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Miss Liberty's Film & Documentary World

Libertarian Movies, Films & Documentaries

News

Ithaka | Documentary

March 19, 2023

The father of Julian Assange wages a one-man campaign for the release of his son from prison. [ Ithaka credits: Dir: Ben Lawrence/ Stella Moris, John Pilger, John Shipton, Ai Weiwei/ 106 min/ Documentary/ Freedom of Speech/ 2021]

External Reviews

“Assange ‘never wanted it to be him’ in the spotlight, Melzer claims. ‘It was about the States and their war crimes and their corruption. That’s what he wanted to put the spotlight on, and he did, and that’s what made them angry. And they put the spotlight on him.’ In its own small way, Ithaka – with its stirring soundtrack by Brian Eno, no less – is an attempt to turn that light back where it belongs. Here’s hoping it’s not too late.”
–The Age

How to See It

Currently in theaters here
Online Video Search

Links

Official Homepage
IMDB

Related Film: Citizenfour

“The world’s most famous political prisoner, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, has become an emblem of an international arm wrestle over freedom of journalism, government corruption and unpunished war crimes. Now with Julian facing a 175-year sentence if extradited to the US, his family members are confronting the prospect of losing Julian forever to the abyss of the US justice system. This David-and-Goliath struggle is personal – and, with Julian’s health declining in a British maximum-security prison, the clock is ticking. Now it’s up to Julian’s father, John Shipton, and fiancé Stella Moris, to join forces to advocate for Julian on this international odyssey. As they rally a world-wide network of supporters and politicians, they cautiously step into the media’s glare – and are forced to confront the events that made Julian a global flashpoint.”
–Ithaka Homepage

Justice For All: J6 Song Banned By Apple

March 19, 2023

The pettiness of Apple is just unbelievable. Every night for over 750 days, the J6 political prisoners sing the National Anthem at 9 pm from their jail cells. They have been held without trial all this time, a straight-up violation of the “speedy trial” Sixth Amendment. A recording was made of their poignant singing was combined with a voice over of Donald Trump reading the Pledge of Allegiance and released as Justice for All on Apple and Amazon. It skyrocketed to the #1 spot on Apple iTunes chart, surpassing career musicians like Miley Cyrus, Tim McGraw, and Morgan Wallen. That is, until Apple removed Justice for All from its platforms.

justice for all

Bruce Willis: Libertarian Film Hero

March 19, 2023

Bruce Willis — born March 19th, 1955 — started out as a minor off-Broadway actor but eventually landed the lead in Die Hard, launching his now legendary action-hero career. He seemed attracted to the role of individualist hero, and it was a role he took up in several films of libertarian interest.

Willis is probably best known for his role as John McClane, a classic American hero standing alone against all odds for what is right in the 1988 blockbuster Die Hard. Working against him are his chief adversary, Hans Gruber — a poised, organized, “classically-educated” gentleman thief; various incompetent, overbearing representatives of organized law enforcement; and a self-serving journalist. This is a film that pits the ordinary guy — who still values, respects, and at his best embodies heroic individualism — against an array of smug elites, who, whether operating for good or evil, despise him and what he represents. It’s an absolute must-see. As one reviewer put it, “Die Hard is the very pinnacle of the ’80s action movie, and if it’s not the greatest action movie ever made, then it’s damn close.”

Ten years later in 1998, Bruce Willis made Mercury Rising. In this story, the U.S. government has just spent two billion dollars to produce an “unbreakable” communications code. The code is a key part of the country’s spy apparatus. As part of the testing of the code, a secret message written in it was distributed in puzzle magazines with the promise of a prize to anyone who could decrypt the message. It wasn’t actually expected that anyone would be able to do so, as the code had already been tested under the most rigorous conditions. Enter a nine-year-old autistic savant. He breaks the code and calls in for the prize. This high-tech code is considered so important to U.S. security that the NSA sends assassins to kill the boy. But they’ll have to get past Bruce Willis, who is again the individualist hero working against officialdom, this time as a renegade FBI agent who defies all authority to protect this peculiarly-gifted child. Should the one be sacrificed for the benefit of the many? That’s the underlying question in this feel-good action/drama.

In 2018, Willis made a remake of the classic Charles Bronson film Death Wish, about a man whose wife is killed and daughter severely beaten by thugs. The broken US justice system has nothing to offer him in the way of justice or resolution. So he turns vigilante, a lone good guy taking out bad guys one by one. One reviewer complained “If the NRA made a feature film, it would be this.”

