annevejb Late sixties I was walking dead, but articles in such as Rolling Stone showed Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin as bright stars in a sea of activity that was nonsense and sense. This feature centres on Abbie, but he is man sized rather than star size. The sea of activity is there without the charisma as a distraction. The story includes a lot of detail that I was not aware of. The early days. The later years. I find the presentation patchy. There are lumps of high interest to me, but there are nearly as many lumps that I find boring. I can accept that in a history text. * Day to day relevance other than history. Yes, for me. Abbie could finally walk free, even if he and Jerry ended up dead a lot earlier than some would have expected. The state was found to be using improper techniques. But my memory of such as DeLorean. Also of my own dealings with reality. What the state used against such as Abbie and Jerry seems not so unusual in most all countries, as active policy by the state against those who do not pass the test. As active policy by individuals and subcultures against those who do not pass the test. It messes up those who do not pass the test, the mess being considered as due to the victims. Only the tip of the iceberg is shown. I accept that it is difficult to describe in a way that communicates well. The nonsense and sense mixture is making a sort of sense to me now. This links with my comments on Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Children Of A Lesser God.

Joseph "God" Jordan While the film itself is an unbalanced and tepid depiction of this "revolutionary" anti-war personality, filled with mediocre performances and at times incoherent composition, I found its content to be the most off-putting aspect of this work. As a self-professed (though anarchist-leaning) nihilist, I know unfortunately little about this figure highly relevant to the politics to which I most closely adhere, and the subject of this film hardly merits the accolades attributed to the late, now fabled Mr. Hoffman (unless, of course, this movie provides an accurate presentation of someone by which the Leftist community has been ultimately duped).All the while professing a love of humanity and hatred of the power-mongers that would hold nations (such as Vietnam) in thrall for their own egoistic ends, this man subjected his wife, child, girlfriend (with whom he knew great happiness while the family he abandoned barely scraped by), comrades and politically-sympathetic donors to great hardship, financial and otherwise, to keep him out of prison and away from the misery that the many for which he supposedly fought knew only too well. He and his band of Yippies propelled themselves to the forefront of history and celebrity with seemingly enjoyable, iconoclastic guerilla theatre, and other pranks that served to increase the popularity and egos of the socially conscious participants, but to what end? The Vietnam war raged on amidst their gamboling, and the poor and oppressed continued (and continue) to languish under the same system of capitalism that existed before such bright ideas were engendered in the minds of these fighters. At least, his name will go down in history, as a man that achieved great renown, under the guise of fighting a system in which he ultimately made no dents, while his two mistresses suffered and a group of privileged, Jewish intellectuals thought they were making difference by getting high and getting mad...

mrezyka This film plays like a demented episode of VH1's "Where Are They Now", or "Behind The Music". In the first half of the movie (that depict his "glory days") Abbie Hoffman is unintentionally portrayed as a sort of delusional rock star. You know the kind; the poseur lead singer, the pretty boy, who didn't write any of the music, doesn't have a clue, but gets all the glory for nothing and chicks for free. Consequently he takes his success for granted, abuses it, and ultimately destroys it along with himself. Indeed Hoffman's glory days ended abruptly when he was busted for dealing cocaine, skipped bail, and went into hiding. The second part of the movie deals with that time in hiding. In it we see Hoffman as a pathetic crybaby endlessly blaming everyone, anyone, but himself for his downfall. Eventually the times pass him by completely; and he can never to come to grips with that. How sad. THE END. End credits roll and OH NO! We learn that Abbie Hoffman eventually committed suicide in 1989.I'm sure this is not the image the filmmakers intended for Hoffman in making this movie. Given that Tom Hayden and Gerald Lefcourt were involved, I'm sure they intended this film as some kind of homage to the life of a man who was after all, an icon of the 60's and of the Left's anti-war movement. In this they have failed miserably. The film presents Abbie Hoffman as a mindless caricature. We are never told about what drives him. How did he arrive at his views? How did he manage to capture the imagination of a whole generation? How did he organize such a vast movement? Why at the height of his fame did he get involved in dealing cocaine? Why? Who knows, and since the filmmakers don't seem to, ultimately who cares?

fatmaninatrenchcoat I would like to thank all of the people who made this movie. I just finished watching the DVD, and in fact I am still watching the interviews. The story of Abbie Hoffman, which I feel is one of the most important of recent American history, is not one that is told very much any more. The film did an excellent job of getting the historical issues and events right, and D'nofrio played Hoffman to the t. However, I would like to say shame on who ever decided that this film didnt deserve a large release. It is a film that everyone needs to see, and it did not recieve the publicity it deserved. Please go see this movie, buy this movie, and most importantly lets carry on the leggacy of Abbie through our own actions. Maybe this film will imspire you the way that all aspects of Hoffman have inspired me.10/10