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Wednesday, Nov 25, 2009
George Butler's crisp, informative documentary underscores an essential idea that we seem to have lost track of: That politicians are our servants -- not our bosses.
Oct 1, 2004 | The subtitle of George Butler's crisply made and informative documentary "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry" says it all: For the one current presidential candidate who actually went to Vietnam, the war wasn't just long -- it's not even over.
While liberal-leaning movie audiences may be exhausted by the spate of political or issues-related documentaries that have flooded our neighborhood theaters since last spring -- from Jehane Noujaim's illuminating "Control Room" to Michael Moore's passionate but gassy polemic "Fahrenheit 9/11" to Harry Thomason and Nick Perry's smart and, in places, unspeakably moving "The Hunting of the President" -- it's my duty as a citizen and a critic to rally you for just one more: "Going Upriver" is yet another political documentary that's likely to be seen mostly by people sympathetic to the Democratic cause. But even though "Going Upriver" is hitting theaters just weeks before one of the most crucial elections in modern history, the issues it raises aren't important solely because they could have an impact on that election -- even after November, they won't have gone away.
"Going Upriver" covers the college years of John Kerry, his four-month tour of duty in Vietnam, and, most significantly, his leadership role in the Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) upon his return. Whether Kerry is your kind of leader or not is immaterial: "Going Upriver" is really an exploration of what we used to call, when our leaders actually had them, leadership qualities. And it underscores a seemingly basic and essential idea that has somehow been lost over the past four years and continues to be obscured in the campaign currently being waged: that politicians are our servants -- not our bosses.
"Going Upriver" opens with home-movie footage of the young John Kerry doing ordinary things (like sharing a sibling's birthday celebration) and things that are generally available only to kids with certain economic advantages (like skimming down ski slopes). Kerry's father was a diplomat, which certainly translates into a kind of privilege, but there's still something resolutely down to earth about this home-movie footage: These are New Englanders who aren't afraid to be New Englanders, as opposed to those who masquerade as Texans.
"Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry"
Directed by George Butler
Later footage, from Kerry's days at Yale, shows a serious-looking, well-groomed kid, active in sports but already leaning toward public service. His college roommates -- among them his close friend Danny Barbiero, who also went to Vietnam -- recall the way he'd dash from one student-group meeting to another. Kerry also held a part-time job at Stop-n-Shop, collecting bottles. "John didn't have a lot of money," Barbieri says, waiting just a half beat before he adds the kicker: "He still owes me money."
One of Kerry's other roommates, Harvey Bundy, was the nephew of William Bundy, a foreign-policy adviser to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson (and coauthor of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution). According to Harvey, William helped influence Kerry's decision to join the Navy, asserting that the government needed educated kids like him to lead in Vietnam. Footage from the time, circa 1965, shows Kerry, looking both upstandingly reputable and youthfully idealistic in a jacket and tie, expounding on his sense of duty: "Commitment, just by the meaning of it, is something that comes from within you."
