An Unreasonable Man

Watching this, I realized that I hadn't come to a hard conclusion on the "Nader effect on the election" debate. This movie presented that aspect of Nader's career in a comprehensive and balanced way. Although I tended to feel that Gore should have won the 2000 election by a landslide, and that it never should have come down to vote counting in one state, this movie really had me wavering until it became obvious that trying to blame Nader for Gore's loss (and arguably, ours) is like blaming the umpire in baseball if your team loses-- if it comes down to that, then you just haven't done your job.

So, hat's off to Ralph-- there just aren't enough people like him.

Henriette Mantel and Steve Skrovan's An Unreasonable Man insightfully and objectively chronicles the life of Ralph Nader and his interactions with society. It is filled with fascinating, carefully chosen, artfully constructed sequences which replay beautiful and dark moments of the past 60 plus years and puts them into context. Many of Nader's most ardent critics and supporters are interviewed in this balanced and educational documentary which focuses on facts and mixes them with speculation and opinion. I was riveted to the preview screening I saw on a large TV. Its so fast-paced, information packed, emotional, exciting, engaging, enRaging, and occasionally hilarious that when seeing it in a movie theater you should buckle your seatbelts! Keep your cell phones turned off and your mind open when watching this critically important film. It reminds me of 2 of my favorite Akira Kurosawa films, High and Low and Ikiru in the ways it makes me think about the pursuit of justice, equality, hard work, investigation, society, corporate ruthlessness, governmental bureaucracy, and the power of an individual to make a difference (for good or ill). An Unreasonable Man also reminds me of these 2 Kurosawa masterpieces because of its attention to detail, mastery of the subject, and mastery of the documentary format. It gives you powerfully organized information in chronological order and copious amounts of vintage footage which has been fascinatingly and cleverly edited and lets you make up your mind about this powerful, fascinating, multi-faceted, and controversial subject, Ralph Nader.

I'm going to keep this very short.

The first time I heard of Ralph Nader was through a friend, eight years a go. Eight years a go when Gore was running against Bush. My friend told me to find information on Ralph Nader, he told me that Nader was something different and something special.

I am not an American, so I had very little interest in American politics those days. Regardless I decided to check out this "Nader creature". Well my friend was right. Nader was something different. I felt there was something odd, weird about him. Nader had this monotonous voice and he didn't give these easy to digest political speeches. He didn't promise "change" or talk about "no child left behind" acts. In fact Nader talked about facts.

It was then that it dawned me. The reason why I found Naders message to be so weird, was because he was telling the truth! In a messed up, corporate controlled world, what are the odds that the consumer activist actually knows what is going on? Nader is a consumer activist and people all around the world owe Ralph Nader a great deal. Look at what you wear, what you eat, what you drive, where you work, the computer you own and tell me that corporations don't have power over you. Don't tell me that corporations aren't interested in politics. Corporations invest in political personalities.

Nader is a man who has fought for the consumer all his life, and that's what we are in the west. We are consumers. So when Ralph Nader speaks, we should listen instead of throwing cakes at him.

For many people Ralph Nader's entry into partisan politics has given them their first view of this man. The film gives a much richer view reaching back to his family and college days, and shows his quest for rights of the individual member of the public and for consumer advocacy in general have been a lifelong mission. Former coworkers and colleagues - many Nader's Raiders - are featured along with commentators who have followed him over the years.

The filmmakers are sympathetic to all aspects of Ralph, but (in the early cut I saw at Sundance '06) advocates for the original Ralph, champion of Everyman, the guy whom I thank daily as I reach for my mandated seat belt.

It's amusing to see all these hot topic liberals in 2000 supporting Ralph Nader and then running away as quickly as possible in 2004. This speaks volumes about what's wrong with the US political system. Don't vote your conscious, vote convenience. What better way to preserve the status quo? Michael Moore in particular is shown in 2000 in New York in this film praising Ralph Nader at an event at Madison Square Gardens. Four yeas later he's literally grovelling on his knees and asking Nader not to run. I'm not a Green but Nader is a stubborn son-of-a-bitch and that's exactly what's needed in US politics, people who are unrelenting and don't give up no matter how badly the odds are stacked against them. Those people are the best activists. I really wish though that Nader had sat down in front of the building holding the Presidential debates in 2000 and allowed himself to get arrested. It could have put him over the top. It would have made for great optics.