Drawbridge: The Life and Death of a Town

When we think of Western ghost towns, the image of a San Francisco Bay island does not readily come to mind for most of us. But that's exactly what the burg of Drawbridge is--an island ghost town…that's sinking into the water. Drawbridge: The Life and Death of a Town offers an interesting chronicle of the life and times of this former duck-hunting resort and party town, founded in 1877, with environmental degradation comprising a large part of the plot. However, the format of the video is irritating as heck. Divided into three short segments (“Introduction,” “Life on the Island,” and “The Death of Drawbridge”), with each segment beginning and concluding with a complete run of credits, this program could have easily been turned into a streamlined comprehensive narrative with just a little editing. In addition, the discussion of the environmental factors leading to Drawbridge's decline doesn't really kick in until the final segment. Sure to be welcome in local history collections (although the unfortunate format will have irritable patrons reaching for their remotes), this is optional elsewhere. Aud: H, C, P. (R. Reagan)