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Giuliani Time (2006)
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Reviews Counted:26
Fresh:22
Rotten:4
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: Though he may be preaching to the choir, Keating provides plenty of evidence to back his claims about the former NYC mayor.
Theatrical Release:May 12, 2006 Limited
Synopsis: Ever since the events of 9/11 Rudy Giuliani has become a name recognized the world over. Besides being named "Time" magazine's Person of the Year and receiving a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth,... Ever since the events of 9/11 Rudy Giuliani has become a name recognized the world over. Besides being named "Time" magazine's Person of the Year and receiving a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth, his profile has only grown in the last few years. His energetic campaigning for the reelection of George W. Bush gave him new political power. Over the last year, his name has been rumored as a popular choice for not only senator and governor but as America's envoy to the United Nations, the new director of the CIA and a number of other high-profile positions. He is also talked about as a favored candidate for the 2008 GOP Presidential nomination. But what defined "America's Mayor" before he was catapulted to a secular sainthood? More than five years in the making, "Giuliani Time" investigates the stories behind the "new" New York City that Giuliani laid claim to. From "quality of life" policing to welfare reform and First Amendment-related debacles, the feelings about the Giuliani years largely depended on where you stood. "Giuliani Time" is the story of the effect this former Reagan administration official and high-profile federal prosecutor had on what he called the 'Capital of the World." It is a wild ride of political ambition and public amnesia, alternate realities, wars of perception and dramatic, even cataclysmic, events. [More]
Director: Kevin Keating
Director: Kevin Keating
Producer: Kevin Keating, William Cole
Studio: Cinema Libre
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Reviews for Giuliani Time
Keating makes the case that a Giuliani presidency would be an exceedingly bad idea, juxtaposing the politician's public persona and veneer of fake charm, with his vicious dark side that periodically peers through.
A chilling record of a politician whose modus operandi includes incessant lying, taking credit for other peoples' achievements, blatant racism and imperious governing.
Damning documentary indicts the ex-mayor as deserving to be remembered not for the clean-up of the Twin Towers, but for his utter lack of compassion for the impoverished and working classes.
While Giuliani Time offers a wealth of important information that many might have long forgotten, its impact is diluted by its heavily biased nature and lack of balance.
With the former mayor currently enjoying one of the rare second acts in American political life, Giuliani Time does a strong job of reminding us what the first one was like.
Keating may [be] too intent on touching on every aspect of the mayor's vicious careerism; at two hours, the film might have benefited from some pruning....But the film is never dull...
Giuliani Time energetically deflates one trumpeted myth after another about Giuliani’s success at turning the city around from its doldrums in the 1970s.
The first chip has been knocked off the shoulder in the 2008 presidential horse race.
It is impossible to downplay the man's role in events following the September 11 attack...But, his track record prior to that terrible event cannot be ignored.
Giuliani Time ultimately includes much useful information ... [but] anybody who reads The Village Voice will find nothing here to surprise them.
The trouble with Giuliani Time is that Keating, as a filmmaker, wants to give power to the people but in his every perception he takes it away from them.
I wanted more of those press conferences where he lashed at 'actually really jerky' questions before turning on his heel and exiting stage right. When Giuliani Time gives us a taste of this Rudy, it's mesmerizing.
While Keating's motives may have the public interest at heart, his methods undercut his message.
Keating, who learned his craft shooting for respected documentarians like Barbara Kopple and the Maysles brothers, takes his stand early, makes his points bluntly and backs them up solidly with archival footage and expert testimony.
To his credit and his film's benefit -- Keating also interviews Giuliani's friends and supporters, who praise his accomplishments (while acknowledging his occasional abrasiveness).
The film slogs through the history of the Giuliani controversies without telling us anything we didn't already know. It also frequently contradicts itself.
Keating, who has shot for the Maysles brothers and Barbara Kopple, amasses an impressive amount of evidence to bolster his claims, allowing the relative dryness of his style to be overshadowed by the revelatory nature of his research.
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