or often both) the police or the military.

The manner in which anarchism insisted upon dispensing with religion and hierarchical power structure is at the core of the doc, and this is brought home time and again, in differing ways throughout. Anyone viewing this series can only think about, remember and despair at the constant struggle of the world's masses to share in the well-being that the rich and powerful continue to hoard.

Part One: The Passion for Destruction (1840-1906) details the history of the movement in the face of the Industrial Revolution, along with the various attitudes of anarchists that range from focusing on labor and the working man to violence and assassination, as capitalism grows ever more intent on destroying anything that stands in its way.

Part Two: Land and Freedom (1907-1921) focuses on the revolutions in Mexico and Russia, with a multitude of wonderful archival footage, and how Communism tried to supplant and finally destroy anarchism.

In Part Three: In Memory of the Vanquished (1922-1945) we watch this supplanting and destruction continue, as anarchism seems come apart, even while Communist movements around the world grow stronger. The Spanish Civil War, with its struggle between anarchists and Communists, is of particular note here.

M. Ramonet does not whitewash anarchism's tendency toward violence, but he offers a wealth of other information that gives a broader, deeper and more realistic picture of the movement, its goals, and its accomplishments. Nowhere are these accomplishments clearer than during the Spanish Civil war, when whole communities demonstrated that they could work and prosper without obeisance to hierarchy, religion or government control.

Overall, the documentary is hugely informative, and ought to provoke much thought and discussion from those who view it. It's a wonderful contribution to history, philosophy and, we hope, progress. It may also make you wonder if the very term anarchism, with all this word would seem to represent, was not the best choice for a progressive movement. Ah, well: water under the bridge at this point.

From Icarus Films Home Video, running two and one half hours, and complete with a set of Bonus Features that anyone who sees the documentary will want to additionally view, this two-disc set is available now for purchase (and, I hope somewhere, for rental). It is certainly a don't-miss video.

Charlie Siskel's AMERICAN ANARCHIST tracks the life and times of a notorious author

How bracing, how very nearly shocking it is to see a documentary these days that seems simultaneously old-fashioned (in its decision to simply sit and film its subject quietly and honestly) and somehow quite modern in the way that the filmmaker is willing to allow us to see his modus operandi so fully and thus decide for ourselves whether it is truthful to the situation at hand and fair to its subject. 

This is indeed the case with AMERICAN ANARCHIST, a new documentary directed by Charlie Siskel (shown at left, who gave us the excellent Finding Vivian Maier) about and starring a certain William Powell (not the late "Thin Man" actor), whom we meet in current times at age 65 but who, in his youth at age 19 (as shown below), wrote a book that, initially, he had a difficult time getting published. Once it was, however, sales took off and, in the nearly half-century since, the book has seldom been out of the public eye or that of our news media. That tome is The Anarchist Cookbook, which details the need for revolution and then shows you how to do it, including everything from bomb- and poison-making to the manufacture of illicit drugs. Think of it as a kind of D-I-Y guide to the violent overthrow of, well, you name it.

Conceived and written in the early 1970s during the height of the anti-Vietnam protests and soon after the vicious police/government retaliation against protesting hippies and yippies, for anyone around the 76-year-old age of TrustMovies, it will be easy to understand, even appreciate, the motivation for the writing of such a book. The results of it, however, have been and still remain something else. By now, The Anarchist Cookbook has been connected to violent mass killings everywhere from Columbine to Aurora and many more incidents nationally and internationally, as filmmaker Siskel points out again and again to Author Powell.

Siskel seems to want Powell (that's he, above, in recent times, as photographed for the documentary) to somehow "own up" more fully, as both Powell and his wife keep pointing out. And the man does "own up," but with difficulty and clearly with guilt. His deep brooding and quiet sadness is something the movie captures as well as I've ever seen in a documentary, and this is part of what makes American Anarchist, despite the movie's rather simple-minded title, such a rich and moving experience. Watching and hearing Powell as he tries to explain his actions then and his feelings now, (along with his deeper understanding of the complexities of life) proves an engrossing and transfiguring experience that alone makes the movie a must-see.

