No God, No Master

So Many Historical Headlines to Cover, so Little Time, and so Little Money to make the Movie. The Story of Palmer's Raids, the Attorney General's Attempt in 1919 to Mass Deport Thousands of Immigrants before such a Thing was made Illegal, is a Story that is just too Enormous to Tell in Ninety Minutes.

Add to that the Backstory of Fat Cat Indifference and down right Worker Oppression is Given some Screen Time but again is Light on Detail and Heavy of Speechifying.

But if this Little Movie can do Anything it can Draw Attention to a somewhat Forgotten Time and Place in America's Early Twentieth Century History and might Propel Folks to do some Research.

The Subject matter and the Situation has Not Lost any of its Relevance and can be Seen as a Mirror to Things that matter just as Much Today. It is an Engrossing Story and is Played Well enough to Entertain as well as Enlighten.

This was a Time when Workers were Definitely Exploited and Sought Collective Bargaining. It Must Also be Said that the Workers were Being Exploited from All Sides and there was Blood on Everybody's Hands.

Worth a Watch for its Historical Relevance and as a Primer for more Investigation into the Struggles of the Time and a Sordid Situation that can Never be Forgotten, Lest We Repeat. Oh, Wait, We Have. So that makes this Movie even more Important.

As I've read this film was made in 2009 and coundn't found a distributor for a longer time, a five years. It's not surprising at all, because it shows the system how it was, and actually how it is today. Also, it shows the historical figures of USA, as were J. Edgar Hoover and Mitchell Palmer, and the real picture of the Democratic Party, mostly financially supported by Rockefeller. At the end we can read conclusion what happened and what are some intentions to be done, and to be honest, it makes sense. David Strathairn's portrayal of anarchy fighting detective, William J. Flynn, is good, but for that role it would be better that he got some weight.

"Without blood shed there is no progress. Anarchy now, anarchy forever." During the summer of 1919 a series of bombs begin to show up in New York. The targets are prominent politicians and businessmen and the man investigating is William Flynn (Strathairn), an agent with the U.S. Bureau of Investigation. What he uncovers is an anarchy group bent on destroying the government. Wvweything is going great and he is on the trail of the ones in charge, then the F.B.I. shows up to help. I wasn't really sure what to expect from this going in, in fact I knew so little about it that I didn't even know it was based on a true story. When I found that out I became more interested and 5 minutes in to the movie I was sucked in. This movie captivated me and had me yelling at the TV in some spots. It's very interesting to see how events that happened 100 years ago are almost identical to what is happening today, have we learned nothing? The movie will suck you in and anger you all at once. That is the sign of a great movie. I don't want to say too much about it but if you thought J.Edgar Hoover was bad once he got power wait till you see him before. Overall, one of the best movies I have seen in a long time. If you liked the Untouchables you will love this. I easily give this an A.

I'm not going to research who was behind the making of this movie but it appears to me they are showing that people like Rockefeller, Morgan, Carnegie, and their ilk, along with one of the craziest, most corrupt man in our history, ol J. Edgar himself, were perpetrators of the biggest mass theft and suppression in the history of the world. Thank goodness this movie is speaking up for the have nots. And, this was also the beginning of the police being the protectorate of the "good" white folk vs. those "immigrants.", or darker skinned folks. Which side are you on. That prob depends on whether you like this movie or not.

This movie started off with a bang , and we have crack FBI agent Flynn investigating a bomb in 1920 New England. Strathairn is always fun to watch, and is utterly convincing, but why he took this insulting script is beyond me. The film quickly devolves into "big bad businessmen vs little immigrant worker" propaganda of the sappiest kind. Set pieces and the lead character's side romance with his neighbor Conchetta (the Irish gets together with the Italians)are fine, as is the casting (with the exception of Flynn's young wooden protege, also an "Italiano"). The direction and pacing are also good. The film bravely insinuates (in)famous anarchists such as Emma Goldman and Sacco and Vanzetti. But the script moves away from detectivework and finding the culprits (there is very little detail given, to preaching about the dangers of nativism, and treats the anarchists as one-dimensional heroes, instead of the violent murderers they very possibly were, which I found insulting and spoiled the movie.

Don't expect a detective movie; expect a cringey sermon.