The Weather Underground

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The Weather Underground

2002

1h 32m

Documentary

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

59 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

When the Beatles land in America in the early 1960s, young men wearing their hair long strike the nation as an abomination. But within a few years, youthful rebellion grows more severe: Witness the Weathermen, the radical antiwar activists who mobilize (unsuccessfully) to overthrow the U.S. government. With contemporary interviews and archival footage, this documentary elucidates the Weather Underground's controversial history and continuing significance.

Critics Consensus

Fascinating documentary about the militant Weathermen.

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Lisa Kennedy

Denver Post

10/31/2003

3/4

The Weather Underground leaves the viewer with many questions. To the filmmakers' credit, most of them are the right and urgent ones to ask.

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James Adams

Globe and Mail

10/24/2003

3.5/4

Directors Sam Green and Bill Siegel expertly limn the forces that gave rise to Weatherman and clearly sympathize with the group's motivations. At the same time, they don't stint on Weatherman's follies.

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Erik Lundegaard

Seattle Times

10/17/2003

2.5/4

Whose side the documentarians are on is never clear -- in a muddy rather than an ambiguous way. Did anyone die from the Weathermen's bombings? We don't find out here.

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David Walsh

World Socialist Web Site

02/15/2021

The most striking feature of the film ... is the banality of the political conceptions held by the members of the Weathermen and Weather Underground.

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Jay Antani

Cinema Writer

08/17/2010

4/4

a history lesson that takes us on a lacerating journey from the '60s anti-war movements to their emotional ripple effects in the modern-day

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Mark Halverson

Sacramento News & Review

08/07/2008

4/5

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dustin d

11/08/2022

The Weather Underground is a retrospective on the '70s-era left-wing terrorist organization (that is the precursor to Antifa) depicting the seemingly normal, apparently well-meaning people who were in the group. The documentary presents a neutral viewpoint, but I would have liked more discussion on what motivated the terrorists and how they view their actions ~30 years later.

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07/17/2019

Every American should watch this... now!!!

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11/11/2016

A really compelling documentary about the radical offshoot of the SDS responsible for a series of bombings of public buildings and for breaking Timothy Leary out of prison and smuggling him to Algiers. It's a fair assessment of both sides of the issue, interviewing former members of the group as well as the FBI agent who lead the task force that tracked their movements as well as more moderate members of the SDS like Todd Gitlin. Timely viewing since American society seems to be heading back towards a time where extreme political division creates groups like this.

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07/17/2016

Fascinating story, amazing archival footage, but lacks a bit of depth and detail at times.

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08/17/2013

Undeniably gripping documentary about domestic terrorists.

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05/20/2013

Excellent documentary about the violent Radical Left of the early 1970s. You will likely find some of these people and their actions highly repellant, but it's well worth reviewing what they did and why they did it.

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Sam Green

Director

Bill Siegel

Director

Sam Green

Producer

Bill Siegel

Producer

Carrie Lozano

Producer

Marc Smolowitz

Producer

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Synopsis

When the Beatles land in America in the early 1960s, young men wearing their hair long strike the nation as an abomination. But within a few years, youthful rebellion grows more severe: Witness the Weathermen, the radical antiwar activists who mobilize (unsuccessfully) to overthrow the U.S. government. With contemporary interviews and archival footage, this documentary elucidates the Weather Underground's controversial history and continuing significance.

Director: Sam Green, Bill Siegel
Producer: Sam Green, Bill Siegel, Carrie Lozano, Marc Smolowitz
Distributor: Shadow Distribution
Production Co: The Free History Project
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 17, 2002, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 14, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $560.2K
Runtime: 1h 32m

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