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Weather Underground, The

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Weather Underground, The reviews
77
7.4 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 23 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 5 votes
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Documentary

Written by:

Directed by: Sam Green
Bill Siegel

Release Date:
Theatrical: June 4, 2003
DVD: May 25, 2004

Running Time: 92 minutes, Color

Origin: USA

Summary

RATING: Not Rated

In 1969, a radical splinter group broke off from SDS (Students for a Democratic Society), convinced that only militant action could end racism, the war in Vietnam and the inequalities they felt inherent in a capitalist society. The Weather Underground engaged in numerous bombings (and failed bombings) that landed them on the FBI's Most Wanted list. Today - in light of a new age of terrorism - former members as well as their critics look back on the '70s and reflect on what they did and why they did it. (Film Forum)

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Along with its historical value, The Weather Underground is also a terrific movie, energetic, and articulate. It's the don't-miss documentary of the season.

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90

Washington Post Desson Thomson

One of the most thought-provoking documentaries of recent times.

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89

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

Proves to be a wonderful reality check.

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88

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

Featuring seasoned warriors reflecting on whether we can best fight violence with violence is enormously compelling.

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88

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

Offers a welcome perspective, reminding us that extremism in the name of a values system is nothing new -- not even on these shores.

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88

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) James Adams

Stands as an important film, perhaps even a timely one as once again the United States finds itself enmeshed in fending off a guerrilla war in a faraway land.

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88

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Whether the protest movement hastened the end of the Vietnam War is hard to say, but it is likely that Lyndon Johnson's decision not to run for re-election was influenced by the climate it helped to create.

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88

Boston Globe Ty Burr

Essential viewing for anyone who wants to know the roots -- and perils -- of modern political dissent.

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83

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Powerful and searching documentary.

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83

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

A perceptive, fascinating and relatively evenhanded look at the most radical arm of the American student rebellion of the Vietnam era.

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80

LA Weekly Ernest Hardy

Through masterful editing, nimble music selection and smart use of documentary materials, the filmmakers shake the dust off cultural clichés to provide a provocative survey of the past. It’s a subversively sleek enterprise.

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80

Washington Post Ann Hornaday

A smart, absorbing, often exhilarating documentary.

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80

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

A compelling piece of work that turns out to have unexpected relevance to the current world situation.

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80

The New York Times A.O. Scott

This terrifically smart and solid piece of filmmaking lets the former Weathermen, now in their 50's and older, speak into the camera and reveal a bit of their personal histories as well as what the peace movement meant to them.

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80

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

Fascinating documentary.

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75

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

The documentary plays it down the middle, neither condemning nor romanticizing the political outlaws, but making sense of who they were and what they did.

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75

San Francisco Chronicle Carla Meyer

Powerful and surprisingly timely.

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70

TV Guide Ken Fox

It's curious that the filmmakers choose to end the story without reporting on Weatherwoman Kathy Boudin's involvement in an ill-fated 1981 robbery of a Brinks truck in New York State.

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70

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

Serves as a fascinating window into an era of radical dissent that now seems centuries past.

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63

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

Notoriety, they won. The revolution, they didn't. That perhaps is the secret message of the film. Dylan was right. You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

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60

Variety Scott Foundas

Assembled in a straightforward, television-style presentation that gets the better of it.

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60

Village Voice J. Hoberman

One leaves with barely a clue as to how this group was able to orchestrate a successful string of terror bombings.

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50

New York Post Lou Lumenick

Filmmakers Sam Green and Bill Siegel tend to shy from tough questions, allowing their subjects to wax nostalgic about bomb-throwing as yet another youthful folly of the '70s. That's tougher to swallow than some boomers' claims they didn't inhale.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 7.4 (out of 10) based on 5 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Yoon Min C. gave it a 6:
The filmmakers are clearly sympathetic with radicalism and saddened that 60s came to such end with orgies of violence and ruthlessness of orthodoxy. the film wavers from keeping the torch of progressivism lit to the pathetic reality that most of the weather underground members have either evolved into flaky armchair revolutionaries or remorseful sell-outs to mainstream society. essentially, it's as glib as the conceits of the radicals themselves, its ambiguity borne not so much of thoughtfulness but resignation that the world can NOT be changed overnight.

Gijs F. ('80) (Belgium) gave it a 9:
I saw the movie yesterday. Long time something could keep me 1h30 behind/before my television. I didn't know anything about the subject. Almost got sympathy with the people %-( Great documentary!

Paula W. gave it a 9:
This documentary tells the story exactly the way it should be told: it explains without apologizing, demonizing, or glorifying. These events seem much longer ago than just a generation, which makes it that much more amazing and important to see the principals telling their stories on screen, regrets and all.

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