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Screamers

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Screamers (2006)

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66 %
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Reviews Counted: 32

Fresh: 21

Rotten:11

Average Rating: 6.2/10

Consensus: A raw and urgent snapshot of a band and the politics that drive it.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins

Genre: Musical & Performing Arts

Theatrical Release:Dec 8, 2006 Limited

Box Office: $23,609

Synopsis: Documentary feature examining why genocides keep occurring -- from the Armenian genocide in 1915, to the Holocaust, Bosnia, Rwanda and now Darfur -- through the eyes and music of the Grammy... Documentary feature examining why genocides keep occurring -- from the Armenian genocide in 1915, to the Holocaust, Bosnia, Rwanda and now Darfur -- through the eyes and music of the Grammy award-winning rock band "System of a Down," based in Los Angeles, whose members are all grandchildren of genocide survivors. As the band tours the world and touches on the locations and stories of genocide in the last century, the film follows the personal story of the lead singer's grandfather, a 96-year old survivor of the Armenian genocide, one of the few remaining survivors from his village in Turkey. With the arguments of Harvard Professor Samantha Power, the personal stories of survivors from Armenia, Rwanda and Darfur, policy critics and whistleblowers – the "screamers" – the film targets the problem of genocide denial, with specific reference to the Turkish government’s current campaign to stop its citizens from discussing the genocide. When the band arrives back in the United States, they confront the hypocrisy of U.S. foreign policy in the debate on genocide recognition, with Speaker of the House, Dennis Hastert, actively blocking a vote in Congress. Through the band’s efforts to get Dennis to "Do the Right Thing" and Power’s thesis that America's interest has always been to stay neutral, no matter how wide-scale the carnage, the film shows how successive Presidents and corporate interests have conspired to turn a blind eye to genocides as they are happening – whether it be Iraqi Kurds in the 80s, Rwanda in the 90s or Darfur today. After the Holocaust, we may say 'never again' -- but we don't mean it. [More]

Director: Carla Garapedian

Director: Carla Garapedian

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Release:

Nov 30, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Screamers

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
10/18/08
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

An odd duck of a documentary, but a powerful one.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
06/08/07
Jim Slotek
Jam! Movies

Is it possible to get mad at a film that has its heart and soul in the right place?

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
06/08/07
Stephen Cole
Globe and Mail
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
05/14/07
Chad Greene
Boxoffice Magazine

Despite the noble effort, the medium and the message just don't mix.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
05/04/07
John Monaghan
Detroit Free Press
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The Armenian genocide and the continuing Turkish denial of history. The film offers damning evidence that the highly civilized European Union should do everything it can to keep the highly uncivilized Turks from becoming equals in EU membership.

Full Review Source: EDGE Boston | comment Comment
02/19/07
Phil Hall
EDGE Boston

Grating concert footage trivializes Garapedian's message. (One fan, celebrating the band's political potency, enthuses that 'System is antiwar, they're anti-this, anti-that.')

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
02/09/07
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Screamers isn't didactic; it doesn't tell you how to respond. It just wants you to know and to ask questions.

Full Review Source: UGO | comment Comment
02/09/07
Brian Tallerico
UGO

Armenian-American director Carla Garapedian, who got a doctorate in international relations at the London School of Economics, presents a wide-awake, high-decibel briefing on foreign policy.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
02/09/07
Bill Stamets
Chicago Sun-Times
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This film has provocations to spare; it just hasn't been made provocatively. It's a mess, actually.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
02/09/07
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe
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Cannot decide if it wants to be a documentary about the band System of a Down or what the band is about.

Full Review Source: Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) | comment Comment
02/08/07
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

Screamers is a commendably brave piece, but less focused and powerful than you'd like.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
02/08/07
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film's composite testimony, from the charismatic band and more-metaphorical screamers such as politicians, scholars and eyewitnesses, is both scary and motivating.

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
02/03/07
Melissa Anderson
Time Out New York

System of a Down, whose members are the grandsons of genocide survivors, anchor this musical and political documentary with surprising gravitas, and the film offers true insight into the patterns of war crimes.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
01/31/07
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite a limited understanding of why genocide occurs, a worthwhile introduction to one of the 20th century's greatest crimes.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/27/07
Louis Proyect
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Rife with rotting corpses, severed heads and massacred children, Screamers is one of the most horrifying movies I've ever seen.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/26/07
Richard Leiby
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

... rousing concert film ...

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
01/26/07
Ken Fox
TV Guide's Movie Guide

... one of the most bizarre documentaries you'll ever not see ...

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
01/26/07
Kyle Smith
New York Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Fans are, obviously, most likely to appreciate the concert footage that's woven throughout the film.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
01/26/07
Elizabeth Weitzman
New York Daily News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Part rockumentary, part howl of outrage, Screamers is an invigorating and articulate film.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
01/26/07
Jeannette Catsoulis
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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