Customer Reviews

In Remembrance of Martin [VHS]

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This documentary was made during the first National Dr. King holiday. Thus, it's a bit dated. This came before Malcolm X became the more trendy icon and has somewhat eclipsed Dr. King. However, as Michael Dyson later wrote, Dr. King is still a powerful force with which to be reckoned.

You can tell this was made by a local television station because it's made entirely in video, rather than film. This is a unique work because there is no narrator, it's just important figure reminescing on Dr. King and actual footage of Dr. King and his most famous speeches.

It's 20 years later and many of those interviewed (Jimmy Carter, Coretta King, Jesse Jackson, John Lewis) are still alive and heavily involved in progressive activism. Mrs. King is ever regal and warm. She is a pioneering example of Black Womanhood. Dr. King's sister's voice sounds JUST like his. Still, this documentary focused on famous MEN remembering King. I wish this work had more women interviewees, and not just Dr. King's female relatives. Surely, Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, or Maxine Waters could have been asked to contribute to this work.

This is a nice, easy piece to watch. Perhaps it would be the perfect item for parents and teachers to share with children during the Dr. King holiday.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s spririt really comes through here as his friends/colleagues recount their experiences with him and what his legacy means to them. Footage of him in more casual moments and from the earliest to the last years of activism also round out the picture of his life. His powerful oratory and charisma is on full display. The interviews are dated but do not detract from the power of the message.

Since this is an eulogistic film you won't get a picture of the historical or "human" MLK, including the philandering that could have seriously weakened his moral leadership had it been publicized. But then again this is not a documentary as much as it is a recounting of MLK's tremendous accomplishments in the public sphere that went a long way toward healing some of America's oldest spiritual wounds.