Ridgen and Rossier's new haunting documentary "American Radical" tells the story of controversial Jewish academic Norman Finkelstein.
The film is to open this Fall in Chicago at the IFP/Chicago Underground Film Festival and will then go to Montreal, Boston, Sheffield, Copenhagen, Beirut, Palestine, Israel and many other cities around the world. A selective theatrical release is planned in the US for the Fall of 2009.
American Radical is the probing documentary portrait of American academic and activist Norman Finkelstein. A devoted son of holocaust survivors, ardent critic of Israeli and US Mid-East policies and author of six provocative books-including The Holocaust Industry and Beyond Chutzpah, Finkelstein has been at the center of many intractable controversies. Called a lunatic and a self-hating Jew by some and an inspirational, street-fighting revolutionary by others, Finkelstein is a deeply polarizing figure whose struggles arise from core questions about freedom, identity and nationhood. The film provides an intimate portrait of the man behind the controversy, giving voice to both his many critics and his supporters, while following him around the globe as he labors to change peoples' minds.
American Radical is produced and directed by accomplished documentary filmmakers David Ridgen (Mississippi Cold Case) and Nicolas Rossier (Aristide and the Endless Revolution). Says Ridgen, "We were fascinated by the idea of fighting fire with fire. Strong offense. Eye for an eye. Polarizing forces that create understanding in their collision, like filmmaker Eisenstein's cells. That it takes a radical to tame radicalism, or perhaps to end it. Norman Finkelstein embodies this duality. For us, he is a case study for it in fact. Some important voices say he is full of sound and fury signifying nothing. Others say he is a street fighter for the downtrodden. But what is the real politick of his words and actions and existence? These are the questions we wanted to answer. The more one considers Norman and those in his realm, the more one recognizes that no radical is without sin or innocence. There is worth in being a modern firebrand, and there are great
costs. And both may lie where you least expect to discover them".
Completed in 2009, American Radical was picked up for US distribution by Typecast Releasing in September. Says Rossier, "Typecast is a great choice for us because they have an original and bold catalogue of films and are very passionate and professional". Typecast Releasing will make American Radical available for broadcast, theaters, festival screenings, DVD and digital distribution in the USA.
For more information, contact:
Baraka Productions - Ridgen Film
info@americanradicalthefilm.
www.americanradicalthefilm.com
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