The U.S. Vs. John Lennon (2006) Synopsis:
The documentary covers the period 1966-1976 and tells the story of John Lennon's transformation from beloved musical artist to anti-war activist to iconic inspiration for peace, and recounts the story of the U.S. Government's efforts to silence him. The U.S. vs. John Lennon will also show that this was not just an isolated episode in American history, but that the issues and struggles of that era remain relevant today.
The U.S. Vs. John Lennon (2006) Movie Review:
Expertly assembled, this crisp, coherent documentary digs into Richard Nixon's infamous list of enemies, centring on the campaign to rid the nation of one of the most famous peaceniks in history.
After a scene-setting prologue, the filmmakers start with Lennon's childhood, the Beatles, their arrival in America and their vocal peace-and-love reaction to the situation in Vietnam (see, of course, Give Peace a Chance and All You Need Is Love). But as Lennon got more vocal in his anti-war stance, especially when he teamed with performance artist Yoko Ono, Nixon's paranoia escalated, leading to government-ordered wiretapping, surveillance and a plot to deport them.
The filmmakers compile an amazing collection of footage, much of it unseen. And they contextualise it by interviewing a wide range of witnesses, from friends and family to journalists, fellow performers, political figures and former FBI agents. They also let others have their say through archival footage, including Lennon himself, as well as Nixon, J Edgar Hoover and younger versions of the interviewees.
The historical chronology is peppered with relevant songs, while Lennon's on-camera comments reveal a thinking artist whose message of complete and utter non-violence is perceived as a threat by those in power. His publicity stunts (weeklong in-bed press conferences, the global "War Is Over" ad campaign) are simple and extremely clever. And the film taps into his personal relationships, revealing a side of the man we've rarely seen before. Instead of giving up and quietly returning to the UK, he stood his ground and eventually sued the US government for harassment, an action that led to the revelation of Nixon's enemies list ... and ultimately the Watergate break-in.
The film gets a little lost in its own importance at the end, but the message is startlingly simple: there's a choice, peace or war, with nothing in between. This is nothing new, but in the late-60s and early 70s (and even now) there were very few people so tenacious about pointing this out. Martin Luther King was killed for saying this. And they tried everything they could to silence Lennon. His tenacity is a real inspiration.
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The U.S. Vs. John Lennon (2006) review written by: Rich Cline
7th September, 2008 
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