One has to admire the tenacity of Jean Ziegler, a Swiss sociologist who has been a committed socialist throughout his life, actively agitating for political and economic change both as a member of the Swiss Parliament and in a number of capacities at the United Nations. Nicolas Wadimoff's documentary offers a sketch of Ziegler's life and career, incorporating archival material to provide historical context, but its primary purpose is to draw a portrait of the man through interviews of Ziegler and footage of him going about his duties as a member of the UN Advisory Committee on Human Rights. Indefatigable even in his 80s, Ziegler is seen visiting Cuba, where he excoriates the United States for its continuing economic blockade of the island, reminiscences about the time when he served back in the 1960s as a driver for Che Guevara in Geneva, and queries locals about how staunchly Castro's revolutionary ideals are being upheld. While in Cuba, he is briefly hospitalized after suffering a fainting spell, which gives him the opportunity not only to congratulate a nurse who will shortly go to Africa as part of a medical team, but also to praise the national healthcare system for providing first-rate care to everyone. Then he is off again to the UN, to do battle not only with the Western powers but also the Middle Eastern oil states that he identifies as new obstacles to socialist progress. Whether one agrees with Ziegler's ideology or not, Wadimoff's film certainly inspires admiration for the passion that Ziegler brings to his work on behalf of the poor and malnourished in the Third World. A strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)
Jean Ziegler: The Optimism of Willpower
(2016) 92 min. In English & French w/English subtitles. DVD: $99.95: public libraries & high schools; $248: colleges & universities. DRA. KimStim. PPR. Volume 32, Issue 6
Jean Ziegler: The Optimism of Willpower
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