Siskel barrels right into things, seeming to begin his interview in media res, and only slowly reveals who this man is and why his story is so important. As the documentary rolls onward we get details of Powell's life as a child (below), a young man and young adult, and then even more details in his older age as a teacher and educator abroad. Powell's history leaves little room in our mind for misunderstanding how The Anarchist Cookbook came about.

We meet his current wife, who proves a thoughtful and helpful woman, and also learn quite a bit about that infamous book. Powell notes in passing that he has not re-read the book since he first wrote it, and also makes clear that he did not try out all, or even most, of the "recipes" included therein. He cribbed many of them untested from where he found them.

Siskel explores, together with Powell, the hypocrisy of the latter's receiving royalties off the publication of the book, even after such time as he publicly rejected its content (which he has done at least twice). Yet despite the damage that the book has done --  due more to those who've read and followed its dicta than to Powell himself -- its author has clearly grown and matured into a kind, loving and productive man. Even so, his authorship has followed him wherever he has gone, resulting in his being fired or asked to resign from various teaching/education jobs along the way.

What may be most impressive about this documentary, however, is the fact that Siskel allows us to see and hear his sometimes abrasive, pushy questions, along with Powell's and his wife's responses to them. The moments between the words being spoken are often as telling as what we finally hear. Whatever Siskel may feel about Powell's guilt and responsibility, he allows us to make up our own mind.

Near the film's end we learn that Powell's second work was a novel titled The First Casualty about the assassin, barely out of boyhood, whose murder of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand began World War I. At the time he wrote the novel, Powell admired this young man who had, he tells us, the courage of his convictions. The final question asked of Powell by Siskel is whether the author identifies with this assassin. Powell ponders this, but does not answer.

We can answer for him, however, and most of us will agree on No. Powell wrote a book. He did not perform the actual deeds (hell, he didn't even try the recipes). Yet experiencing this remarkable documentary brings us up close -- about as close as we've so far been taken --  to the guilt and possible redemption of another in a manner that makes it ours to wrestle with, as well.

American Anarchist -- from Gravitas Ventures and running 80 minutes -- opens this Friday, March 24, Look for it in San Francisco at the Roxie Theater, in the Los Angeles area at Laemmle's Monica Film Center, in Detroit at Cinema Detroit, in Winchester at the Alamo Drafthouse, in New York at the Cinema Village, in Santa Fe at the Jean Cocteau Cinema, in Chicago at the Gene Siskel Film Center, in Jacksonville at the Sun-Ray Cinema, in Atlanta at the Atlanta 14, in Orlando at the Universal Cineplex 20, in Phoenix at the Arizona Center 24, in Houston at Studio 30 Houston, in Kansas City at Studio 28 KC, in Denver at Highlands Ranch 24, in Dallas at the Mesquite 30, and in Toronto at the Kingsway Theater. And if you're not near any of the above, the doc will also be simultaneously available On Demand.
One way or another, see it. 

DVDebut: PROJECT X deserves a look-see from any audience appreciating anarchy

Disappearing far too fast from the typically mainstream, sound-bitten, and afraid-to-encounter-something-different radar, the R-rated teen movie, PROJECT X, proves surprising fun. imbued as it is with a spirit of genuine anarchy that one seldom encounters in a Hollywood film. Granted, the very audience that could have made the movie a huge hit (and it would have been, had that audience been allowed in to view it), was kept away due to the film's "R" rating. Now, of course this a good thing, since, along the way in the film's fast-moving 88 minutes that provide the high-school party to end all high-school parties, a puppy dog is man-handled badly, partygoers ingest Extasy like it was candy, nudity (upper body, at least) is de rigeuer, and a house is consumed by fire. Don't try this at home (as the movie tells us, via warning label, right off the bat).

My point, however, is that while, yes, this is crazy, and we should all be ashamed of ourselves for enjoying it, these goings-on are extremely funny and grow only more so as the movie progresses and as the anarchy breaks free of that leash that a PG-13 rating would surely have provided. Director Nima Nourizadeh finds just the right tone for it all, while writers Michael Bacall and Matt Drake provide plenty of incident coupled to irony and wit so that we chuckle when we're not outright guffawing. Their best idea was to provide the character of the "cameraman" (whom we don't see but who proves an most intriguing guy, just the same) and the two pre-teen security guards. Hilarious. The three leads (plus our hero's girl) are all cast well and deliver the goods performance-wise -- with Thomas Mann (shown above, right -- but no relation to his namesake, I take it?) the standout as the nerdy but "purdy" (as those Hillbillies would say) hero.

