Despite pop culture relentlessly promoting the idea of individuality, there is little in our current culture that actually is independent and free. Even “indie” music and film aren’t what they used to be as major corporations commandeer what once was independent and use “indie” as a marketing buzzword. In that sense, the Jersey City radio station WFMU should not exist in the 21st century – it is a commercial-free, all-volunteer, 100% listener-supported radio station sitting on the edge of the largest media market in the United States.

SEX AND BROADCASTING tells the history of WFMU since the mid-1980s and particularly focuses on both the longtime station manager Ken Freedman and Freedman’s response to WFMU’s funding crisis in the wake of the 2008 recession. Despite the station gaining scores of new fans because of internet streaming, during the recession WFMU faced a multitude of problems, including a reduced signal, a crumbling headquarters, record companies being less willing to provide music for free airplay, and general financial issues brought on by the recession. On top of that, despite immense costs Freedman sees his long term goal of building a signal booster in Midtown Manhattan within the station’s grasp.

A generation of people who can access any music they want via the internet may not understand the importance of a station like WFMU, and SEX AND BROADCASTING will reveal to the uninitiated just how much of an impact a fiercely independent renegade radio station can have. As Freedman says early in the documentary, “WFMU is radio for the people who were picked last for the basketball team.” WFMU has no set format and disc jockeys can host any type of show they would like. WFMU fills its airwaves with offbeat humor, avant-garde musicians, and counts celebrity fans such as Matt Groening, Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldo, Patton Oswalt, and Beastie Boy Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz (whom all appear in this documentary). More importantly, many of the volunteers who see WFMU as “home” see the station as the only place they fit in.

Nonetheless, despite the increased profile the internet has given WFMU it remains a fringe media outlet, something that is obvious from the station’s troubled fundraising efforts. Also, while Freedman arguably singlehandedly kept the station alive for nearly three decades, in other ways he can be viewed as a heavy-handed visionary. Both of those issues breed a level of frustration and resentment throughout the station’s operations, including with comedian Tom Scharpling, who hosted the most popular show on the station. There is an extremely telling sequence in which an annoyed Scharpling suffers through a bevy of awful listener calls that just sums up the frustration that WMFU and its staff faces on a daily basis in trying to remain a fringe media outlet.

First time director Tim K. Smith has hit pay dirt by finding one of those unique subjects that is ripe for a documentary. Perhaps the biggest flaw is that at only 76 minutes it feels like we’re only glimpsing the beautiful chaos that is WFMU with SEX AND BROADCASTING. Only the surface is being scratched here, so you won’t be alone if you are left feeling like much more could be said about one of the most influential radio stations of the last three decades. That marks SEX AND BROADCASTING as an excellent exploration of its subject, albeit one that feels incomplete.

Still, anybody who has any interest in broadcasting, indie music, or just the idea of surviving as an independent entity in an increasingly corporate-driven world will discover an immediate connection with SEX AND BROADCASTING. More importantly, they may also discover their new favorite radio station.

Review Rating: 4 out of 5 : See it …… It’s Very Good

SEX AND BROADCASTING made its world premiere at the DOC NYC Film Festival. The final festival screening will be on Monday, November 17 at 3:15 at the IFC Center.

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Many recent Hollywood blockbusters have taken well-known fictional characters and depicted their earliest adventures in prequels or origin films. With THE BETTER ANGELS, it appears that the origin film trend has now encompassed historical figures because the film portrays the childhood of Abraham Lincoln. THE BETTER ANGELS is the debut film from writer/director A.J. Edwards, a collaborator of Terrence Malick who worked in various roles on The New World, The Tree of Life, and To the Wonder (Malick also serves as a producer of THE BETTER ANGELS).

Considering that Lincoln is generally regarded as the greatest U.S. President THE BETTER ANGELS isn’t the first film to depict the earlier years of Lincoln. John Ford directed Henry Ford in Young Mr. Lincoln in 1939, though films about Lincoln’s origins stretch back at least as far as the 1913 silent short From Rail Splitter to President. Thankfully, THE BETTER ANGELS doesn’t do anything as hokey as other origin films and portray sequences like young Lincoln putting on his first stovepipe hat. In fact, if you miss the opening narration you might not even realize that this film is about young Abe Lincoln at all and think it is about no particular boy growing up in the nineteenth century (and is perhaps why the title was changed from the metaphoric Green Blade Rising to THE BETTER ANGELS, a famous phrase from Lincoln’s first inaugural speech). There’s a certain beauty in that subtly, but it also robs the film of the historical impact it probably should have considering its subject.

THE BETTER ANGELS begins in 1817, shortly after young Abe Lincoln and his family moved to Indiana as recounted by his older cousin, Dennis (Cameron Mitchell Williams), who also serves as the film’s narrator. The film depicts several major events in young Abe’s life, including the loss of his mother (Diane Kruger), learning to accept his stepmother (Brit Marling), his first encounter with slavery, and the little formal education he had as child from a devoted teacher, Mr. Crawford (Wes Bentley). Most of all, THE BETTER ANGELS is about the relationship between young Abe and his father, Tom (Jason Clarke), a strong-willed man who somewhat disapproves his son’s preference of studying over working.

There is much to THE BETTER ANGELS which is serene and peaceful, and the influence of Malick is obvious, particularly with the film’s ethereal tone partially provided by the black and white cinematography. The absence of color from this film is a curious choice and I’m not sure it services the movie to be in black and white. There are many beautiful landscapes and excellent shots of nature that would’ve looked stunning in color instead of the crystal-clear digital-looking black and white. I’m curious why Edwards decided to film it in black and white because from a narrative standpoint it did not seem necessary.

Which leads to the most significant issue of THE BETTER ANGELS – the equally colorless narrative. Lincoln is a fascinating historical figure, and his early years should be particularly interesting material for a film. But similar to Malick’s own work, this film mostly depicts Lincoln’s childhood in an understated way outside of the few significant happenings, like the death of his mother. Because of that, it’s not a particularly engaging film. Even the most patient Malick fans might fight it difficult to stay invested in a film that is largely about boys farming and getting into trouble. It doesn’t help that the conflict between Abe and his father is equally understated, which makes the film’s central narrative difficult to grasp.

Patient history buffs will likely enjoy THE BETTER ANGELS because of its exploration of Lincoln’s early years, but most others might find the film too slow-moving for their taste.

Film Review Rating 3 out of 5 : See it … It’s Good

THE BETTER ANGELS opens in select theaters nationwide on Friday, November 7.

http://youtu.be/IS-5G5X9BFE

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