ITEMS DVD Descriptions


Life and Legend of Sojourner Truth
WMS DVD0482

As with many historic American figures of the 19th century, Sojourner Truth's story is incomplete and somewhat mythical, a fact compounded by her having been born a slave. This detailed program traces the lifelong odyssey of a woman who literally walked out of bondage, changed her name in 1843, and traveled the country as an abolitionist and women's rights advocate. Along the way she would meet Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln and be further cast into fable by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Interviews with scholars and dramatic readings from Truth's speeches and autobiography conjure more clearly a picture of this truly heroic woman. 57 minutes, color


Whats Love Got to Do With It?
WMS DVD0424

Experience for yourself the powerful true-life stroy of Tina Turner- rock 'n roll's remarkable and talented superstar. Laurence Fishburn (The Matrix) and Angela Bassett (How Stella Got Her Groove Back) deliver winning performances as Ike and Tina Turner- whose turbulent relationship eventually forces Tina to leave and face the fear, pay the price and find the courage to believe in herself. Don't miss What's Love Got To Do With It- the amazing and uplifting story of one of the world's most exciting, high-energy entertainers! Color/Rated R/118 minutes Experience for yourself the powerful true-life story of Tina Turner- rock 'n roll's remarkable and talented superstar. Laurence Fishburn (The Matrix) and Angela Bassett (How Stella Got Her Groove Back) deliver winning performances as Ike and Tina Turner- whose turbulent relationship eventually forces Tina to leave and face the fear, pay the price and find the courage to believe in herself. Don't miss What's Love Got To Do With It- the amazing and uplifting story of one of the world's most exciting, high-energy entertainers! Color/Rated R/118 minutes


Glory
WMS DVD0271

The heart-stopping true story of the first black regiment to fight for the North in the Civil War, GLORY stars Matthew Broderick, Academy Award winner Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes and Morgan Freeman. Borderick and Elwes are the idealistic young Bostonians who lead the regiment; Freeman is the inspirational sergeant who unites the troops; and Denzel Washington is the runaway slave who embodies the indomitable spirit of the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts. Color/2 disc/approx. 122 min/DVD


Miss Representation
WMS DVD0559

Like drawing back a curtain to let bright light stream in, Miss Representation uncovers a glaring reality we live with every day but fail to see. Directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom , the film explores how maintream media contriutes to the under-representation of women in influential positions in America and challenges the media's limiting and often disparaging portrayals of women, which make it difficult for the average girl to see herself as powerful. 90 minute version


Accused
WMS DVD0421

What are the limits of justice? Of social responsibility? The Accused takes a powerful and thought-provoking look at human nature and individual moral conscience, and a judicial process that treats the victim like a criminal. Jodie Foster gives and Oscar winning performance as the hard-living, fiercely independent Sarah Tobias, who is gang-raped in the back of a neighborhood bar. But that is only the beginning of her ordeal. Now Sarah finds herself battling the legal system, not once but twice as she and her attorney (Kelly McGillis) go after both her attackers and the onlookers whose cheering fueled and encouraged the assult. Widescreen/Color/Rated R/110 minutes/1988


If These Walls Could Talk
WMS DVD0425

If These Walls Could Talk is a powerful, intamate portrait of how times and freedoms have changed. It will shock you. It will suprise you. And no matter where you stand on the issue, it will force you to think again. A recently widowed nurse (Demi Moore) struggling to take control of her life in the early 50's...A mother of four (Sissy Spacek) overwhelmed by trying to raise a family and maintain a career in the 70's...A young student (Anne Heche) making a decision with the help of one woman (Cher) that will change the course of both their lives in the 90's. These women living in the same house at different times, share one thing in common- The decision they must come to on how to deal with an unplanned pregnancy. Color/Rated R/ 97 minutes


