Monday, February 8, 2010

Two Deaths in November

Two Deaths in November

Image of an Assassination



What is the most watched film in history? That distinction probably goes to 22 seconds of 8mm footage shot by a Dallas dress maker named Abraham Zapruder.

On the morning of November 22, 1963, Abraham Zapruder almost forgot his 8mm home movie camera, but returned home to retrieve it when reminded by one of his employees. Less than a block from his office, at Dealey Plaza, he shot a clear film of the assassination of the leader of the First World. Perhaps the only assassination ever to be caught on film to that time.

Image of an Assassination: A New Look at the Zapruder Film

The DVD release of this film includes special features includes various versions of the film in various states of restoration and at various speeds, pages of events chronology from 1963 to 1998, other important news film and video clips from the time, and biographical and contact information of the film’s custodians making it an essential document for historians of the period.

Dear Zachary


Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father is a poignant film about the life and death of a small town doctor made by his childhood friend.




Kurt Kuenne always wanted to be a filmmaker and cast his childhood friend Andrew Bagby in all his movies. When Bagby was murdered shortly after graduating from medical school, Kuenne decided to make one last film with him, gathered from all the footage of Bagby he had, and interviews with family and friends, as a gift to Bagby’s infant son.

Right from the start, the film lands like the blow of a sledgehammer, as it swings back and forth between the wonder that was Andrew – a guy you really want to meet – and rapid fire cuts about the horrifying details of his death on November 7, 2001.

Bagby was so beloved by so many people that there were memorial services for him in at least 5 different cities in 3 different countries. Although the film is a tearjerker at times, it’s the kind of film that makes you want to live your own life to the fullest. But that’s not all - every time you think the story is over, a new twist comes to light, making it an engaging mystery, a poignant tribute, and a scathing indictment all in one.

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