FemaleFirst.co.uk: DVD: When The Levees Broke (HBO 3-Disc Set ) [DVD] [2006]

When The Levees Broke (HBO 3-Disc Set ) [DVD] [2006]
enlarge	Director: Spike Lee Studio: Warner Home Video Category: DVD List Price: ~~£24.99~~ Buy New: £10.98 as of 23/11/2009 07:27 GMT details You Save: £14.01 (56%) New (7) from £10.98 Seller: Amazon.co.uk Rating: 8 reviews Sales Rank: 6660 Format: PAL, Widescreen Language: English (Original Language) Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over Region: 2 Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Number Of Discs: 3 Running Time: 348 Minutes Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2 Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6 EAN: 7321902141510 ASIN: B000KCI91U Theatrical Release Date: 2006 Release Date: August 27, 2007 Shipping: Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping Availability: Usually dispatched within 5 to 10 days


Similar Items: Trouble In Water [DVD] [2008] Recount (HBO Films) [DVD] [2008] Life And Debt [2001] [DVD] The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast Bamboozled [DVD] [2001]


Editorial Reviews: Amazon.co.uk Review Director Spike Lee's iWhen the Levees Broke/i is the definitive document of the unmitigated disaster Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. It's also a contemporary manifestation of an ancient tradition: an oral history, told by the people who lived it, with no narration and only the occasional use of archival cable and broadcast news footage in addition to Lee's own film. And a grim tale it is, an "American tragedy" subtitled "a Requiem in Four Acts," each of them about an hour long ("Act V," appearing on the third of the set's three discs, is a lengthy epilogue with new material not included in the original HBO broadcast) and focusing almost exclusively on New Orleans, as opposed to the Gulf Coast region in general.p Act I sets the scene; as the hurricane nears the Crescent City, some residents leave town, while others stay behind, figuring they'll just ride the storm out (Mayor Ray Nagin's "mandatory evacuation" order rings fairly hollow, as there's no public transportation provided for the many who don't own vehicles and thus couldn't get out even if they wanted to). The real problems begin after Katrina hits on August 29, 2005. Displaced New Orleaneans crowd into the Superdome, soon to become a living hell for those stuck there; the incredibly poorly engineered levees break, flooding some 80 percent of the city. Act II finds the survivors struggling to keep it together while the federal, state, and local assistance they've been promised fails to show up; Act III traces the dispersal of these so-called "refugees" (as one man puts it, "Refugees? You mean they took away our citizenship, too?") all over the country, not knowing where their families, friends, and neighbours are, or even if they're still alive; and Act IV deals with the slow rebuilding of the city while insurance companies refuse to pay claims and money keeps going toward the Iraq war effort instead. p Several themes predominate here. One, of course, is the appalling performance of authorities on nearly every level, who ignored specific warnings about the levees and then professed ignorance after the fact; Lee doesn't have to go out of his way to make George W. Bush, FEMA chief Michael Brown, and other members of the Bush administration (not to mention his own mother) look bad, as they do an excellent job of that themselves. Another is the shameful ineptitude of the response; it's hard not to be disgusted when it's pointed out more than once that while supplies and assistance were given to Indonesians within two days of the 2004 tsunami, American citizens were virtually ignored for five days or more. Most of all, iWhen the Levees Broke/i (which includes optional commentary by Lee for all four acts) leaves us feeling the sheer anger of the poor and dispossessed of New Orleans, where the population is 70 percent African-American. Confronted with the ignorance, arrogance, and callousness of the people whose job it was to protect them, they can point to just one cause: racism. i--Sam Graham/i

