John Lewis: Good Trouble

I found this film to be rather slow and plodding. It would likely have helped a great deal to focus more on the civil rights activism of John Lewis in the 1960s than on the man himself. On balance, I am quite happy to have watched John Lewis: Good Trouble, but I am unlikely to recommend it to others.

"John Lewis: Good Trouble" (2020 release; 96 min.) is a documentary about the life and times of US Congressman and longtime civil rights activist John Lewis. As the movie opens, Lewis addresses the camera head-on: "There are forces today that are trying to take us back in time" (referring to the blatant voter-suppression agenda of the Trump administration). We then see Lewis walking towards Capitol Hill as others comment about him. "He's effective because he's lived it", observes Alexandria Ocadio-Cortez. We then switch to Selma, Alabama, 1965, where Lewis is part of the peaceful march... At this point we are 10 min. into the movie.

Couple of comments: this is the latest documentary from writer-director Dawn Porter ("Trapped"). Here she looks back at 60 years of social justice and civil rights activism of John Lewis. The documentary covers his upbringing in rural Troy, AL all the way to his ongoing work today in the US Congress after his stunning upset victory over Julian Bond in 1986. Let's be clear: Lewis is a giant in the field of championing the voting rights of Black Americans, always reminding people to not just register to vote, but then to actually vote. For me the documentary is most remarkable for the plenty of archival footage that Porter and her team were able to unearth. There is of course some well-known footage (such as of the Selma march in 1965, still shocking now 55 years later when you see the unprovoked police brutality against the peaceful demonstrators), but also lots of rarely if not unseen footage of the young Lewis who apparently is everywhere during the years of civil rights activism. Check out the footage of the Nashville sit-in, and how the peaceful activists are treated... A good chunk of the film also looks at the 2018 election cycle, and what role systemic voter repression surely played in the Georgia governor's race (does anyone really doubt that Stacey Abrams in fact was robbed?). Along the way, Lewis keeps reminding us: "Get into trouble. Good trouble."

"John Lewis: Good Trouble" opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, its second week of reopening in the COVID-19 era. My temperature was taken before I even entered the theater, and of course wearing a mask and keeping social distancing were required as well. Every other row in the theater was blocked off as well. Not that it mattered as the Friday early evening screening where I saw this at was attended by exactly 2 people, including myself. If you have any interest in the 1960s civil rights era or what is happening to this very day with voter repression left and right, I'd readily suggest you check out"John Lewis: Good Trouble", and draw your own conclusion.

There are many good parts in this movie, mostly those dealing with Lewis's career in civil rights, but also scenes with his brothers and sisters talking about the effects of his activism on his family.

There is also too much filler, political figures like Pelosi and Hillary Clinton talking about Lewis's influence on them. Who cares?

If this movie had been reduced to 60 minutes, rather than the 90 of its current length, it could have been one very impressive documentary. I know it's hard to cut footage, but what this movie desperately needs is an objective editor.

There is an old African proverb: "When you pray, you move your feet." The proverb resonates powerfully in this quote from John Lewis' memoir, Walking in the Wind: "As a nation if we care for the beloved community, we must move our feet, our hands, our hearts, our resources to build and not tear down, to reconcile and not to divide, to love and not to hate, to heal and not to kill. In the final analysis, we are one people, one family, one house, the American house, the American family."

John Lewis is a powerful writer. I read Walking in the Wind several years ago, and it had a powerful impact on me. John Lewis: Good Trouble, the documentary, makes that same powerful impact: It brings his story to life! As in his memoir, the film reveals the man behind the legend.

I was moved to tears by the footage from the 1960s. I was beginning my teenage years back in 1963. Television was still a young medium, and it showed us all that was going on in the world daily. I was learning about the world and its ways in the '60s-the injustices, the fight for dignity, freedom, equality and decency. These were my middle school years, my high school years, formative years brought back to life as I watched this film.

History repeats itself until we learn. John Lewis: Good Trouble follows John Lewis throughout his young life in Alabama, working on his parent's farm, feeding chickens, picking cotton. Mr. Lewis' narration of waking up early, hiding under the porch to wait for the school bus, running onto the bus to get to school to his wonderful teachers where he says he read everything, is a powerful visual image. I love what one of his sisters says about John wearing a tie and carrying the Bible to school every day. John was a serious student. He wanted more in his life. Clearly, he wanted to make a difference in our country for racial justice for African American people. His tireless work and dedication started as a college student. From SNCC leader to Congressman from Georgia, John Lewis fought the good fight for voter's rights, for civil rights, for the right to eat at the same restaurant as white people, for integration, not segregation. His marches, his belief in nonviolence and commitment to the cause have continued for 65 years.

One story that Henry Gates Jr. tells about John Lewis' great-great grandfather getting his voting card back in the 1800s has a powerful twist. So many stories, so much history where he worked so hard from the time of Dr. Martin Luther King to President Barack Obama to now!

This inspirational documentary is a must see. John Lewis: Good Trouble weaves an important story about an exceptional man, shows us our history from the '60s to today, and demonstrates the part John Lewis played, and continues to play, as the fight for racial justice and equality is at a pivotal moment in time with the Black Lives Matter movement.

I give John Lewis: Good Trouble 5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend it for 9 to 18-year-olds to learn about an effective leader and his plight-and to understand even further the times we are currently living through. I also recommend it to adults, to remember all that has transpired through the years, to reflect and act on how we can all move forward once and for all to make the change that is way long overdue. It will be released July 3, 2020 on Apple TV. Be sure to look for it.

Reviewed by Terry S., KIDS FIRST! Adult reviewer

This is a premier Ciivil rights leader that everyone needs to know his story.

Unfortunately, the documentary is loaded with lots of cheerleading and political colleagues, which diminish his story and the documentary overall. It feels rushed. The good - after halfway John steps inside his house and gives voice to his art, from this point on it begins to have some depth. I wished they would have interviewed his secretary or gone indepth with some of the bills he worked on instead of the fluff sections.