The People Speak (film) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The People Speak is a documentary

Documentary

A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...

feature film

Feature film

In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...

that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans. The film gives voice to those who, by insisting on equality and justice, spoke up for social change throughout U.S. history and also illustrates the relevance of this to today's society.

The film is narrated by historian Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn was an American historian, academic, author, playwright, and social activist. Before and during his tenure as a political science professor at Boston University from 1964-88 he wrote more than 20 books, which included his best-selling and influential A People's History of the United...

and is based on his books A People's History of the United States
A People's History of the United States
Chapter 7, "As Long As Grass Grows or Water Runs" discusses 19th century conflicts between the U.S. government and Native Americans and Indian removal, especially during the administrations of Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren....

and, with Anthony Arnove

Anthony Arnove

Anthony Arnove is a freelance literary editor, agent and activist based in Brooklyn. He is on the board of directors of Haymarket Books, and is active in the National Writers Union and the International Socialist Organization.- Early life :...

, Voices of a People's History of the United States
Voices of a People's History of the United States
Voices of a People's History of the United States is an anthology edited by Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove. First released in 2004 by Seven Stories Press, Voices is the primary source companion to Zinn's A People's History of the United States...

.

The People Speak is produced by Matt Damon

Matt Damon

Matthew Paige "Matt" Damon is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting , from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck...

(Good Will Hunting
Good Will Hunting
Good Will Hunting is a 1997 drama film directed by Gus Van Sant and starring Matt Damon, Robin Williams, Ben Affleck, Minnie Driver, and Stellan Skarsgård...

, The Bourne Identity
The Bourne Identity (2002 film)
The Bourne Identity is a 2002 American spy film loosely based on Robert Ludlum's novel of the same name. It stars Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, an amnesiac attempting to discover his true identity amidst a clandestine conspiracy within the Central Intelligence Agency . The film also stars Franka...

, Invictus
Invictus
"Invictus" is a short Victorian poem by the English poet William Ernest Henley .- Background :At the age of 12, Henley contracted tuberculosis of the bone. A few years later, the disease progressed to his foot, and physicians announced that the only way to save his life was to amputate directly...

), Josh Brolin

Josh Brolin

Josh James Brolin is an American actor. He has acted in theater, film and television roles since 1985, and won acting awards for his roles in the films W., No Country for Old Men, Milk and True Grit.-Early life:...

(No Country for Old Men
No Country for Old Men
No Country for Old Men is a 2005 novel by U.S. author Cormac McCarthy. Set along the United States–Mexico border in 1980, the story concerns an illicit drug deal gone wrong in a remote desert location. The title comes from the poem "Sailing to Byzantium" by William Butler Yeats...

, W.
W. (film)
W. is a 2008 American film based on the life and presidency of George W. Bush. It was produced and directed by Oliver Stone, written by Stanley Weiser, and stars Josh Brolin as Bush, with a cast that includes Ellen Burstyn, Elizabeth Banks, James Cromwell, Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright, Scott...

, Milk
Milk (film)
Milk is a 2008 American biographical film on the life of gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk, who was the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in California, as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors...

), Chris Moore (Good Will Hunting
Good Will Hunting
Good Will Hunting is a 1997 drama film directed by Gus Van Sant and starring Matt Damon, Robin Williams, Ben Affleck, Minnie Driver, and Stellan Skarsgård...

, American Pie
American Pie (film)
American Pie is a 1999 teen comedy film written by Adam Herz. American Pie was the directorial film debut of brothers Paul and Chris Weitz, and the first film in the American Pie film series...

, Project Greenlight
Project Greenlight
Project Greenlight was a contest and television series focusing on first-time filmmakers being given the chance to direct a feature film. It was created by Alex Keledjian, developed by Eli Holzman and produced by Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Sean Bailey, and Chris Moore through their production...

), Anthony Arnove

Anthony Arnove

, and Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn

. It is co-directed by Moore, Arnove and Zinn.

