Plot

Mexican former Olympic swimmer Alberto Isaac's record of Mexico 68 is a celebration not of national achievement, but of individual heroism. This thoughtful and comprehensive film bristles with offbeat moments and yields iconic images.

Mexican former Olympic swimmer Alberto Isaac's record of the Mexico City Olympic Games is a celebration not of national achievement (very few national anthems are heard during the film), but of individual heroism. This thoughtful and comprehensive film bristles with offbeat moments, such as underwater shots of the violence and cheating during the water polo matches. The film also yields iconic images, like Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos, on the winners' podium for the 200 meters, their heads bowed, raising clenched, black-gloved fists to the sky in a dramatic gesture of black power and, as Smith has said, of frustration.—Anonymous

The high altitude of Mexico City, allied to the political and social upheavals of the time in Mexico itself, meant that the Summer Olympics of 1968 were the most controversial of modern times. But Alberto Isaac recorded so many events with a rare command of sound and image that his film received an Academy Award nomination for best documentary. Among the highlights are Bob Beamon's prodigious leap in the long jump, Debbie Meyer's triumphs in the swimming pool, and Dick Fosbury's revolutionary "flop" technique in the high jump. There is superb coverage of the water polo, as well as of the diving competitions.—Anonymous