This is my entry for “K” in the Blogging A to Z Challenge. Throughout April I will be watching and reviewing a documentary movie from A to Z. Some other “K” documentaries I’ve reviewed are Keith Richards: Under the Influence and Knuckleball!
Title: Koch
Release Date: October 8, 2012
Director: Neil Barsky
Production Company: Zeitgeist Films
Summary/Review:
I grew up in a Connecticut suburb of New York City and one of the most significant public figures in my childhood was Mayor Ed Koch. I mean, he was certainly more present in my life than the mayor of my hometown. As far as I knew he’d always been mayor of New York and always would be (not true, as Koch was first elected mayor the same month I turned 4).
The documentary covers his life, largely focused on the 12 years he spent as mayor of New York. The film captures his charm, humor, and positive energy that made him a popular and transformative mayor of New York at a time when crime, homelessness, and decay had made the City a shameful place to live. Yet, the movie doesn’t shy away from his downside – particularly his reprehensible treatment of the City’s African American community, corruption in his administration, and his general mean-spirited submissiveness of anyone who had a contrary opinion.
In addition to a great array of archival footage, there are extensive interviews with Koch in his last years. Despite the passage of time, Koch doesn’t display any regrets or recognize any mistakes he made. In fact he seems to have hardened in his opinions, adopting views such as hateful Islamophobia. It’s rare that a biographical documentary makes me like a person LESS than before I watched it, but that is the case here. But it’s also hard to deny that Koch was the quintessential New Yorker and left an indelible mark on the City, for good and for ill.
From a film making perspective, one of the most remarkable parts of this documentary is an extended sequence set on Election Day in 2010. As Koch learns that Andrew Cuomo (whom he endorsed for governor) is not going to meet with him at the election celebration, Koch decides to leave the party. The camera follows him all the way home until Koch shuts the door on his modest apartment. It’s pretty powerful in saying so much about Koch and his legacy without any narration to explain it.
What Can One Learn From Watching This Documentary:
Ed Koch is kind of a dick, but he’s still pretty funny.
If You Like This You Might Also Want To …:
Watch American Experience: Blackout, an incident that was key in prompting New Yorkers to vote for Koch. The book Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is Burning also includes extensive coverage of the 1977 mayoral election. The essays collected in New York Calling: From Blackout to Bloomberg are largely focused on the Koch Era. Ric Burns’ New York: A Documentary Film provides a more extensive history of the City.
Finally, I’ve always loved this short film “Sundae in New York.”
Source: I watched this movie on Netflix streaming.
Rating: ***
Panorama of the Mountains 