Customer Reviews: Showing reviews 1-5 of 8 1 2 Next » A masterpiece February 19, 2007 O. Adams (Lancaster) 20 out of 23 found this review helpful A film that had to be made, 'When the Levees Broke' is a demanding, wrenching viewing. Allowing the story of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath to tell itself, Spike Lee weaves interviews with a huge range of New Orleans residents, Hurricane experts and footage of Kanye West amongst others into a devasting, 4 hour narrative that takes your breath away. Where others may have delivered a piece of work heavy on sentimentality and drama, Lee allows the story to speak for itself, and your left with a damning critique of the U.S governemnt that involves race, ignorance, big business, conspiracy theories and the power of the human condition. It may be gruelling, but nothing on celluloid has ever gripped me more. Quite simply a masterpiece, Spike Lee has delivered a fitting tribute to those undeserving whilst pouring venom on those repsponsible for the tragic events. Superb. SUBTITLE INFO. PLEEEASE!!! October 4, 2007 TheDeafSpeaker (UK) 21 out of 27 found this review helpful I am not here to make a review but to protest against Amazon's lack/ignorance for the deaf and hard of hearing. I am almost considering setting web site for the purpose of this protest so others can join. br / br /My frustration is caused by this: I am into watching DVDs (films and particularly documentaries). Being hard of hearing, I can only watch DVDs with English subtitles. I have come to this site numerous times in the past months to buy new DVDs (Tribe (BBC documentary), Battlefield series by Dan Snow and this item to name a few). None of these along with thousands of other items say they or they don't have subtitles, therefore, I either have to buy to test them or forget about watchiong them. br / br /Is it too much to ask to put that simple piece of information on the page? At least for BIG Amazon to show respect and understanding for the deaf? Shame on you Amazon! shame on you. br / br / THE BEST DOCUMENTRY EVER MADE? May 13, 2008 Peter Hurst (wigan, england) 4 out of 5 found this review helpful Spike Lee's exploration of the physical, economic, political and social effects of Hurricane Katrina which hit the Gulf Coast, USA in 2005 and devastated the famous city of New Orleans is, in my opinion, the best documentary ever made, certainly the most affecting, powerfull and compelling that I have ever seen. br / br /Lee allows the story to unfold in a simple and linear fashion, allowing his mixture of 'talking heads' to tell the story whilst news footage shows us what happened. He uses a variety of voices - male, female, young, old, black, white, working class, middle class, famous, unknown, articulate, blunt, professional, layman - to great dramatic and narrative effect and makes it plain:- Hurricane Katrina effected everybody in New Orleans, nobody escaped its wrath. br / br /The cast of characters include the Mayor Of New Orleans, the Governor of Louisiana, FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) and, of course, the Bush White House, who unsurprisingly deigned it unneccessary to add their voice to the collective featured in the film. None of the major public figures involved emerge with much credit. Mayor Nagin is a man in deep and choppy waters (literally and figuratively speaking,) without a paddle and without a clue. Governor Blanco seems more concerned with passing the buck. FEMA is swamped in bureaucracy. Whilst George 'Dubya' is on holiday. br / br /The central motif of the film is that Katrina was not just merely a natural disaster but also a man-made one. New Orleans had suffered hurricanes before, as recently as 1965 when Hurricane Betsy hit, it was therefore no secret to anyone that it would be at risk again. No more than it is a secret that California is at risk to earthquakes or New York to terrorism. Metereological experts had forewarned those in power of the necessity for action but nothing was done. The Levees were not fit for purpose and were not even fully built when Katrina hit some forty years after Betsy. br / br /The film evoked memories of reading Cecil Woodham-Smith's magisterial 'The Great Hunger' about the Irish Potato famine in the 19th Century. In the book it is explained that the Potato Blight triggered the disaster but it was the attitudes of the English towards the Irish peasants and the slavish adherance to the principles of laissez-faire capitalism which served to perpetuate the famine, worsen the human scale of the tragedy and allowed the amount of deaths to swell into millions. br / br /In similiar fashion it was clear that the Bush White House did not see the inhabitants of New Orleans as socially important - mainly black and poor - and subsequently action that needed to be taken at a Federal level immediately in the aftermath of Katrina was not taken and left one of the most famous and culturally significant cities in the United States of America to drown in its own filth. Katrina did not just wash away people's homes it also washed away the pretence that 'Compassionate Conservatism' existed as anything more than just a hallow electioneering slogan. br / br /Documentary-making at it's best is simply storytelling and that is what Lee does through a range of voices in a way that is even-handed and lacking in Michael Moore-style polemical flourish and is all the more powerfull for it. To quote New Orlean native James Lee Burke "That was a storm with a greater impact than the bomb blast that struck Hiroshima and peeled the face off Southern Louisiana. One of the most beautiful cities in the Western Hemisphere was killed three times, and not just by the forces of nature." br / Heartbreaking May 8, 2009 L. Farley (Liverpool, England) 1 out of 1 found this review helpful This documentary by Spike Lee ranks up there with some of John Pilger's groundbreaking films of the 1970's and 80's. This differs somewhat in as much as it is 100% narrative driven and that narrative is pushed forward primarily by interviews of the displaced former residents of New Orleans. br / br /Once Katrina shows her face in Act I a haunting, moving, but most of all deeply disturbing story develops that I, when watching, would prefer not to be true. How New Orleans was allowed to be destroyed. June 5, 2008 PygmyTwylyte (Citizen of the world) 2 out of 4 found this review helpful This is a great documentary,and,unlike many other Lee film,in this one there is no narrative voice or heavy handed moralising,he is content to let the participants speak for themselves. br /The most shocking fact in the film is that the levees that were supposed to protect New Orleans weren't built properly in the first place.One of the interviewees points out that the eye of Hurricane Katrina,where the strongest winds are,didn't pass over the city.So,while Katrina was a category 5 hurricane,the winds and flooding in New Orleans were category 2,maybe category 3 maximum,and still the city was devastated. br /It's not as though George Bush II didn't have any warning about it either.One On coming to power,he was given a report saying that the biggest risks to US domestic safety were a chemical/biological attack on New York,a major eathquake in San Francisco,or a hurricane hitting New Orleans.The film shows clearly that Bush II was somewhat less than proactive in his response. br /Lee dosen't let the local and state politicians get off lightly either.Most of them appear as pompous buffoons fighting for position and prestige.The heroes are the citizens of New Orleans,who struggled to survive more or less left to their own devices. br /Why this catastrophe-remember about 2000 people died-in the wealthiest and most powerful nation the world has ever seen?Simple,according to Lee-a city of poor,mainly black people could be allowed to disappear as they were politically and economically insignificant,if not irrelevant,in Bush II's view of the world.The callous nature of the post-Katrina response is well depicted in the film,as is the fact that some citizens' first sight of help came from Canadian Mounties,not the USA.Bear in mind that Bush II's government was spending about $3 billion a month in Iraq at the time of Katrina. br /The rebuilding of New Orleans as a small,essentially white city,with it's inhabitatnts scattered to the winds,is shocking but unfortunately seems to be true.Spike Lee dosen't romanticise pre-Katrina New Orleans-it's clearly shown that the city had huge problems with crime,housing,poverty,unemployment,and an abysmal education system-but a unique culture was destroyed by Katrina,with Bush II's assistance.It ain't coming back anytime soon,if ever-hence the "Requium In Four Acts". br /For people like me,who live in a country allied to the USA,WTLB should be a wake-up call;if the US government allowed,if not actively promoted,the disaster that made up flood defences pre-Katrina to be inflicted on it's own citizens,what would they allow for foriegners?I already know the answer,one example is called Guantanamo. br /A great humane film,you'll be fascinated all through the four hours. Showing reviews 1-5 of 8 1 2 Next »

CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON EU S.à.r.l. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME.