Trouble the Water

source: Trouble the Water

That this could happen in America is a crime of such a magnitude that no words coming from the Bush administration could ever erase the shame. An amateur rented a camera and her video is supplemented by profession work in this Oscar nominated and Sundance award winning film. The fact that we had rapid response to the storms that hit Texas afterwards does not negate what happened in Louisiana. This short film brings home the crime that was committed upon this city and it's residents. Navy personnel aiming M-16s at a crowd of survivors just looking for a warm and dry place to sleep is indicative of the lack of care the government displayed in the aftermath of Katrina. "Get off our property or we're gonna start shooting." Excellent film about some people got their lives together on their own.

This is a must see movie by all God's children around the world. It a secret the US Government would like to hide. This movie gives an honest and compiling account on how all of us can prepare and respond to natural disasters. The US Government did and continues to fail the citizens of New Orleans. However, this movie also focuses upon the inner faith and strength the citizens of New Orleans have. I pray this documentary gets maximum exposure. People from around the world need to see a true and accurate account of what occurred before, during and after Hurricane Katrina. It is my hope that people and government's from around the world take note of how to prepare for natural disasters.

A must-see documentary for anyone interested in the suppression of the poor in the United States. What went down in New Orleans was something even the corporate media had a hard time hiding. FOX News was reporting on Hurricane Katrina and saying the place looked like the 3rd world. The images were startling on the US news, but there was still the undertones of profit. "How will this affect gasoline prices?" Julie Chen asks on the CBS morning show after showing footage of all the homeless blacks. This is the story as told by the people themselves, not by Anderson Cooper or anyone else. This is how the story should be told because these are the people who lived with it. It's not even a story anyone in uniform could tell because they were part of the problem in New Orleans. One scene of this documentary allows the locals to narrate how they tried to go to a local Navy base in New Orleans which had been evacuated before the storm. It was empty and it had housing for people which wasn't being used. The National Guard who were protecting the building cocked and loaded M-16s and pointed them at the crowd. Nope, these aren't the stories you hear about on CNN. You won't hear the story about a man in prison for a misdemeanour before the storm hit either. The television was taken away by the guards before footage of the storm was on the air, when the prisoners finally heard that there was a hurricane outside, they were denied food and most of the guards left. This is a very good documentary, and an important one because it shows the failings of government. The government doesn't fail everyone, it takes very good care of the rich and businesses, which recovered quicker than anyone else in New Orleans. The government failures are biased towards the poor and visual minorities and this doc. pretty much confirms that thesis. Four years on and not much has changed in the 9th ward, but the casino is open and the tourism department is showing a flashy video urging people to come to New Orleans. The poor black people aren't around any more, except when they're working for minimum wage. The rest have been displaced from the city where they lived but no longer trust to live in anymore. Katrina is just one of the legacies of the Bush administration and perhaps a strong indication that the US is a country whose power is in decline. What can you possibly say about a country which won't even help its weakest and most destitute citizen? It sucks.

Trouble the Water: 8 out of 10: Kimberly Roberts is a 24-year-old rap hopeful who took some incredible footage just before and during hurricane Katrina. Carl Deal and Tia Lessin who came down to Louisiana to film a different project about Katrina and found both her and her footage, they switched gears and this movie was the result. The most amazing footage is the pre-Katrina scenes. Kimberly knows her neighborhood and is a real person. She asks people what they are going to do about the hurricane her uncle buys another bottle of booze, stumbles home, while a 10-year-old pigtailed niece flashes a gang sign, and declares she is not scared of any water. While I know that neighborhoods like this exist it is still shocking to see people live like this first hand in America. One of the sad strange truths that ooze out of the film is that Katrina is the best thing that ever happened to Kimberly and her friends. The disaster probably saved her life or at the very least gave her a chance at a new one. Orphaned at 13 when her mother died of AIDS Kimberly is no shrinking violet and she certainly tells it like it is. While Michael Moore veterans Carl Deal and Tia Lessin add structure and social commentary to the film this is Kimberly’s show. The show is both moving and truly fascinating.

I think the main problem with this film is that it is a bit too long. IMO, it's an important film as a document of the times, but it could have been a 60 minute documentary. The most intriguing thing about it is also its weak point. The video footage shot by Ms Roberts and her husband is utilized well at the onset, sliced with news clips whose irony is tragic. Naturally "Heck-uv-a-job" Brownie has his moment and even the Smirking Chimp has a little cameo. Their words contrast sharply with the reality of what is shown in the home video, the bodies, the drowned homes, a military installation rewarded for turning survivors away. All of it revealing and compelling. But I think the film makers try to sell the characters and tragedy when they don't have to. It's obvious and genuinely moving. And there's a whole of lot follow up that, while necessary, IMO is a bit overplayed. I gave it an 9 because I think it is important. I think everyone should see it.

