William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe


A film by Emily Kunstler, Sarah Kunstler

USA, 2009 (90 minutes)

One of the most famous lawyers of the 20th century, William Kunstler liked to shake things up...

SCREENINGS:

St. Anthony Main 

4/19, Sun. 5:30 pm

BEST OF FEST/HOLDOVER WEEK

OAK ST. CINEMA: WED MAY 6th 5:15 PM

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Synopsis

 

 

 One of the most famous lawyers of the 20th century, William Kunstler liked to shake things up.  Filmmakers Emily and Sarah Kunstler explore their father’s life and legacy: from middle-class family man to celebrated radical activist to “the most hated lawyer in America.”  Kunstler’s resume is one for the storybooks.  He fought for civil rights with Martin Luther King Jr. and catapulted to the world stage by defending the Chicago Eight.  Soon Kunstler became the "go-to guy" for the radical left.  When inmates rioted at Attica prison or Native Americans took on the federal government at Wounded Knee, they chose Kunstler as their lawyer. (He appeared at the Fed courthouse in St. Paul to defend the AIM principals in the Wounded Knee case; see Wounded Knee film in fest.) In the 1970s, when Emily and Sarah were growing up, their father moved away from civil-rights cases.  Lured to the high profile limelight, Kunstler represented accused rapists, terrorists, and Mafia bosses.  Being on the unpopular side of the infamous Central Park jogger trial was perhaps the linchpin that triggered his fall from grace.  A hero or a villain?  Defender of the defenseless or an egomaniac drawn to fame?  Emily and Sarah Kunstler share a provocative and deeply personal journey as they paint a complex portrait of a man whose life mirrors the battles that forever defined our history.  (Sundance)

 

 
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