Kent State

This is a very balanced portrayal and demonstrates the failures on all sides of the event. Yes, those shot and killed were innocent youth, some whom just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Yes, the SDS was on campus encouraging widespread unrest and violence. Yes, most of the National Guard troops were exhausted kids put in an impossible situation with live ammunition. Yes, the politicians involved were inept boobs who had no clue as to the right way to manage the situation and took actions to violate the students' constitution rights. The only major miss here was they show the burning of the ROTC building but leave out much of the other destruction caused to the city of Kent, which was a key factor in the level of tension in the community and led to extreme reactive actions on all sides.

Wow.

I remember this movie; another comment on the IMDb pointed out how this should be required viewing for students, and I actually DID see this film in high school, several years ago. It stuck with me, though for some reason it never occurred to me to look it up on the IMDb-- I found it quite by accident.

The movie did a great job of establishing the characters and the time, though kind of tipped its hand as to the fates of these main characters. One scene sticks out in my memory as a professor gives a short speech about Gus Flaubert, to an empty classroom-- I mean, it's not supposed to be empty, the students are supposed to be implied, but it's a TV movie so I guess they couldn't afford extras that day.

Anyway. Things can get pretty crazy in a heated political climate; with all the hate and anger being spewed by Fox News commentators toward Liberal America, this film is still a sobering reminder of the mistrust certain cultures in America have for others, and when that's met with violence, there are terrible consequences. This film isn't the most technically well-made (it was a TV-movie after all), but is still required viewing until someone has the vision, and the courage, to make the film we so desperately need.

This movie is not an accurate depiction of what REALLY occurred at Kent State in May of 1970.

I filled out a review form for more detail, but in short, this movie is pure fantasy from the movie set to the storyline. The only people who should view this movie are history scholars that want an example of self-serving media manipulation of historical facts. This movie, because of theatrical license, pays no respect to Kent State University, the City of Kent, or the students that were killed and wounded.

No student at Kent State deserved the ultimate results, but promoting a phony docu-drama makes a mockery of the whole tragic situation. I was there. The video is a joke.

This movie does more than shows the atrocities of that day, it shows what led up to these events.

It showed the uncaring attitude of the school and its administrators. It showed the incompetence of the government officials and their poor handling of the situation. It showed the over-zealousness of our own militia, and the seemingly and endless errors in the handling of what otherwise was a peaceful protest.

This should be played annually around this tragic anniversary, as well as played in every civics, political science, and government classes - AT EVERY AGE LEVEL, so we don't repeat this foolishness ever again.

A terrific television movie that deserved the Emmy the director received for best director of the year. Spellbinding and wonderfully acted by a young cast of unknowns, this movie takes us back to 1971 and the impact the Vietnam war was having on college campuses across the country. The war is raging on and many students have had enough of it and are leading protests across college campus. We follow the lives of the 4 students that are killed on the campus on that fateful day of May 4, 1971. The irony of the film is that none of the 4 were radical students and they just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time that day. We also follow the days leading up to the tragedy through the eyes of the professors, politicians, police and young ROTC men. This should be a must see film for high school students studying the Vietnam war as the deaths of the 4 students and many wounded turned the tide of public opinion against the war in America.