As Good As It Gets

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Blistering performances.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

It was interesting, and I enjoyed it. A little on the short side though...I believe it's running time is 83 minutes.In the director comments, Curry says this is "a film about Cory Booker, not a commercial about Cory Booker." I respectfully disagree with that. This film really shows no negatives about Booker. Is that "true"? I'm not sure. If it is true, then this film is an early look at one of the upcoming superstars in New Jersey (and probably American) politics. I can definitely see him running for Governor or Senator in the next 5-10 years. And then people will look back on this film with even more interest to see where it started.Sharpe James comes off looking pretty bad in this movie, and it seems deservedly so. However, as someone who has lived in New Jersey most of his life, I will say that Sharpe James was a huge improvement on the guy he replaced, Kenneth Gibson. The movie glosses over some of the things Sharpe James accomplished. Newark definitely still has a long way to go, but in my opinion, James left it in much better shape than when he got there in 1986.

Most politically charged films focus on corruption at the higher levels of state, but STREET FIGHT gives us a curb-side view of something much smaller ...and much more important.The 2002 Newark, New Jersey Mayoral race is something most voters in the U.S. could care less about. Why should someone in, say, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania pay attention to Newark's voting issues? Or someone in Fort Worth, Texas? Or San Francisco, California? Realistically, none of them would. But Newark is New Jersey's most populated city, and those in San Francisco and beyond might want to take a peak at what's happening to our democracy on a pseudo-microcosmic level.The film's primary focus is on Cory Booker, a Newark city councilman with his eye on the mayor's office. He's a Stanford and Yale graduate who lives in a slum within Newark. He's an idealist who's grown tired of his city's poor schools, poorer neighborhoods, and rising jobless rate. To get into the mayor's office, though, he'll have to unseat four-time incumbent Sharpe James, a man who's firmly entrenched within Newark's politics.We watch as writer/director/photographer Marshall Curry seeks to interview both sides of the race, first by checking in on Cory Booker's campaign, then by trying (in vain) to meet up with Sharpe James and his people. But once James' campaign personnel learn that Curry interviewed Booker already, he is immediately shunned and pushed aside (often in a very rough manner). Curry's camera is pushed around time and again, his microphone broken, and he's denied access to Sharpe James entirely. Even when Curry catches up with James at a public event, he's manhandled by Sharpe James' 'brute squad.' Most will find this very unsettling, as this is a publicly elected figure in a public place who is, in essence, acting like a thug.That we never touch on the political issues surrounding the campaign is interesting and absurd. These are both positive aspects of the film. It shows us how little our democracy means in many instances; it isn't the poor schools/neighborhoods/jobs that dominate voters' discussions, but who's "more republican" or "more black" (both candidates are black) or "campaign has more money" or "has visited a strip joint".In the end, we watch Sharpe James use every slimy tactic at his disposal in order to win votes (including bringing in paid James' supporters from out-of-state to help bolster support on election day). Booker doesn't win the election, thus giving the viewer a very negative view of New Jersey politics. But all is not gloom and doom.In 2006, Cory Booker returned to the mayoral race and took Newark by storm. Sharpe James uncharacteristically dropped from the race for unknown reasons while a new runner took up position against Booker, only to be squashed in the largest landslide win of any mayoral race in New Jersey history.But the bitter taste of the 2002 race still lingers in audiences minds after watching Street Fight. It's a tough film to watch, because we all want to believe that our democracy is flawless when, in fact, it has so many problems and shady dealings as to make one ill at the prospect.

Curry's unvarnished style and long sequences enhance the real life drama as he allows the story to unfold in front of us instead of manufacturing the drama by clever editing. Shot with a hand held camera and edited on a Mac, Curry the film-maker mirrors the determination and resolve of his main subject, political challenger Cory Booker. Repeated confrontations in the film make it clear that Curry had an opportunity to make himself the focus of a compelling side story, but he removes his ego completely. He only inserts himself as an occasional off-camera participant whose voice serves as a traditional chorus uttering simple, yet poignant reminders of what is at stake beyond the specific election he is covering. Like his presence in the film, Curry's voice-over narration is also sparse, yet effective. He sticks to open-ended observations and realizations, without ever crossing the line to offer value judgments. With its simplicity, small cast including chorus, and theme of family torn asunder, it is not unlike Greek tragedy...

This film won the audience choice award at the Tribeca Film Festival, and it certainly deserved it. Amazingly enough, this is Marshall Curry's first film. I truly hope to see more films from him.While the subject of national and international politics has been the subject of many critically acclaimed documentaries, Street Fight concentrates on the 2002 Mayoral election in one urban city, Newark, N.J., which is wracked by homelessness, drug addiction and poverty. The movie is perhaps one of the most compelling and interesting documentaries I have ever seen. The film's title is quite appropriate because Television ads are meaningless, but rather these hard-fought battles are won on the street.The film's director tried to follow the campaigns of both the incumbent Mayor, Sharpe James, who has been Mayor for 16 years and the campaign of the upstart 1st term Councilman, Cory Booker. While the Booker campaign welcomes the filmmaker, Mayor James is less welcoming and outwardly hostile. The film quickly evolves into a compelling David vs. Goliath epic.You'll watch as Mayor James instructs the Newark police officers act like Storm Troopers intimidating and assaulting campaign workers blatantly violating state and federal law. You'll be outraged as you watch those same police officers attack the film's director in broad daylight on the sidewalks in an attempt to shut down the documentary. Mayor James paints himself as a political villain more despicable than Senator Joseph Paine from "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington". The scary part is that the film is not fictional. Had it not been recorded on film, you would not believe it. It's not often that a film angers me. This one did.Booker tries to campaign on the issues, but we see how effective James' tactics are. Both candidates are Black, but Mayor James constantly refers to Booker as light-skinned and "white" because Booker was educated at Stanford, Yale Law School and was a Rhodes Scholar. Looking at the numerous dirty tricks employed in the campaign, it is no wonder that Sharpe James has never lost an election. Although Booker loses the election, he wins the moral battle and the audience by running an ethical and admirable campaign. The closing scene is Booker's unveiling of his 2006 campaign, which received an ovation from the Tribeca audience.