The BEFORE STONEWALL dvd is one of three must have documentaries for all LGBT people (the others being
After Stonewall
and
Paris Is Burning
).
Chronicling the time from the roaring 20s to just before the Stonewall riots in 1969, BEFORE STONEWALL takes the viewer on a journey through the struggle that gay men and lesbians have faced as they go from isolation to finding others "like them." The story is told from the mouths of the people who lived through those times like Harry Hay, Barbara Gittings, Audre Lorde, Allen Ginsberg and others, and provides photos, news-clippings, and personal home movies and talks about the importance of underground 'zines that helped gay and lesbians connect with one another.
The doc also shows the beginnings of LGBT groups like "The Mattachine Society" and "Daughters of Billitis" during the late 50s, and features a reunion of workers and patrons of San Francisco gay bar from the 50s "The Black Cat."
BEFORE... came out on PBS in 1985 and "first-run-features" has done an excellent job cleaning up the footage. Of course it doesn't look as though it were done recently, but it's passable. The film runs at about 87-minutes and the special features include: blurry interview with Allen Ginsberg who reads two of his poems; additional interviews with Audre Lorde and Yvonne Flowers; additional footage of The Black Cat bar reunion and interview with Jose Sarria.
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