In 2019, the film Motherless Brooklyn was made in which a corrupt cabal behind New York City’s urban development will let nothing get in its way…in the name of “progress.” Willis plays a detective killed off early in the film, but it’s notable that he took the role. The Independent Institute called the film “a well-told story that sheds light on a dark part of U.S. urban policy. The movie might well contend for the most pro-liberty film to come out of Hollywood in 2019.”

Bruce Willis doesn’t seem to have explicitly identified as libertarian — he supported a variety of politicians, from Democrat Michael Dukakis to Republican George Bush — but in a 2006 interview where a journalist tried to get Willis to defend his endorsement of the Bush administration, Willis shot back with “I’m sick of answering this fucking question. I’m a Republican only as far as I want a smaller government, I want less government intrusion. I want them to stop shitting on my money and your money and tax dollars that we give 50 percent of every year. I want them to be fiscally responsible and I want these goddamn lobbyists out of Washington. Do that and I’ll say I’m a Republican. I hate the government, OK? I’m apolitical. Write that down. I’m not a Republican.” So it’s fair to say his heart is in the right place.

In later performances, Willis seemed to be losing his edge and was often confused. The cause was eventually diagnosed as asphasia, a brain disease that affects speech and comprehension, and in 2022 he retired. His career may be over, but his characters live on. Personally, I like a visit from John McClane every Christmas, as it turns out many people do.

Links

IMDB
Wikipedia

James O’Keefe: Lucky Charms Is Offensive

March 17, 2023

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Here’s the very first James O’Keefe video, in which a young O’Keefe persuaded university administrator to ban Lucky Charms as “offensive to Irish.” He went on to create Project Veritas, and later O’Keefe Media Group, both of which produce undercover videos on corruption and left-wing political bias.

Pinball: The Man Who Saved The Game | Film

March 15, 2023

Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game is now in theaters (select “screenings” here)
The film is also available on Apple TV streaming

Roger Sharpe fights a legal battle to overturn New York City’s 35-year ban on pinball machines. Based on a true story. [ Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game credits: Dir: Austin Bragg, Meredith Bragg/ Mike Faist, Crystal Reed, Dennis Boutsikaris/ 91 min/ Comedy/ Government Enforced Morality/ 2022]

External Reviews

“In a word, the film is delightful.”
–ReplayMag

“This brisk and colorful story will have you on tilt cheering for the ‘little guy’ all the way through the end.”
–Cinema St. Louis

“As fresh and confident a film as you will see. With bags of charm throughout, there is so much to love in Austin and Meredith Braggs directorial feature debut that you have a massive smile planted on your face.”
–Upcoming On Screen

How to See It

See homepage for current screenings
Online Video Search

Links

Official Homepage
IMDB
Wikipedia
: Roger Sharpe

“Synopsis: An unsettled writer with a fantastic mustache, ROGER SHARPE, finds solace and confidence in one thing he has mastered: pinball. When a police raid destroys the only machines he can find in 1970s New York City, he learns the game is illegal. Roger reluctantly joins forces with the Music and Amusement Association to overturn the ban while falling in love with ELLEN, an artist and single mother. Roger’s path to save pinball ultimately rescues him. He and Ellen overcome their pasts and take a shot at love. Roger learns what it means to take a chance—and that commitment is the most rewarding gamble of all. Based on a true story.”
–Official Homepage

Stanford Prison Experiment: Original Footage

March 14, 2023

“Power corrupts” is an ancient theme, but it is sometimes forgotten that the maxim applies not just to powerful politicians but is also writ small in a thousand other situations. For anyone with power, the potential is there. In what has come to be called the Stanford Prison Experiment, researchers at Stanford University put this to the test by running an experiment in 1971 in which students role-played prisoners and guards. The guards gradually took their authority more seriously, so much so that the experiment was canceled after six days, when student “guards” turn unexpectedly abusive. The Stanford Prison Experiment inspired the 2001 German film Das Experiment.

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About Miss Liberty

This site is a collection of films and documentaries of particular interest to libertarians (and those interested in libertarianism). It began as a book, Miss Liberty’s Guide to Film: Movies for the Libertarian Millennium, where many of the recommended films were first reviewed. The current collection has grown to now more than double the number in that original list, and it’s growing still.

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