Production

The movie was shot on location in Boston, in front of live audiences at Emerson's Cutler Majestic Theatre in January 2008 and at Malibu Performing Arts Center, Malibu.

Cast

Allison Moorer

Allison Moorer is an American alternative country singer and the younger sister of Shelby Lynne. She signed to MCA Nashville in 1998 and made her debut on the U.S...

, Benjamin Bratt

Benjamin Bratt

Benjamin Bratt is an American actor. He is most famous for his role as Rey Curtis on the TV series Law & Order; and his appearances in the movies Blood in Blood Out, Miss Congeniality, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Traffic, and Piñero.-Early life:Bratt was born in San Francisco, California,...

, Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...

, Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...

, Chris Robinson

Chris Robinson (actor)

Chris Robinson is an actor who played Rick Webber #2 on General Hospital...

, Christina Kirk, Danny Glover

Danny Glover

Danny Lebern Glover is an American actor, film director, and political activist. Glover is perhaps best known for his role as Detective Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon film franchise.-Early life:...

, Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels

Darryl McDaniels

-Video game appearances:*The Warriors - Scopes*Guitar Hero: Aerosmith - Himself- External links :* * * * * http://articles.latimes.com/2009/dec/12/entertainment/la-et-people-speak12-2009dec12...

, David Strathairn

David Strathairn

David Russell Strathairn is an American actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for portraying journalist Edward R. Murrow in Good Night, and Good Luck...

, Don Cheadle

Don Cheadle

Donald Frank "Don" Cheadle, Jr. is an American film actor and producer. Cheadle rose to prominence in the late 1990s and the early 2000s for his supporting roles in the Steven Soderbergh-directed films Out of Sight, Traffic, and Ocean's Eleven...

, Eddie Vedder

Eddie Vedder

Eddie Vedder is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. He is widely considered a cultural icon of alternative rock.He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums...

, Harris Yulin

Harris Yulin

Harris Yulin is an American actor who has appeared in dozens of Hollywood and television films.-Life and career:Yulin was born in...

, Jasmine Guy

Jasmine Guy

Jasmine Guy is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is best known for her starring role as Whitley Gilbert in the television sitcom A Different World.-Biography:...

, John Legend

John Legend

John Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...

, Josh Brolin

Josh Brolin

, Kathleen Chalfant

Kathleen Chalfant

-Life and career:Chalfant was born as in San Francisco, California and raised in her parents' boarding house in Oakland. Her father, William Bishop, was an officer in the Coast Guard...

, Kerry Washington

Kerry Washington

Kerry Washington is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Ray Charles's wife, Della Bea Robinson, in the film Ray , as Idi Amin's wife Kay in The Last King of Scotland, and as Alicia Masters, love interest of Ben Grimm, The Thing, in the live-action Fantastic Four films of 2005 and 2007...

, Lupe Fiasco

Lupe Fiasco

Wasalu Muhammad Jaco , better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco , is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. As an entrepreneur, Lupe is the CEO of 1st and 15th Entertainment. He rose to fame in 2006 following the success of his critically acclaimed debut album, Lupe Fiasco's Food...

, Marisa Tomei

Marisa Tomei

Marisa Tomei is an American stage, film and television actress. Following her work on As The World Turns, Tomei came to prominence as a supporting cast member on The Cosby Show spinoff A Different World in 1987...

, Martín Espada

Martín Espada

Martín Espada is a Latino poet, and professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he teaches poetry. Puerto Rico has frequently been featured as a theme in his poems.- Life and career :Espada was born in Brooklyn, New York...

, Matt Damon

Matt Damon

, Michael Ealy

Michael Ealy

Michael Brown , professionally known as Michael Ealy, is an American actor.-Personal life:Ealy was born in Silver Spring, Maryland. He attended Springbrook High School and the University of Maryland, College Park.-Career:...

, Mike O'Malley

Mike O'Malley

Michael Edward "Mike" O'Malley is an American actor and playwright who has appeared in films and television series. He hosted Nickelodeon GUTS, and he starred in the CBS comedy Yes, Dear...

, Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...

, P!nk

P!nk

Alecia Beth Moore , better known by her stage name Pink , is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress....

, Q'orianka Kilcher

Q'Orianka Kilcher

Q'orianka Waira Qoiana Kilcher is a U.S. actress, singer and activist. She is best known for her role as Pocahontas in the 2005 film The New World, directed by Terrence Malick. Her second memorable film role is Princess Kaiulani in Princess Kaiulani.-Early life:Kilcher was born in Schweigmatt,...

, Reg E. Cathey

Reg E. Cathey

Reginald "Reg" E. Cathey is an American stage, film and television actor.Cathey is a native of Huntsville, Alabama and a graduate of J.O. Johnson High School. He spent his childhood in West Germany. His favourite band is Blur....

, Rich Robinson

Rich Robinson

Rich Robinson is an American musician and founding member of the rock and roll band The Black Crowes. Along with older brother Chris Robinson, Rich formed the band in 1984 while the two were in high school...

, Rosario Dawson

Rosario Dawson

Rosario Isabel Dawson is an American actress, singer, and writer. She has appeared in films such as Kids, Men in Black II, 25th Hour, Sin City, Clerks II, Rent, Death Proof, The Rundown, Eagle Eye, Alexander, Seven Pounds, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and Unstoppable.-Early...

, Sandra Oh

Sandra Oh

Sandra Oh is a Canadian actress. She is best known for the role of Dr. Cristina Yang on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, for which she has won a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild award. She also played notable roles in the feature films Under the Tuscan Sun and Sideways, and had a supporting role on the...

, Sean Penn

Sean Penn

Sean Justin Penn is an American actor, screenwriter and film director, also known for his political and social activism...

, Staceyann Chin

Staceyann Chin

Staceyann Chin is a spoken word poet, performing artist and LGBT rights political activist. Her work has been published in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Pittsburgh Daily, and has been featured on 60 Minutes...

, Viggo Mortensen

Viggo Mortensen

Viggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...

Screenings

Clips from the film were screened at the Democratic National Convention

Democratic National Convention

The Democratic National Convention is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 national convention...

in August 2008 and at the Toronto International Film Festival

Toronto International Film Festival

The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...

in September 2008.. The movie opened MoMA

Moma

Moma may refer to:* Moma , an owlet moth genus* Moma Airport, a Russian public airport* Moma District, Nampula, Mozambique* Moma River, a right tributary of the Indigirka River* Google Moma, the Google corporate intranet...

's Documentary Fortnight in New York http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/films/660 in February 2009 and was screened on April 16, 2009 at the Atlanta Film Festival

Atlanta Film Festival

The Atlanta Film Festival is an Academy Award qualifying, international film festival held in Atlanta, Georgia. Started in 1976 and occurring every April, the festival shows a diverse range of independent films, including genre films such as horror and sci-fi...

. http://atlanta.bside.com/2009/films/thepeoplespeak_atlanta2009 In November 2009, the movie premiere was held at Jazz at Lincoln Center

Jazz at Lincoln Center

Jazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. JALC's performing arts complex, Frederick P. Rose Hall, is located at West 60th Street and Broadway in New York City, slightly south of the main Lincoln Center campus and directly adjacent to Columbus Circle. Frederick P....

in New York.

The People Speak premiered on The History Channel

The History Channel

History, formerly known as The History Channel, is an American-based international satellite and cable TV channel that broadcasts a variety of reality shows and documentary programs including those of fictional and non-fictional historical content, together with speculation about the future.-...

on Sunday, December 13, 2009.

Reviews

The film was well received by the critics. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-people-speak12-2009dec12,0,7132049.story
described it as "Striking, exhilarating... the performances are thrilling”. According to the Boston Globe, "The documentary... works beautifully... Each passionate reading flows out of the previous one."

USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...

http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2009-12-10-Brolin10_ST_N.htm reported Damon as saying: "This is the perfect format for a history lesson. You’re getting the actual historical text verbatim, so there’s no spin, performed by these great actors. History is intimidating. There’s so much to know. If I could go back to college again, I would be a history major." According to the newspaper, Springsteen taped at his ranch in New Jersey while Brolin was at work and Brolin said: “They ended up spending five or six hours. And I got this little card from Bruce Springsteen that said: ‘Josh, thank you so much for making my childhood dream come true. I had the greatest day of my life.’"

Soundtrack

The People Speak soundtrack on Verve Records

Verve Records

Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...

features Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...

, who performs with just a guitar and harmonica in his New Jersey home recording studio, and John Legend

John Legend

who sings solo backed by a piano at a Boston theatre, as well as others (including Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal (musician)

Henry Saint Clair Fredericks , who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an American Grammy Award winning blues musician. He incorporates elements of world music into his music...

, Allison Moorer

Allison Moorer

Allison Moorer is an American alternative country singer and the younger sister of Shelby Lynne. She signed to MCA Nashville in 1998 and made her debut on the U.S...

, The Black Crowes' Rich Robinson

Rich Robinson

and X's Exene Cervenka

Exene Cervenka

Exene Cervenka is an American writer, musician and artist, most famous as the co-lead vocalist of the Los Angeles punk rock band X.-Career:...

and John Doe

John Doe

The name "John Doe" is used as a placeholder name in a legal action, case or discussion for a male party, whose true identity is unknown or must be withheld for legal reasons. The name is also used to refer to a male corpse or hospital patient whose identity is unknown...

) at the Malibu Performing Arts Center, where they perform both vintage and recent protest-music classics.

Springsteen reprises the John Steinbeck

John Steinbeck

John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr. was an American writer. He is widely known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden and the novella Of Mice and Men...

/Woody Guthrie

Woody Guthrie

Woodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...

-inspired “The Ghost of Tom Joad

The Ghost of Tom Joad

The Ghost of Tom Joad is the eleventh studio album by Bruce Springsteen, released in 1995 . The album was recorded and mixed at Thrill Hill during the spring and summer of 1995. Musically and lyrically reminiscent of Springsteen's 1982 critically acclaimed album Nebraska, The Ghost of Tom Joad...

” from his 1995 album of the same name; Dylan sings Guthrie's “Do Re Mi

Do Re Mi (Woody Guthrie song)

"Do Re Mi" is a folksong by American songwriter Woody Guthrie. The song deals with the experiences and reception of Dust Bowl migrants when they arrive in California...

”; and two early Dylan songs “Masters Of War

Masters of War

"Masters of War" is a song by Bob Dylan, written over the winter of 1962-63 and released on the album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in the spring of 1963. The song's melody was adapted from the traditional "Nottamun Town"...

” and “Only A Pawn In Their Game” are performed by Eddie Vedder

Eddie Vedder

and Rich Robinson

Rich Robinson

, respectively.

One of the best-known songs of the Great Depression, “Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?”, is sung by Moorer; Newman is at his piano for “Sail Away

Sail Away (Randy Newman song)

"Sail Away" is a song by Randy Newman, the title track of his 1972 album.-Lyrics and interpretation:"Sail Away" is representative of Newman's trademark unconventional and clever approach to songwriting: it takes the form of a "come on" or a "pitch" from an American slave trader to potential slaves...

”, the title track from his 1972 album; Legend performs Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye

Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....

's 1970s anthem “What's Going On

What's Going On

What's Going On is the eleventh studio album by soul musician Marvin Gaye, released May 21, 1971, on the Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records...

”; Mahal plays “Blues With A Feeling”; and Cervenka and Doe revive X's roots rocker “See How We Are” from 1987. More recent protest songs are Fiasco's

Lupe Fiasco

“American Terrorist”, first heard on his 2006 debut album; Pink's “Dear Mr. President,” heard on her album of that same year; and Browne's “The Drums Of War”, which debuted on his 2008 album.

