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.

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Plot Keywords:

bare chested male | year 1968 | white briefs | briefs | male underwear | 

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Taglines:

Dateline: Chicago August '68

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Verna Bloom literally stands out in the film because of her yellow outfit. Bloom said she picked the outfit because she thought her character, a woman of modest means, would wear something like that. It just happened to contrast with what everyone else was wearing, so you notice her.

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Goofs

When Eileen enters the L looks for Harold, she is wearing a white hair band, but when they show her sitting on the L, the hair band is missing.

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Quotes

Protesters: [chanting] The whole world is watching! The whole world is watching!

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Crazy Credits

Studs Terkel is credited as "Our Man in Chicago".

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Alternate Versions

Due to copyright disputes, all video releases feature some different songs on the soundtrack from the theatrical version.

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Connections

Referenced in Refinements in Love (1971)

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Soundtracks

Emotions
(uncredited)
Written by Arthur Lee and Johnny Echols
Performed by Love
Played during main titles and as recurring theme throughout film

User Reviews

Fascinating Sixties Document

This film is a mixture of documentary footage and conventional narrative.

It tells the story of a tough news camera-man (Robert Forster) who falls for a young widow (Verna Bloom) and befriends her thirteen-year-old son, against the back-drop of the riots in Chicago in 1968.

The film utilises both professional actors and non-professionals, to very good effect. In fact there are scenes, such as the riot sequences, where there is a genuine sense of danger.

The main flaw in the film is that the love story is not well-handled and often quite dull, the far more interesting events are happening elsewhere.

This is a deeply political work and is savagely critical of the callous and cynical media, which distorts people's perceptions of the world.

Worth watching for anyone interested in the sixties, political cinema or American independent film.

Great soundtrack too.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 February 1970 (Australia)

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