Town Bloody Hall

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Town Bloody Hall

1980

1h 28m

Documentary

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

100%

Tomatometer

14 Reviews

67%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

Filmmakers D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus document a debate between Norman Mailer and four feminists.

Melissa Anderson

Artforum

The entire debate at Town Hall is defined by a manic, stimulating energy -- the kind that's hard to replicate via Twitter wars.

Jun 20, 2014

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Mark Holcomb

Village Voice

What finally makes Town Bloody Hall so compelling -- and unsettling -- is the impression that such serious, spirited debate is a thing of the past.

Nov 12, 2001

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Brian Susbielles

InSession Film

It’s a documentary, but when watching, you can easily forget about that.

Mar 8, 2023

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CJ Sheu

Critics at Large

At first I wanted to say that the presentation perfectly matched the subject, but in truth I don't know if what we have is form following content or content following form.

Oct 26, 2021

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David Harris

Spectrum Culture

Town Bloody Hall is a fascinating document of a time and place where such ideas could be debated in front of an audience in a wild and free-wheeling way, in a forum where everyone's outlandish ideas could be heard, no matter how incendiary...

Mar 3, 2021

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Johanna Fateman

4Columns

We witness a debate on a topic as big as the world in Town Bloody Hall, one with no fixed terms or single proposition. The tension is ambient, abstract, roaming; the camera seems to scan the room wildly in hopes of catching it flare.

Sep 21, 2020

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Audience Member

This film is a perfect representation of what occurs when the world's greatest minds sit together and have a well-orchestrated argument. Norman Mailer is annoyingly witty, and Germaine Greer sweeps the audience away with her articulation. It is well worth sitting through the few incomprehensible comments and angry reactions this documentary is sure to induce. After a while, one will realise the true genius in this work of art.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/29/23

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Audience Member

Just had the misfortune of watching this on YouTube. Obnoxiousness all around, although a couple of the more famous questioners (Susan Sontag and Cynthia Ozick) acquitted themselves well.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/28/23

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Audience Member

Love it .. a must see for all woman and men who wish to have their eyes opened.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

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Audience Member

So, not surprisingly, I am the first person to review this movie. I saw the movie in my Gender and American Literature class. The VHS copy of the movie came from the course instructor's personal collection. Norman Mailer plays the role of the moderator. All the ladies deliver quasi-papers. Mailer accuses feminists of not being cool when they lose their cool, and yet at one point he himself loses his cool. My favourite part is when Cynthia Ozick makes a clever little comment about Mailer confusing the penis with the pen. I'm paraphrasing: "When you dip your dick in the ink pot, what color is the ink?"

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

I did never understand if it was for real or for not, but it was funny.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

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D.A. Pennebaker

Director

Chris Hegedus

Director

D.A. Pennebaker

Producer

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Synopsis

Filmmakers D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus document a debate between Norman Mailer and four feminists.

Director: D.A. Pennebaker, Chris Hegedus
Producer: D.A. Pennebaker
Production Co: Hammer Films, 20th Century Fox
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Runtime: 1h 28m