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Four Days in November [VHS]
Product ID: 31275202
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.com In 1964, superstar producer David Wolper entrusted a then-fledgling director named Mel Stuart with the first documentary about the year-old assassination of John F. Kennedy. Stuart went on to a successful, diverse career, interspersing such popular feature films as If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with an array of interesting nonfiction work, including The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, Wattstax, and the moving The Unfinished Journey of Robert F. Kennedy. But with Four Days in November, he and Wolper paved the way for a certain modernity in the look and feel of a thoroughly researched documentary about a painful subject. Much of the film is compiled from television kinescopes of live TV coverage in Dallas on that fateful day, ordered in such a way as to offer viewers who lived through the events a sense of perspective, clarification, and perhaps closure. The myriad conspiracy theories that immediately appeared in the wake of Kennedy's death (not to mention Jack Ruby's murder of Lee Harvey Oswald, footage of which is included here) are examined and dismissed, though in fairness much, much else has been discovered since then to keep suspicions alive. The most fascinating and unexpected sequence, perhaps, is a clip from David Frost's old comedy show on British television, That Was the Week That Was, in which Frost, actor Roy Kinnear (Willy Wonka, interestingly enough), and others talk about their personal feelings regarding Kennedy. --Tom Keogh
J**E
Conspiracist or apologist, this film is a must see!
Whether you believe Oswald acted alone, was part of a conspiracy, or was nowhere around, this film is worth the price. As a native Dallasite, I found the film footage of my hometown when it was still a great place to live to be priceless. Golly, remember when people still shopped downtown?! The film offers a very realistic flavor of both Dallas and America in pre-assassination times, it's almost unnerving to see an America that still trusted its elected representatives and institutions of authority. Richard Basehart's narration is excellent, and Kennedy's presidency as well as his trip to the south is well explained to even a complete Kennedy novice. The "man on the street" interviews that give us the reaction of both famous heads of state and average Americans immediately upon hearing the news of the assassination are interesting and sad, and the entire film will serve to transport you back in time as no present-day piece on this subject can do. Much of the second half of the film deals with the planning and execution of Kennedy's funeral, and this comes as close as anything I've yet seen to recreating what those days were like. If you're too young to remember this event, this film is a must see. Even us conspiracy theorists can overlook the assumption of Oswald's guilt (an assumption that, unlike post-Warren Commission material, is not shoved down your throat). I have been researching Kennedy assassination materials for years, and I find these contemporary efforts such as "Four Days in November" and Mark Lane's film "Rush to Judgement" to be far more valuable tools than latter day efforts, as the waters have now been so muddied by disinformation that we lose the real feel of these tragic events. Highly recommended.
N**N
Best objective view of JFK's assassination
I was teaching a class entitled "Snapshot of the Sixties" at our local community college. This film was critical: It was objective, detailed, and primarily edited from newsreel clips. The largest difficulty I had was that this college no longer had VHS equipment in its Lecture Halls -- and this film had not been legally translated into DVD.
W**4
News As It Happened
A stark reminder of the day a dream died in America. Now open to question for its views and the assumption about a loneassassin but its contemporary footage provides an invaluable view of how the deed was received and dealt with at the time.
J**H
Great production
I was in 2nd grade at a Catholic grade school that weekend. Watching this was going through a time warp. I was hoping this would show up somewhere on DVD, but this was fine. The narration and music is outstanding, along with the reenactments throughout.
H**R
four Days in November
I have always wanted a copy of this documentary. It arrived quickly and in great condition. I am happy to have it!
T**L
Five Stars
Great documentary
W**D
Five Stars
EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT!EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT!
S**N
Oswald Acted Alone
This is a well done documentary that came out in 1964, when the JFK assassination was still fresh in everyone's mind. We now have proof that Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole assassine, which this film elucidates. In any case the atmosphere of mourning is captured well and it's just like you are actually there in Dallas and DC. The whole world was grieving and LBJ rode the wave to pass unheard of civil rights legislation, but also get us into Vietnam at the behest of JFK's advisors. We now know that Lee Harvey Oswald pulled the trigger from the TSBD in Dallas. But that's not what this film is about, this is about capturing the moment when the nation and world mourned a great leader at a crucial point in history.
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