The soundtrack, on Verve Records

Verve Records

, features new songs by Allison Moorer

Allison Moorer

Allison Moorer is an American alternative country singer and the younger sister of Shelby Lynne. She signed to MCA Nashville in 1998 and made her debut on the U.S...

, Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

, Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...

, Eddie Vedder

Eddie Vedder

, Exene Cervenka

Exene Cervenka

Exene Cervenka is an American writer, musician and artist, most famous as the co-lead vocalist of the Los Angeles punk rock band X.-Career:...

, Jackson Browne

Jackson Browne

Jackson Browne is an American singer-songwriter and musician who has sold over 17 million albums in the United States alone....

, John Doe

John Doe

, John Legend

John Legend

, Lupe Fiasco

Lupe Fiasco

, P!nk

P!nk

Alecia Beth Moore , better known by her stage name Pink , is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress....

, Randy Newman

Randy Newman

Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his mordant pop songs and for film scores....

, Rich Robinson

Rich Robinson

, and Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal (musician)

Henry Saint Clair Fredericks , who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an American Grammy Award winning blues musician. He incorporates elements of world music into his music...

. More info at: www.peopleshistory.us/news/people-speak-soundtrack-CD-on-Verve http://www.peopleshistory.us/news/people-speak-soundtrack-CD-on-Verve

The People Speak UK

Colin Firth

SirColin Andrew Firth, CBE is a British film, television, and theatre actor. Firth gained wide public attention in the 1990s for his portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the 1995 television adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice...

(A Single Man
A Single Man (film)
A Single Man is a 2009 drama film based on the novel of the same name by Christopher Isherwood. It is the first film directed by Tom Ford. The film stars Colin Firth, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of George Falconer, a depressed gay British university...

, Love Actually
Love Actually
Love Actually is a 2003 British romantic comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis. The screenplay delves into different aspects of love as shown through ten separate stories involving a wide variety of individuals, many of whom are shown to be interlinked as their tales progress...

) developed the British version of the film together with History UK and the film’s US producers Anthony Arnove

Anthony Arnove

and Chris Moore. Like the original, the UK version draws on writings that have influenced British history and it includes performances by British screen and stage actors. These include Ian McKellen

Ian McKellen

Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE is an English actor. He has received a Tony Award, two Academy Award nominations, and five Emmy Award nominations. His work has spanned genres from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction...

, Joss Stone

Joss Stone

Jocelyn Eve Stoker , better known by her stage name Joss Stone, is an English soul singer-songwriter and actress. Stone rose to fame in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, The Soul Sessions, which made the 2004 Mercury Prize shortlist...

, Saffron Burrows

Saffron Burrows

Saffron Dominique Burrows is an English actress and former fashion model, who starred as Det. Serena Stevens on Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Lorraine Weller on Boston Legal.-Early life:...

, Mark Strong

Mark Strong

Mark Strong is an English actor, with a body of work in both films and television. He has performed in films as varied as Body of Lies, Syriana, The Young Victoria, Sherlock Holmes, RocknRolla, Stardust, and Kick-Ass...

, Celia Imrie

Celia Imrie

Celia Diana Savile Imrie is an English actress. In a career starting in the early 1970s, Imrie has played Marianne Bellshade in Bergerac, Philippa Moorcroft in Dinnerladies, Miss Babs in Acorn Antiques, Diana Neal in After You've Gone and Gloria Millington in Kingdom...

, Noel Clarke

Noel Clarke

Noel Anthony Clarke is an English actor, director and screenwriter from London. He is best known for playing Wyman Norris in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and Mickey Smith in Doctor Who...

, Sir Ben Kingsley and others.

The documentary aired on History UK on October 31, 2010.

Other international versions of A People’s History are also being developed. These will be based on the same format, exploring people's histories in other countries.

The People Speak – Education

An educational version of The People Speak is in production, in association with Voices of a People's History of the United States (http://www.peopleshistory.us/).

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.