Films / Detropia
Best of 2012 Showcase | Documentary Feature | 2012 | 90 min | Website
Director:Rachel Grady & Heidi Ewing
Documentary Film Editing Award-Sundance; Grand Jury Prize-Boston Independent Film Festival.
Film source: Loki Films
“Detroit’s story has encapsulated the iconic narrative of America over the last century— the Great Migration of African Americans escaping Jim Crow; the rise of manufacturing and the middle class; the love affair with automobiles; the flowering of the American dream; and now . . . the collapse of the economy and the fading American mythos. As houses are demolished by the thousands, automobile-company wages plummet, institutions crumble, and tourists gawk at the “charming decay,” the film’s vibrant, gutsy characters glow and erupt like flames from the ashes.” Caroline Libresco.
A visually stunning tour through one of America’s iconic cities, Detropia brings the viewer into the heart of the gorgeous ruin that is modern-day Detroit. Seen through the eyes of a few well-chosen and stubborn residents, the film is both a testament to and indictment of the American Dream.
Directed by the filmmakers of The Boys of Baraka and Jesus Camp. –S.G.
