The tumultuous events of 1968 are boiled down for easy consumption in this inert History Channel presentation, in which a seemingly indifferent Tom Brokaw hosts a tiresome journey down memory lane. All of the major events here have been covered at greater depth in better documentaries: the Vietnam War, the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, the violence outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the political resurrection of Richard Nixon, the rise of the Black Panther movement, and the Smothers Brothers' feud with CBS censors over the politically-charged nature of their comedy routines. But in trying to telescope the events of 12 tumultuous months into a single 94-minute production, the result is that significant events are either relegated to a passing mention (such as the dramatic protests by Tommie Smith and John Carlos on the victory stand at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics) or completely ignored altogether (such as the bloody massacre of student protesters by the Mexican military prior to the Olympics' opening). A few key figures from that dramatic year are featured here in interviews—including Andrew Young and Arlo Guthrie—along with several celebrities whose after-the-fact commentaries are decidedly less-than-illuminating (most notably Jon Stewart's humorless dissection of the year's political satire and Bruce Springsteen's dull commentary on its music). Not a necessary purchase. Aud: H, C, P. (P. Hall)
1968 with Tom Brokaw
(2007) 94 min. DVD: $24.95. The History Channel (avail. from most distributors). PPR. ISBN: 0-4229-0651-5. Volume 23, Issue 3
1968 with Tom Brokaw
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