WINNER: TOP 25 LIBERTARIAN FILMS A heroic and ingenious father organizes an escape for his family from East Germany to the West via a homemade hot air balloon. Based on a true story. [ Night Crossing credits: Dir: Delbert Mann/ John Hurt, Jane Alexander, Beau Bridges/ 107 min/ Family, Action-Adventure/ Escape from Socialism, Creator as Hero] Incredible as it may seem, … [Read more...]
Don’t Drink the Water (1969)
A vacationing American family accidentally ends up behind the Iron Curtain and is mistaken for spies. [ Don't Drink the Water credits: Dir: Howard Morris/ Jackie Gleason, Estelle Parsons, Ted Bessell/ 100 min/ Comedy/ Escape from Socialism, Abuse of Power] Don't Drink the Water explicitly lampoons some of the more stereotypical aspects of socialism, and even better, it … [Read more...]
Shenandoah (1965)
A Virginia farmer defies both the Confederate and Union armies to steer a neutral course for his family through the American Civil War. [ Shenandoah credits: Dir: Andrew V. McLaglen/ James Stewart, Doug McClure, Glenn Corbett/ 106 min/ Western, Family/ Anti-War, Eminent Domain, Anti-Draft] Lieutenant Johnson: “[To fight this war, the State of] Virginia needs all of her … [Read more...]
Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow (1964)
Finding his parish flock taxed into poverty, a country vicar secretly takes on the king’s taxmen by night in the guise of a hideous scarecrow. [ Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow credits: Dir: James Neilson/ Patrick McGoohan, George Cole, Tony Britton/ 129 min/ Action-Adventure, Family/ Anti-Draft, Anti-Taxation] “Unjust laws can be altered as well as made by men ... Taxed … [Read more...]
The Swamp Fox (1959-1961)
This eight-episode Disney series is a tribute to Revolutionary War military hero Francis Marion, renowned for his lightning surprise attacks, who frustrated British efforts to control the South. [ The Swamp Fox credits: Dir: Harry Keller/ Leslie Nielsen, John Sutton, Joy Page/ 102 min/ Action-Adventure/ American revolution, Resistance to tyranny] External Reviews "The … [Read more...]
Johnny Tremain (1957)
A young man in eighteenth-century Boston becomes involved in the revolutionary events of his time and fights the good fight against authoritarian rule. [ Johnny Tremain credits: Dir: Robert Stevenson/ Hal Stalmaster, Luana Patten, Jeff York/ 80 min/ American Revolution, Anti-Taxation, Right to Secede] This historical fiction mixed with fact gives us an intimate view of … [Read more...]
All Mine to Give (1956)
A hard-working pioneer family suffers severe hardships that can only be resolved with the help of kindly neighbors. Based on a true story. [ All Mine to Give credits: Dir: Allen Reisner/ Glynis Johns, Cameron Mitchell, Rex Thompson/ 102 min/ Family, Drama/ Individualism, Voluntarism] There’s no big lesson here but so many small ones as to constitute a fair example of the … [Read more...]
Friendly Persuasion (1956)
ACADEMY AWARD NOMINEE: BEST PICTURE Pacifist Quaker ways are strained by the American Civil War. [ Friendly Persuasion credits: Dir: William Wyler/ Gary Cooper, Dorothy McGuire, Anthony Perkins, Marjorie Main/ 140 min/ Family, Drama/ Non-Aggression] The first half of this film is essentially an image dramatized in great depth; the second half is a drama about war. At … [Read more...]
The Winslow Boy (1948)
When a young cadet is accused of theft and expelled from a government Naval Academy, one of England’s great barristers fights for his right to a fair trial. Based on a true story. [ The Winslow Boy credits: Dir: Anthony Asquith/ Robert Donat, Margaret Leighton, Cedric Hardwicke/ 117 min/ Drama/ Law & Liberty] “It is not Winslow’s guilt or Winslow’s innocence that … [Read more...]
Young Tom Edison (1940)
Semibiographical account of the boyhood years of Thomas Edison. [ Young Tom Edison credits: Dir: Norman Taurog/ Mickey Rooney, Fay Bainter, George Bancroft/ 82 min/ Drama, Biography, Family/ Creator as Hero] Young Tom Edison weaves together a variety of historical anecdotes about the young Thomas Edison, sometimes with exaggeration but always with due respect for the … [Read more...]