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WILLIAM KUNSTLER: DISTURBING THE UNIVERSEMovie Reviews
Documentary about the life and career of William Kunstler, a prominent and controversial attorney in the latter half of the 20th century. Cast:Herman Badillo, Harry Belafonte, Clyde Bellecourt, Daniel Berrigan, Julian BondDirector:Emily Kunstler, Sarah KunstlerRelease Date:November 13, 2009DVD Release:March 30, 2010From:Arthouse FilmsLength:1 hr. 25 min.
MARCH 30, 2010
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe, Very Good Reviews (Doc) Key Cities
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe played in key cities to very good reviews. • Bill Stamets wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times, "...remarkable... offers a critical and conflicted profile of the legal activist.... Kunstler's daughters offer an insider view." • And Joe Williams wrote in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "...a timely reminder of a era when 'change' was more than just a campaign slogan." More Reviews Below...
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe Positive Reviews (18 Reviews, reviews below)
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: EXCELLENT(cg) "Kunstler became a radical and a celebrity... this vivid documentary captures how those two facets of his life worked together in morally urgent and contradictory ways."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 109 words, 12/04/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (7 Reviews)
Stephen Holden, New York Times: GOOD "...crisply made, largely admiring... it is by no means a hagiography of a man who earned widespread contempt late in his career for defending pariahs."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 700 words, 11/13/09
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: WEAK(cg) "...this doc, made by Kunstler's daughters Emily and Sarah, doesn't pretend to be unbiased, but it nonetheless has an unblinking view of its subject."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 114 words, 11/13/09
Bill Stamets, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...remarkable... offers a critical and conflicted profile of the legal activist.... Kunstler's daughters offer an insider view."(See all of Bill Stamets's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 399 words, 01/22/10
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: EXCELLENT "...provides a rich and entertaining snapshot of America's Vietnam-era zeitgeist and of our nation's sometimes flawed legal system.... a superior documentary."(See all of Gary Goldstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 11/20/09
Kyle Smith, New York Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "It is said that everyone either loved or hated radical defense lawyer William Kunstler. A documentary by his daughters asks, 'Why choose 'or' instead of 'both'?' "(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 242 words, 11/13/09
Ella Taylor, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Emily and Sarah Kunstler want to know whether their late father was a lone fighter for social justice or a narcissist..."(See all of Ella Taylor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 237 words, 11/11/09
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...offers a deeply personal view of a larger-than-life figure. It's a view filtered through a prism of memory and emotion, but one well worth investigating."(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 324 words, 12/11/09
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: VERY GOOD(cg) "...engrossing and provocative... two of Kunstler's daughters, Emily and Sarah wrote and directed the film, and in it wrestle with their father's incendiary taste in clients."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 547 words, 11/13/09
Tom Keogh, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...an honest and emotionally complex documentary... an attempt by its makers to separate the legend from the father they knew."(See all of Tom Keogh's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 434 words, 11/20/09
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a timely reminder of an era when 'change' was more than just a campaign slogan. But it's also a personal portrait, with shadings."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 307 words, 01/22/10
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (4 Reviews)
Ella Taylor, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Emily and Sarah Kunstler want to know whether their late father was a lone fighter for social justice or a narcissist..."(See all of Ella Taylor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 237 words, 11/11/09
Gerald Peary, Boston Phoenix: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a deserving tribute to the man who, on his best days, stood up for the prisoners in Attica and the American Indian Movement at Wounded Knee..."(See all of Gerald Peary's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 141 words, 11/12/09
Stephen Holden, New York Times: GOOD "...crisply made, largely admiring... it is by no means a hagiography of a man who earned widespread contempt late in his career for defending pariahs."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 700 words, 11/13/09
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: EXCELLENT "...provides a rich and entertaining snapshot of America's Vietnam-era zeitgeist and of our nation's sometimes flawed legal system.... a superior documentary."(See all of Gary Goldstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 11/20/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Rob Nelson, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...lacks the objectivity needed to put the lawyer's shift from '60s fist-pumper to '80s and '90s headline-grabber in proper context."(See all of Rob Nelson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 263 words, 01/19/09
James Greenberg, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "...never less than compelling.... a labor of love that helps restore the reputation of a significant player on the American stage in the last half of the 20th century."(See all of James Greenberg's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 629 words, 01/17/09
Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times: EXCELLENT "...provides a rich and entertaining snapshot of America's Vietnam-era zeitgeist and of our nation's sometimes flawed legal system.... a superior documentary."(See all of Gary Goldstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 11/20/09
Stephen Holden, New York Times: GOOD "...crisply made, largely admiring... it is by no means a hagiography of a man who earned widespread contempt late in his career for defending pariahs."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 700 words, 11/13/09
19.2 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe's reviews are separated by an average 19.2 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe (18 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe's reviews cover 21.3% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 6,184 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 344 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe Coverage, Volume & Length (18 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 11 Days After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe's reviews on average broke 11 days after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe (18 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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