Review of If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front (2011) by Manisha D — 13 Sep 2011

Youthful idealism vs adult cynicism, morality vs authority, freedom vs imprisonment, money vs things that money can't buy, brutish, violent enforcement vs principled outrage, clan strength vs self-interest, ignorant lackey vs thoughtful individual, eden vs humans. It's all there in the best documentary of the year. So glad PBS broadcast it. To those who attack Daniel McGowan as soft, that's part of the point. The guy is NOT a terrorist, he's an activist citizen who came from suburban America and was violated into extreme behavior by the extreme behavior he saw perpetrated around him. Despite those confusing humanity for weakness, he's still got more guts than any film critic or couch jockey. The guy is the closest thing America has produced to a real thorn in authority's side. I didn't know the guy before I saw the flim, and he's a freshly minted hero to me now, so that says plenty about him and the film. Plus, I'm gonna purchase it, so there you go, media empire. Warm up the presses.

And to the FBI investigator who half-heartedly apologizes in the film...your pathetic rationales don't mean much to a guy locked in a US terror prison. Go prosecute the real criminals you've toadyed to.