After Stonewall (Documentary)
Picture: C+
Sound: C+ Extras: C+ Documentary: B-
Before
Stonewall (1985)
is a tough act to follow, in how thoroughly it showed the reason the riots that
launched Gay Rights were necessary and inevitable. John Scagliotti is the main director, with Janet Baus and Dan
Hunt are credited in some spots as co-directors, of the 1999 sequel After
Stonewall. It is not as powerful or
groundbreaking as its predecessor, but still as informative and has some
highlights.
The tone
continues to be on the serious side and traces the uglier developments as the
gay backlash develops in the late 1970s.
Sometimes, it cuts away too soon, such as the moment Anita Bryant gets
hit in the face with a pie when getting into another round of gay bashing on
her part. Though significant to note,
the program skips that she was part of a major orange juice campaign, helped to
give the world Kathy Lee Gifford (as horrifying an offense) and that Bryant says
that at least it was a “fruit pie” after the assault. This loses some of the edge of the text as a result, though
Melissa Etheridge does a good job in her narration. It also shows the rise of the Religious Right, though does not go
far enough to deal with them. At about
90 minutes, this program was first made for TV, but received theatrical
screenings. It is worth your time, but
we recommend the first film, reviewed elsewhere on this site.
The 1.33
X 1 full frame image is a mix of color and monochrome footage from the past and
new footage in the majority of new interviews and footage shot in the analog
NTSC video format. This is above
average, as is Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo that may lack surrounds, but is clean
and clear enough to hear the huge amount of vital interview information throughout. Extras include trailers to other gay titles
from First Run on DVD and at least a half-hour of extra interview footage not
in the main program that makes more valuable points. Though still not up to its predecessor, After Stonewall is
worth a look.
- Nicholas Sheffo
