Wonderful character development!

One of my all time favorites.

A different way of telling a story

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

Spike Lee put his all into this documentary about Hurricane Katrina and the government's slow response. This disaster will always be remembered by everyone no matter what race, sex, or economic group. I could not believe the job that the Army Corp of Engineers did on the levees over the course of 40 years. Even after Hurricane Betsy, they never finished that job and the residents paid the ultimate price for their negligence. The people did not deserve to be run out of their homes. A lot of them had nowhere to go. I have relatives that were displaced by Katrina. Lee gives an insight on how this has affected there lives during and after the storm hit. Also shown is the economic and social status of New Orleans. Due to this,education and health care are decreasing to the point that residents have relocated to other states for a better chance. Crime was already a big problem there and it seems that it is increasing as everyday goes by. No matter what, New Orleans will remain a top-notch city.

This documentary of the Hurricane of the century, Katrina, should be watched by anyone who wants to see the best and worst in humanity. Centered on the New Orleans, LA area, this movie shows us the complete and utter devastation wrought. It's almost hard to believe that this actually happened. Filled with interviews from survivors and their families, along with some of the politicians from New Orleans, the State of Louisiana, and the federal government, we hear their stories of survival, heartbreak, amazement, disbelief, hopelessness, despair and death. The hurricane is merely one part of the equation here. (The movie runs 4 hours) the aftermath and the rescue efforts are given more footage than anything else. Starting with the city's response, then up the ladder to the state's response, then finally to the federal government's response. To say that there was widespread inaction and fumbling would be an oversimplification. What really happened before and during the response from these agencies will be debated ad infinitum. The truth is, there were over 200,000 residents of New Orleans stranded and needing assistance. Many were infirm, elderly, or did not have the means to leave the city when ordered. Some were no doubt, stubborn, refusing to leave their homes. But in the end, they were all human beings in need of help.Through interviews with many people who were there at the time, we learn and see of the chaos that took over in the hours and days following the storm. Without a proper plan in place to deal with all of the affected families and citizens, things broke down. Without proper amounts of food, water, clothing and other basic necessities, many were dying. Some of the toughest footage in the entire four hours is devoted to family members detailing how they had to leave the bodies of their loved ones behind, under blankets and tarps because there was no place to bury them. we see bodies floating in the flood waters, distended from heat, under tarps on a freeways. No way for anyone to die. One aspect of this movie that was somewhat troubling is some of the conspiracy theories that come up occasionally, such as the levees were blown up by the government, but these are generally given short thrift by the filmmaker, and most of the interviewees. However, one major problem I had was with the inclusion of Al Sharpton in the interviews. What does he add? Nothing. It seems as if he was included to pontificate and spew his racist views. He should have been cut. The film does have some major flaws, such as letting the governor of Louisiana Kathleen Blanco, and the mayor of New Orleans off the hook. They are never really questioned extensively about their roles, and it seems as if they were given a pass. On the other hand, FEMA director Mike Brown, was grilled, and deservedly so for his mishandling of the rescue efforts, along with Michael Chertoff, head of the Dept of Homeland Security, and former President Bush, none of whom are interviewed for this documentary. With a Spike Lee film, you're always going to get his angle, which is fine, but in this instance, because it was such a monumental event in this country's history, I though it deserved a more even treatment. Even so this is a must watch. At the end of the movie, we see many of the people interviewed in the film, going back to their wrecked and destroyed houses, to try and rebuild. Mardi Gras is again in full swing, and it seems that New Orleans may just rise from the waters and be reborn. One can only hope...

Yes, Spike Lee has an agenda. So what? So does every documentarian. No one who has an ounce of humanity can deny that what happened in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was a failure of grotesque proportions. We can get food and water to people in Southeast Asia in two days, but it took five days for the same government to get food and water to our fellow citizens!?! That is deplorable, and it makes the mayor, the governor, the president and everyone in government look bad. What makes them look worse is that an actor, Sean Penn, is able to do more -- and do more in a timely manner -- than anybody supposedly in power. What I appreciated most were the stories of those whose faith saw them through this catastrophe. I watched this during Holy Week, and that amazing rendition of "The Old Rugged Cross" stayed with me for days and will likely echo in me for weeks to come.

This documentary is a very well put-together film outlining all the details of the Katrina disaster. It was informational, analytical, and moving; my favorite points of a documentary. I was also pleased to see a great deal of political commentary as well.The film may emphasize on the racial issue a little too much for my taste, but the message is clear enough: the Bush administration screwed up, just like they screw everything up. The disaster could have and SHOULD have been handled much better.So overall, great film. I would recommend everyone see this and get some education on the subject, and then can interpret it how they like.