OK: This is not a cinema classic, but as teenage "party" movies go, it's up there with the best (Can't Hardly Wait and only a few others). And for sheer anarchy, it way beats out something like The Hangover and its sequel. And while it does indeed go all mushy at movie's end, its good-guy hero, at least, can bear that mush -- unlike say, the character in The Hangover played by Bradley Cooper, who wants to leave a little baby in the same apartment with a loose Bengal Tiger, but whom we then have to get all gooey about at the finale. Oh, yes -- and the movie makes the best use of a little person (above, the wonderful Martin Klebba) than anything I've viewed since I last saw Peter Dinklage.

Project X is available now on Blu-ray and DVD, for sale or rental.

Jonathan Lee's PAUL GOODMAN CHANGED MY LIFE offers plenty of food for thought

Paul Goodman didn't change my life. Unfor-tunately. But I wish he had. Born 30 years before me (in 1911), he published his famous work, Growing Up Absurd, around the time I was attending a Christian Science school (Principia College), a place at which a fellow like Goodman -- proudly bisexual and "out" (before the use of that word had even come into being!) -- would not have found favor. Once I abandoned that foolish religion and began to grow up (absurd or not), I did learn something of Goodman and read an occasional essay.

Now, seeing the fine documentary that first-time filmmaker Jonathan Lee (shown at right) has assembled, I realize how ahead-of-his-time the man was, and how -- as a married bisexual with children who fairly constantly gave in to his homosexual impulses -- his life and mine were relatively similar (in that regard, at least). Had I but known a more about this man and his astounding capacity for understanding and writing about so many things (education, urban planning, civil and sexual rights) in so many forms (poetry, novels, essays and ground-breaking non-fiction books), he would have, should have, been my hero.

Lee's film makes you understand the importance of Goodman at the same time as you understand how difficult a guy he could be. And not just around his own family (that's his wife Sally, shown with him, below). We hear from everyone from Judith Malina (of The Living Theater: Goodman is seen chatting with some of its actors in the penultimate photo, below) to the late Grace Paley (shown with Goodman at an anti-war rally in photo at bottom) and William Buckley, Ned Rorem, Deborah Meier, Noam Chomsky and a lot more. By the film's conclusion, we see a fairly rounded view of its subject, and while we can appreciate him fully, we don't have the nagging sense (that arrives with some biographical documentaries) of watching an exercise in hagiography.

The only thing mis-sing is Goodman himself. We so wish we could hear from him about some of these sexual sub-jects. As outspoken as he was in his day, the rest of polite society was not, and so the very ques-tions we'd ask him now (and he'd certainly answer), were never brought up then. What a shame that we were unable to make near-ly full use of the man as we might have. He was, as one inter-viewee labels it, "inconvenient."

I think it may have been Ms Meier who also points out how women simply do not seem to exist in the world of Growing Up Absurd -- even though he was married to one (and then another), and had sired a daughter with whom he was close, to boot.  From what we learn here of his politics, one imagines that he would heartily approve of the current Occupy Wall Street movement. Of his sexuality, as one friend recalls, "He made passes at everybody: at men, women, at their mothers!"

Lee's film is not at all linear; it jumps all over the place yet is never hard to follow nor for a moment uninteresting. For the section on Goodman's contribution to Gestalt therapy alone, it proves fascinating. Oddly, the most moving section comes at the finale when one interviewee, a man who only knew Goodman through his many and varied literary works, talks about how much he would have loved to have met him -- and how he has indeed changed this fellow's life. I think many of us feel that way. We've missed something. Perhaps Lee's movie will herald a renaissance for Goodman's works, most of which have gone out of print.

Paul Goodman Changed My Life, from Zeitgeist Films, is screening now through November 1 in New York City at Film Forum. Click here for FF screening times and then here to see where else across the country the film will be playing. A DVD will no doubt be available eventually, but as this is a Zeitgeist release, the wait may be rather lengthy, so grab this film however and wherever you can.