I just saw this film tonight, at it's opening in Hollywood, and encourage this to go nationwide. It breaks my heart at how our corrupt government completely ignored the cries of the people. It's almost as if the government was looking for a reason to destroy the population of the 9th Ward in New Orleans (i.e.: a form of genocide). This is a very powerful study of the devastation from the "ground" floor -- thanks to Kimberly Rivers Roberts (and her husband Scott) home videos. During the closing credits, the filmmakers showed what the current status of all the characters -- including the Captain of the Naval Base and his Presidential Commendation for protecting the (disbanned) base from possible terrorist activity. I'm a high school Social Studies teacher in Los Angeles and can't wait for the DVD so I can share this with my students.

Living at Los Angeles, I missed an opportunity of see Danny Glover, probably most famous as being the co-star of the Lethal Weapon series and one of the leads of Steven Spielberg's THE COLOR PURPLE, I stayed to see what I thought to be a most intriguing documentary of eye witness accounts of Hurricane Katrina. The day of this writing, August 29, 2008, another hurricane called Gustav threatens New Orleans again. This documentary won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance earlier this year. Interspersed with news programs, cars leaving the city and President Bush promising not to worry, help is on the way for all those in need, this shows a family being stranded right before, during and after Hurricane Katrina. For this family, there was not only not any help being on the way, photographic evidence that the government imposed obstacles to survivors who were too poor to evacuate. However, the general tone of this movie is that of a personal will of survival. That tone is set by Katherine Roberts, then aspiring rap artist, who shot the footage of being trapped, the danger being very well. Images shot just prior to the storm include an alcoholic uncle who will perish. The streets become rivers and the house just below them submerged. It shows a strong neighbor Frank swimming in the water helping the women and children. It should be noted that most of the documentary subjects are African American. Two weeks later, Katherine and her husband run into documentarians Tia Lessin and Carl Deal. With their help, the Roberts visually retell how they found a boat, loaded up grandma and the kids and were able to escape the very much underwater neighborhood. They recount how hundreds, actually thousands, were turned away from a near empty naval base. Turned away with the use of M-16 rifles. It must be noted Lessin and Deal initially planned to shoot a documentary of the Louisiana Brigade going to Iraq. After the hurricane happened, instead of helping in their own state, the brigade were shipped off to Iraq. The journey continues with the Roberts. They're able to get a truck and go up for refuge in South Memphis. They are amazed how a black community can be kept up and actually be in good neighborhoods partly due to the tourist trade Memphis gets. Speaking of the tourist trade, the French Quarter and Downtown where most of the tourists go are fixed right away. Almost comically to see a tourist commercial with the eighty per cent that still laid in ruins. The Roberts have trouble getting FEMA relief. By the way, a great version of John Lee Hooker's "Money" is played to a series of unsmiling faces. Katherine shows her chops as well. One of her hip hop songs is called "Amazing". The refrain roughly goes like this: "I don't need anyone else to tell me I'm amazing." Able to smile while endearing personal and financial loss was quite inspiring to see. Maybe I'm a black man trapped by a white man's body. Actually, I believe what affects one group affects us all. And I didn't need Danny Glover to enjoy this film. I do admit that it would have been more fun.

This documentary made me so furious. Impossible to feel sympathy for these people. They hate the government but want to government to save them and pay for their children and their ability to pass out on the front porch. You can't have it both ways. At one point a resident "says the government needs to build a new school for the kids", where does this person think the money for schools come from? Taxpayers, yes people who contribute and have jobs. If you contribute nothing and are just a drain, why should anyone risk their life to save you? The disabled and elderly have my deepest sympathy. Able-bodied people who choose to breed and expect a free ride from the "horrible government" have zero sympathy from me. If you are a tax payer and are on the fence about welfare reform watch this documentary and you will change your mind. How many rappers pay taxes? At least the dog survived a dog isn't expected to contribute to the world around them.

While the movie started good it quickly seemed to push its slanted view of the truths surrounding Katrina. The language was very, very offensive and I almost quit viewing because subtitles were needed due to poor sound quality. The movie covered the Navy Base as an outpost intended to keep the natives out. Actually the USS Totuga was there 2 hours after Louisiana Governor Blanco "finally" asked for help about 5 days after Katrina. A lot of the people in the movie seemed to be asking for the government to take care of them although they didn't want to leave New Orleans before the storm. The Navy actually built kennels for hundreds of dogs and housed locals that were homeless and gave them thousands of meals. Coincidently this same ship helped the Japanese after their tsunami. I found it interesting that the subjects spent so much time complaining about the national government and President Bush, but work seemed like an afterthought.