Medium Cool (1969)

A TV news reporter finds himself becoming personally involved in the violence that erupts around the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

Director:

Haskell Wexler

Writer:

Haskell Wexler

Stars:

Robert Forster, Verna Bloom, Peter Bonerz

2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Forster	...	John Cassellis
Verna Bloom	...	Eileen
Peter Bonerz	...	Gus
Marianna Hill	...	Ruth
Harold Blankenship	...	Harold
Charles Geary	...	Harold's Father
Sid McCoy	...	Frank Baker
Christine Bergstrom	...	Dede
William Sickingen	...	News Director
Robert McAndrew	...	Pennybaker
Marrian Walters	...	Social Worker
Beverly Younger	...	Rich Lady
Edward Croke	...	Plain-clothesman
Doug Kimball	...	Newscaster
Peter Boyle	...	Gun Clinic Manager

Storyline

John Cassellis is the toughest TV-news reporter around. His area of interest is reporting about violence in the ghetto and racial tensions. But he discovers that his network helps the FBI by letting it look at his tapes to find suspects. When he protests, he is fired and goes to the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois.

---

Plot Keywords:

white briefs | briefs | male underwear | journalist | national film registry | 

---

Taglines:

Dateline: Chicago August '68

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1970 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Concrete Wilderness

Filming Locations:

Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$800,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

H & J

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The white television station news vehicle is a 1968 Chevrolet Impala station wagon.

---

Quotes

Gus: Hey, what's in the basket?
John Cassellis: Dinner.

---

Crazy Credits

In keeping with the film's documentary style, the cast is not listed during the opening credits, only in the ending credits.

---

Connections

Referenced in A Decade Under the Influence (2003)

---

Soundtracks

Who Needs the Peace Corps?
(uncredited)
Written by Frank Zappa
Performed by Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention
Played in nightclub scene while the band The Litter is on screen

User Reviews

An Indie if there ever was one.

Interesting approach to revealing the world of photo-journalism, news journalism, and political activism, conceived and directed by award–winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler. Fictional narrative features a Chicago TV news crew intertwined with actual news footage in and around the Democratic Convention of 1968.

There is a good balance between the fiction and non-fiction elements in as much as Wexler attempts to make his point. The fictional story line (a love story) is real enough to keep us watching and deflective enough to make the harsh realities of the non-fiction elements palatable.

Attention to detail defines Medium Cool as a very personal film for Wexler. There definitely is a political perspective. Second and third viewings will call attention to painstaking perfectionism in construction of shots, timing, and pace--the subject matter and cinematic approach (low budget, hand-held, docu-style) may suggest a `student film' so don't be confused. This is an extremely well-crafted highly professional product. Nice interjects of great era-defining music compliment the visuals.

Inventive, some say ground-breaking, certainly well worth watching.