The Sixth Side of the Pentagon / The Embassy
Product ID: 3584906
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Product Description THE SIXTH SIDE OF THE PENTAGON is a first-person documentary on the October 1967 March on the Pentagon for the Mobilization to End the War in Vietnam, with Marker filming in the midst of the often violent protest. It is a remarkable time capsule and a reminder of an historic turning point in the opposition to a long and unpopular war. One of Chris Marker's few fiction films, THE EMBASSY shows political dissidents seeking refuge in a foreign embassy after a military coup d'état in an unidentified country. Review Eloquent... Impressive... Chris Marker is among that rare breed of men in whom the currents of political engagement and searching human honesty reinforce and enrich rather than antagonize each other. --Larry Loewinger, Film Quarterly A trenchant political allegory. --Catherine Lupton, Chris Marker: Memories of the Future P.when('A').execute(function(A) { A.on('a:expander:toggle_description:toggle:collapse', function(data) { window.scroll(0, data.expander.$expander[0].offsetTop-100); }); }); About the Director Chris Marker is the legendary French cinematic essayist and audio-visual poet. After the Second World War, Marker began as a writer, publishing his first book in 1949. In the 1950s he turned to documentary filmmaking, producing over the years such classic works as Letter from Siberia, Cuba Si!, Le Joli Mai, as well as the legendary sci-fi short, La Jetee (later made into TWELVE MONKEYS by Terry Gilliam), and Sans Soleil. Today, after more than fifty years of engaged and artistically creative work, now working with the latest in digital video and computer imagery techniques, Chris Marker is recognized worldwide as not only one of the world's most innovative and influential filmmakers but also, in the words of Marker biographer Catherine Lupton, a touchstone for artists, commentators and audiences in many fields of contemporary audio-visual culture. See more
| Actors | Chris Marker |
| Asin | B001BXWWT2 |
| Director | Chris Marker |
| Media Format | Black & White, Color, Multiple Formats, NTSC |
| Mpaa Rating | NR (Not Rated) |
| Number Of Discs | 1 |
| Product Dimensions | 0.54 x 7.55 x 5.31 inches; 3.52 ounces |
| Release Date | September 2, 2008 |
| Run Time | 47 minutes |
| Studio | Icarus Films |
User
The past remains present
This DVD contains two short films by Chris Marker (of La Jetée fame), The Sixth Side of the Pentagon (circa 1967, 26 minutes) & The Embassy (circa 1973, 21 minutes).The first film is a short but powerful visual essay about the anti-war march on the Pentagon that year, with footage showing counter-protesters (young American Nazi Party members & elderly clerical anti-Communists), as well as the wide range of anti-war people, ranging from a handful of semi-hippies to average college students to middle-aged men in suits & ties—the latter putting the lie to the easy clichés & one-dimensional caricatures of those who protested the illegal & immoral war in Vietnam. How many people today even realize that there were organized groups like Businessmen for Peace, or Housewives for Peace, for example? Very few. So much idealism & moral passion from that time has been erased from our history since. The film isn't merely documentary, but also advocacy for political action against injustice at the highest levels.The second film is fiction, shot like a documentary in Super-8, about refugees from an unnamed country suddenly gone far right-wing due to a military coup. The refuges are various members of the intelligentsia, from activists to actors & artist to educators, taking refuge in a foreign embassy. The point is made that a traditionally democratic country can & has suddenly been transformed by an upsurge of fascism, with mass arrests & executions taking place, in order to secure the new regime. The final shot, revealing the location of the country gone fascist, serves to remind viewers that it can happen anywhere, any time. For a film nearly 50 years old now, it's all too timely, in fact. And it's a necessary counterpoint to the first film, saying that if political action & resistance to budding fascism isn't taken in time, the result can be horrific.Most urgently recommended!
User
The Sixth Side of the Pentagon.
As someone who was there --The footage captures many of the day's (but, unfortunately, not the night's) highlights. However, the voice-over narration is both informative and annoying. It helps place the events being filmed in a chronological context that makes sense of the day. But the didactic gloss on the demonstrators' politcs is sometimes condescending.
User
My Family Lived on Capitol Hill in D.C. in October 1967
We had worked in the San Joaquin Valley of California running programs to help Mexican-American farm workers and moved to DC to work for an international self-help housing program. Shortly after our move to DC we attended the Mobilization to End the War in Vietnam. There was such a large crowd that it was difficult to tell what was happening. One thing was clear: the police and military were attacking the anti-war protesters and many were seriously injured. It was a frightening experience. The Chris Marker film does a good job of capturing the actions of the protesters on both sides.
User
Good Buy. Arrived on time
Good Buy. Arrived on time.
User
Five Stars
This film gives us the other side...
User
Four Stars
Great
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