I was a grad student in Philadelphia during the 1985 MOVE confrontation. While I am not surprised that there would be a film "Monday Morning Quarterbacking" what the police and Mayor Goode did in Philadelphia that day, I never, ever thought I would see a pro-MOVE slant on this event. If anyone thinks that MOVE was a peaceful, non-violent religious/cult movement that did nothing to earn being harassed by the police and city of Philadelphia, then you just weren't paying attention. Ask the neighbors who had to deal with them, and begged the city to do something. Ask the vast, vast majority of people who lived in Philadelphia during that period. I don't know what, if any connection, director Jason Osder has with Philadelphia, but it appears from his background that it's little, if any. That might be why his slant is so ill-informed.
What happened in West Philadelphia that night was a tragedy...no one's denying that. But what set those events in motion was MOVE...not the city of Philadelphia or it's police force. In hindsight, there were a lot of things that could have been done, including not having that bunker being constructed on top of their row-house. But to paraphrase what Mayor Goode said about it, it was a difficult situation, with a difficult decision being made, and the consequences were far worse than anyone thought possible.
I would have given this a "1," but I did appreciate the archival footage. But don't be deceived as I was...this was a pro-MOVE piece, which is shameful.
What happened in West Philadelphia that night was a tragedy...no one's denying that. But what set those events in motion was MOVE...not the city of Philadelphia or it's police force. In hindsight, there were a lot of things that could have been done, including not having that bunker being constructed on top of their row-house. But to paraphrase what Mayor Goode said about it, it was a difficult situation, with a difficult decision being made, and the consequences were far worse than anyone thought possible.
I would have given this a "1," but I did appreciate the archival footage. But don't be deceived as I was...this was a pro-MOVE piece, which is shameful.