Review of Battle in Seattle (2007) by Nani V — 29 Sep 2008

This is the 1999 WTO conference in a fictionalized format. It's not totally necessary, there are a half-dozen documentaries about the protests in Seattle in 1999. It seems a lot of the content from this movie was directly lifted from the documentary "This is What Democracy Looks Like". There are shots which have been recreated and even quotations by some of the protestors.

Yet this is a good movie with some wonderful acting. Harrelson and Liota stand out in their roles as a riot cop and the mayor of Seattle. Although I was most struck by Martin Henderson as Jay, a protest organizer whose brother was killed in a forestry protest and has two strikes against him and could spend a long time in jail if he gets arrested again. Having been to protests in Seattle and in Ottawa against globalization I recognized his character as a common person we see in this movement. The romantic plot line with another protestor did almost feel forced at times. It wasn't necessary but for the most part this movie wasn't necessary.

If the movie accomplishes anything I hope it will bring younger people who were too young to be politically aware at that time into the fold and fight against corporate and state tyranny.

The movie definitely captured the feeling of these anti-globalization protests and how they represented a multitude of voices from environmentalism to labour leaders. I just wish they had focused more on the anarchists who seemed to be the only ones to get the short end of the stick in this movie. Why not show their story and who they are? Are hippie leftist protestors more interesting. Perhaps next time when someone makes a movie out of the 2001 protests against the FTAA in Quebec City. Battaille en Québec.