The Revolution Will Not Be Televised

I saw this movie at the Belfast Film festival tonight.

People, (above), said its a 'bad' documentary. They said its 'bad' because the events of the coup attempt aren't put in context. I would agree with that 100%.

There was no mention of Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Haiti, Panama, El Salvador etc. US Government condoned & supported dictatorships in South American states are a fact. If you support US governments, then you share a responsibilty for the actions of those Governments, and I can understand why a film that records an attempted coup by the US Government would not appeal to you.

Overall I would recommend this film to anyone who might enjoy seeing a US Government conspiracy to overthrow ANOTHER South American Government fail.

It was a very unique insight into the coup that was obviously engineered by the United States. Western news media never even bothered to report on it and it was just a speedbump on the way to the Iraqi war. It was unbelievable to see the level of corruption in Venezuela, where the State's oil riches mysteriously don't make it to the public, but instead reside the hands of a few wealthy venezuelan individuals. It is truly ironic that the Venezuelan oil crisis was not a strike by Chavez, but a lockout by the powerful oil industry leaders there to force a crisis.

The dark ambitions of the coup leaders combined with the private media collaboration really makes you angry. Watching a democracy get toppled as easily as a child's lincoln log house demonstrates the true fragility of a government for the people, especially if the people become complacent.

As a patriotic American, I am saddened to see that our government conspired to overthrow a democratic ALLIED nation. I could understand a conspiracy to get rid of the government of an enemy, but an ally? What is going on in Washington?!?

The movie is truly an eye-opener into the dirty dealings that we get into when we perceive that our oil supplies are threatened.

This movie is a must. With all the abuse that oil companies have foisted upon the world, it is inspiring to see an oil industry coup defeated by the people. It provides a clear contrast between the arrogant coup instigators and the humble people who turned out by the hundreds of thousands to support the democratically elected President Hugo Chavez, and to cut short the oil interests greedy coup. The filming and editing is excellent, and the motive for making the film is honest and enlightening. People who don't like this movie are probably thinking that it is America's God given right to control the entire world's oil supply, while not sharing the profits with the people from whom those profits are derived --- land with oil. This movie should encourage all honest people of the world to rise up and fight the imperialistic, colonialistic hegemony of global corporate abuse. This is an A++ movie.

Before I saw this film, I'd only followed the situation in Venezuela on a cursory level. I knew Hugo Chavez was better than the presidents that preceded him in Venezuela, but I had also bought some of the right-wing propaganda against him. After seeing The Revolution Will Not Be Televised, I've become a "true believer" in Chavez and Bolivarian Revolution.

The myths the film dispelled for me were:

-Chavez is a brutal leader

-Chavez doesn't allow dissent

-Chavez is a megalomaniac who may be insane

To the contrary, President Chavez seems to be a quite ordinary, working class, non-white man, but an extraordinary leader. His first comments captured on film after he is returned to the Presidential Palace after the coup were something like, "I knew that we, the people, would win." It wasn't about him. It was about what the will of the majority wanted. It was about what the constitution demanded.

His first broadcast to the people of Venezuela after the coup was directed toward calm and reconciliation. This was amazing for me to see. If he was as brutal as US media portrayed him, he would have incited his followers to go after those who supported the coup. Instead he said to those who dissented, "go ahead and disagree with me." No squashing of dissent there.

The film has a number of candid moments with Chavez. One of the most striking was his recalling his grandfather, who was deemed a "killer" by his grandmother. As Chavez studied who his grandfather was, he found out he was not killer - he was a revolutionary. And that is what Chavez has striven to be.

A terrific documentary that once again shows you can't trust the corporate media.

My rating: 9

Never before and never after has there been a documentary like this. What you get here is the most fascinating and unique look at historical events ever captured on film: you get to be inside a coup d'état in Venezuela while it is actually happening.

What happens before your eyes is stunning, shocking - and if it weren't for the very real events of similar nature in the past in other Latin American countries, unbelievable. The footage shown is brutal, but as to what we are actually seeing and what we are led to believe by clever construction - as Chavez' opponents are claiming - has to be decided by the viewer.

The heated debate this documentary has started is nearly as interesting as the coup itself, and I certainly won't give my personal opinion about what I believe to be the truth. But whether it's the best propaganda film ever or the most compelling capture of true events on celluloid since the footage of the JFK assassination - this is essential viewing.

See it, read about it - and then make up your own mind. 10 out of 10.

Favorite films: http://www.IMDb.com/list/mkjOKvqlSBs/

Lesser-known Masterpieces: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls070242495/

Favorite Low-Budget and B-Movies: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls054808375/

Favorite TV-Shows reviewed: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls075552387/