The Spook Who Sat by the Door | Lawrence Cook, Ramon Livingston

The Spook Who Sat by the Door | Lawrence Cook, Ramon Livingston | stop complaining already

DVDs:

The Spook Who Sat ...

	The Spook Who Sat by the Door Lawrence Cook, Ramon Livingston Monarch Video, 2004 average customer review:based on 36 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Re-released with nary a bang nor a whimper

Re-released with nary a bang nor a whimper by Tim Reid's New Millennium Studios in early 2004, THE SPOOK WHO SAT BY THE DOOR remains one of the most striking and important films of the 1970s. Based on the novel by Sam Greenlee, SPOOK is the subversive tale of Dan Freeman (Lawrence Cook) who's hired into the CIA as a "token Negro" and political tool for a Senator to appeal to black voters.

Freeman does his best to keep his head low and nose clean as he soaks up as much of the CIA's tactics as possible before taking his leave. He heads back to Chicago, adept now at pushing paperwork and, more importantly, making explosives, handling guns, and a wide range of other "covert ops." Freeman maintains his air of respectability via his Social Service job. However, his life outside of work includes organizing and leading an underground guerilla army, recruiting from the gangs with which he works. "You really want to mess with Whitey? I can show you how."

Known on the street as Turk, Freeman's group could give Al-Qaeda a run for their money. Freeman knows the "rules" and "the game" and he plays it expertly. For example, when Freeman needs funds for his domestic terrorism operation, he asks the lightest skinned members to rob a bank, knowing that such a well organized group would be mistaken for white, leading authorities on a wild goose chase. "This took brains and guts, which we don't have, right?"

An incendiary tale of revolution, SPOOK should have lit up the country--had it not been pulled from theaters almost immediately after release. The film is as chilling now in an era where people jump at their shadows for fear of terrorists, as it must have been when it came out originally when cities still smoldered after the riots of the late `60s. Only available for years via grey market dealers in a less-than-pristine video version, the DVD release of THE SPOOK WHO SAT BY THE DOOR has been given the deluxe treatment this must-see film deserves.

for more information click here

stop complaining already

all i read is complaints on here. life is not perfect, get over it. everything will have a flaw if that's what/all you're looking for.

this movie is great. i saw it with my white friends, while we laughed at the datedness of it, the message is crucial. my friends, being white and part of the oppressive race of the planet, failed to see anything beyond the soundtrack (which is great), and the slang, so that was frustrating.

you CAN see this movie at 2 levels, a funny b-movie involving black people trying to take over a neighborhood then who knows where else. or you can see it having it's bigger message to black culture that is STILL being missed and has been for, oh, 40 something years now.

anyhoo, this is well worth watching, and you must own it, just to pull out to show friends to blow their minds.

for more information click here

By someone from the 60's & 70's

Having been very active in the "movement" on campus in the late 60's and early 70's. I was extremely interested in seeing this movie.
I'm not going to rehash what other reviewers have sad. What caught my attention was the attitude of the CIA & mainstream politicians towards the black community and the ability to wage urban warfare. I see a lot of parallels with the situation in Iraq,i.e., a paternalistic attitude towards non whites, ignoring the fact that people do not want to be seen as being colonized by another racial group, etc.

In sum, i think this movie is very relevant today.

for more information click here

Guerillas in the Midst

Great movie. Good action. Intelligent. I love good, old fashioned cinema. Soundtrack by Herbie fit well. If you have diffuculy watching black men with guns -- this is not the movie for you. Much more realistic than Shaft (all due respect). Check out the River Niger with James Earl Jones as well.

this movie is hardline and so good

i can't believe i haven't heard more about this movie. i'm in film school and no one's even heard of it here. i just did a term paper for my "minorities in film" class and i was looking for films that deal with race relations in a way that would effect young people. obviously you start with "do the right thing" and there's a few new movies like "crash" and "threat" (i skipped "zebrahead" and "higher learning" for obvious reasons). i stumbled on an article that mentioned "the spook who sat by the door" and it took me a while to finally get ahold of the movie. it is AMAZING. there is nothing else like this. it is really uncompromising and singular in its vision. i was stunned. i can't believe that nobody in my school has heard of it. please check out this movie and spread the word.

for more information click here

reviews: 1, 2, page 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

products you might be interested in