Action: The October Crisis of 1970

This film provided a wealth of interesting footage from the historical events leading up to and during the October crisis. It was really neat to be able to see the strike breakers come to blows with strikers. I was also surprised to see just how much footage there was of police officers exhibiting some questionable treatment towards the Quebecois protestors. The film also provided a great deal of speeches from the crisis including those of Trudeau, Bourassa and the full broadcast of the FLQ manifesto. I found the footage of the manifesto to be the most interesting part of the film and the October crisis in general. The idea of reading a terror group's work on national television is an event that would signal the end of days to many if it happened in the United States and yet is it presented here as a simply fact, and a relatively small one compared to the other events going on at the time. René Lévesque's comments on Laporte's death were also quite interesting, it was strange to see the contrast of how he acted before and during his press interview, he really exhibited a side of politicians rarely seen. I did feel that the film had a tendency to let a few scenes run unnecessarily long and that the narration could have been greatly improved. The music used had little impact, especially compared to the primary audio of speeches and protests. The editing also seems like it could be improved as there were a few transitions that were so abrupt I though I accidently skipped ahead. I liked that the film went into some of the details of the opposition to the War Measures Act, I felt like this was not discussed enough in the text. Overall the film provided an interesting look at the October crisis filled with great historical footage. Some of the technical aspects could be improved and some scenes could be cut down. I'd give this film a 6/10.

Just want to start off that this movie is a documentary but spoken by a very boring sounding narrator. Also, it seemed that the narrator had a very strange accent that made it hard for the average American to understand. To help understand the video if you payed close attention to the events you could usually figure out what the narrator is talking about. If you can get past that the documentary was very informative and showed a different side of Canada. This filmed showed the events that the Canadian terrorist group in Quebec did. From what I gathered there was a lot of tension that Quebec would loss its French culture to the British. So the French-Canadians showed their emotions by kidnapping Politian's, and blowing up buildings, starting riots, pretty much anything that made a huge impact the French-Canadians did. This was a very big issue for Canada but in the movie the narrators voice hardly changed so, me the viewer, did not get the intense feeling that I should have got. Even in the News interview they seemed calm but knew that this was a very big issue that they needed to overcome. I get that the French-Canadians of Quebec were angry and wanted to keep their French heritage in there Providence but they went about this the wrong way. This video would be a great way to show of what not to do when you want something a curtain way. I now understand why this was not a huge part in my History of Canada course because it was a bad/ almost embarrassing time for Canada. Overall, I would give this documentary a 5 out of 10 because it did have some very interesting events and had actual footage of the events, but the way the video was constructed was terrible and made it hard to watch.

The FLQ October Crisis 1970 film is, for lack of a better word, boring. The fact that the film is in black and white is of no issue, in fact FLQ October Crisis 1970 is very pleasing to look at and watch. The video compilation presented many scenes that are fun to watch and is intriguing to see the historical context of that time. Seeing the protest, conferences, and speakers during this time really sells the message that the video is trying to get across, and shows how important the political scene in Canada was during this time. However, the narration of this film destroys any enjoyment that one might have watching this film. The narration is so monotone that it makes a metronome sound like its playing a Beethoven symphony. The Narration could put a person with insomnia to sleep. If this was shown in a high school class, everyone, without a doubt, would be asleep including the teacher. If you can get past the narration, the information presented in the film is very informative and interesting. It outlines the political turmoil in Canada during the time wished to be independent. The biggest point of the film is the differences between several political parties and the struggles that followed suite due to these struggles. The film presents many interview from both sides that seemed pretty heated giving the film a slight edge that is dulled by the narration once more. Overall, I would not recommend this film. Although the information in the film is presented in a unique way, the narration makes this film not worth the watch. There is without a doubt, a better way to learn the information presented in this film. Given all these parameters, I would rate FLQ October Crisis 1970 a 4/10.

This is an interesting video about the FLQ Crisis in Quebec. I liked the depth of the whole video, starting from the real beginning of the crisis, because it really set the stage for what the Crisis was about. In some ways, I think what happened in Quebec was inevitable, since the loss of the region by the French to the British. The first British rulers of the region tried to accommodate the French with laws such as the Quebec Act, but in the end, the French-Canadiens would never truly belong to the expanding British Empire. This would result in under-representation in the government, which in turn would reduce awareness for the complaints that the French in Quebec would raise against the government in the 1960s. The FLQ was a militant offshoot of these protesters with reasonable demands or representation and equality. I liked how the video included the full reading of the FLQ manifesto on Canadian news, because it helped really show what the views of the organization were. I found it interesting how the video mentions that after the manifesto was read on the news, many people sympathized with the goal of the FLQ, even though they didn't necessarily agree with their methods.

My biggest complaint about the video is the narrator. I don't know if he was talking that way to increase suspense, or if that was just how he did the narration, but it was extremely dry and boring. I'm not sure if it was just the audio quality from footage that was recorded over 50 years ago, but there some parts where the sound design seems fake. There are a few parts where it seems like someone in a sound studio dubbed over the video from the time-period with sound effects like whistles or car crashes.

Overall I would rate this video a 6.5/10 (7/10 if the sound design isn't faked in some places).

The October Crisis of 1970 I would rate this film a 6 out of 10 stars. I would give it less, however I tried to consider that the film was produced in 1974 and thus had it's limitations. The October crisis of 1970 is a documentary that tries to tell the story of the FLQ, a Canadian terrorist group in Quebec. It follows the group from it's early forming through the kidnapping of two prominent politicians. It tells of a time when the charter of rights in Canada was suspended citing the need for security around the nation. The Documentary was overall hard to follow. It took quite a bit of rewinding to get exactly what was being said. This could be because the event in history was confusing and scary for the people experiencing it, but I personally would not have taken a creative move like that. The narration didn't help matters much. It was very lack luster. Everything was said with the same tone and speed. It would have been much better if the narration had shown some of the emotion that was running through the film. There were no clear section breaks or transitions to help the viewer comprehend what they were watching. The speed of the film was a bit shaky, starting of slow and then gaining speed like a snowball as it got farther along. Slowing down the film, adding more subtitles, and section breaks would make the film a bit easier to understand. The film did have a few good notes. It offered perspective from multiple different views of the incident. It also makes good use of the existing video and audio of the event. The series of events that make the October crisis were important events that needed to be written about. If the video were updated and remade today, I think that it would be more effective as a teaching tool.