Tough Guise; Abridged Version
WMS DVD0080

Tough Guise is the first educational video geared toward college and high school students to systematically examine the relationship between images of popular culture and the social construction of masculine identities in the U.S. at the dawn of the 21st century. In this innovative and wide-ranging analysis, Jackson Katz argues that the widespread violence in American society- including the tragic school shootings in Littleton, Colorado, Jonesboro, Arkansas, and elsewhere- needs to be understood as part of an ongoing crisis in masculinity. Tough Guise is extensively illustrated with examples from popular culture, ranging from Howard Stern to Stone Cold Steve Austin, from Good Will Hunting to Boyz 'N the Hood, from Garth Brooks to hip hop. DVD/56 min + approx 18 min interview/Jackson Katz


Playing Unfair: The Media Image of the Female Athlete
WMS DVD0198

It has been 30 years since Title IX legislation granted women equal playing time, but the male-dominated world of sports journalism has yet to catch up with the law. Coverage of women's sports lags far behind men's, and focuses on female athletes' femininity and sexuality over their achievements on the court and field. While female athleticism challenges gender norms, women athletes continue to be depicted in traditional roles that reaffirm their femininity -- as wives and mothers or sex objects. By comparison, male athletes are framed according to heroic masculine ideals that honor courage, strength, and endurance. Playing Unfair is the first video to critically examine the post-Title IX media landscape in terms of the representation of female athletes. Sports media scholars Mary Jo Kane (University of Minnesota), Pat Griffin (University of Massachusetts), and Michael Messner (University of Southern California) look at the persistence of heterosexism and homophobia in perpetuating gender stereotypes. They argue for new media images which fairly and accurately depict the strength and competence of female athletes. Using numerous media examples, Playing Unfair is sue to stimulate debate among women and men, athletes and non-athletes about the meaning of these images in a world transformed by the presence of women in sport. 30 minutes (35 minutes additional footage)


Two Days in October
WMS DVD0201

Some stayed. Some went. All fought. In October 1967, history turned a corner. In a jungle in Vietnam, a Viet Cong ambush nearly wiped out an American battalion, prompting some in power to question whether the war might be unwinnable. On a campus in Wisconsin, a student protest against the war spiraled out of control, making the first time that a campus anti-war demonstration had turned violent. Based on the book "The Marched into Sunlight" by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Maraniss, this moving AMIERCAN EXPERIENCE film examines the critical events that took place in the turbulent fall of 1967. The emotionally wrenching parallel stores are told by the people whose lives were irrevocably changed by what happened -- American and Viet Cong soldiers, relatives of men killed in battle, protesting students, police officers, and university faculty and administrators. Collectively, their words speak to the heartbreak caused by the war and the stark division it wrought on the home front.


Rebel Without A Cause
WMS DVD0203

In one of moviedom's most influential roles, James Dean plays Jim Stark, the new kid in town whose oneliness, frustration and anger mirrored those of postwar teens - and reverberate more than 40 years later. Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo star in this achingly true performance. Not Rated/111 min/Color


North Country
WMS DVD0218

What Josey Aimes wants is a decent job so she can put food on the table and take care of her kids. What she gets is threatend, insulted, ogled, fondled, betitled, attacked, and called filthy names. "Take it like a man," her callous boss says. Instead, she takes it like a human being - and fights back. 126 minutes/color


Good Night And Good Luck
WMS DVD0247

It's 1953, and the piece of talking furniture called the TV is still a novelty in America's living rooms. On it, Sen. Joseph McCarthy uses fear, falsehoods, and beligerence to become arguably the most powerful man in the land. On it, newsman Edward R. Morrow, who's had his fill of the senator's tactics, fights back. DVD/PG rated/B&W/93 minutes


Born on the Fourth of July
WMS DVD0270

Tom Cruise delivers a riveting and unforgettable portrayal of Vietnam veteran Ron Kovic in Oliver Stone's Academy Award winning masterpiece. Based on a true story, the acclaimed film follows the young Kovic from a zealous teen who eagerly volunteered mid-chest down. Deeply in love with his country, Kovic returned to an environment vastly different from the one he left, and struggled before emerging as a brave new voice for the disenchanted. Colo/English/DVD/Approx. 2 hrs 25 mins