GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK - a movie
about yesterday, with relevance for today.
"Will that be an
X-ray or a full body pat-down?"
After the expletives are
deleted your thoughts may dwell on ideas such as: "The balance of national
security with personal liberties is not right!" and "Am I the only
one to think that the government is going too far?"
This month's movie (March 15) "Good Night and Good Luck" will take you back to the 1950s when
conditions were not much different than today for many citizens of North America,
a time when perceptions of external and internal threats lead to government
intrusions into the private lives of its citizens and threats to civil
liberties.
Shown in black and
white, to reflect the technology of television news documentaries of the era,
this movie reflects the "Red Scare" that seized North
America . Indeed, the scare may well have started in Ottawa
As a volunteer
interpreter at the Diefenbunker it is inappropriate of me to discuss religion
or politics with visitors. However, as a Baby Boomer I feel obligated to remind
visitors of the perceived threat of world domination by communism. The enemy
was the former Soviet Union which had
developed a network of spies and "fellow travelers" even before the
Cold War started.
Although having no
credentials as a movie critic I have no problem recommending this movie. I
found myself feeling the fears and tensions of the era, even though I knew the
outcome. Certainly with no credentials
as a historian, but with limited research as to the facts behind this movie, I
believe that it correctly reflects the facts surrounding the events depicted.
The movie is not an
attack on Senator McCarthy, the archival footage of his speeches that were used
in the movie do a good job of that. The movie is not a biography of the life of
the protagonist, television news pioneer Edward R. Murrow. It is a minor homage
to him as a TV personality who spoke out against stifled debate. Yes, the movie
reflects the norms of the era - smoking is taken as something that everyone
does, discrimination based upon gender preferences is accepted, and a woman's
role is usually subordinate to that of men.
Watching this movie in
an underground bunker that still reflects the fears of the 1945 - 1989 era adds
a unique dimension to reflecting upon the issues and dangers of the Cold War.
Come out and judge for yourself.
At the end of the movie
you may well ask yourself: "How
good a job do the media of today do in voicing public dissent against the
government?" and "What is the
threat profile of today's public enemy?"
Les
Guest Curator, Cold War Cinema
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