No God, No Master (2014)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

The idea is nice, Crime fighter investigates the "bad guys". Here is the twist, Anarchists, Marxists are not enemies, but friends who are misunderstood by capatalist racsists who want "their country". The idea that the early 20th century anarchist movement is something to be revered because it was in the forefront of "sexual liberation, women's rights, labor, etc." is nothing short of propaganda. Emma Goldman, Sacco & Vanzetti are the victims? Are we all to believe that these two terrorists were just constantly just talking about the global revolution of the proleteriot against the bourgoise and nothing more? Emma Goldman? Are we seriously putting trash out like this? I will never get this time back in my life, and I strongly urge you to not only never see this, but warn your friends. Disgusting attempt at the re-write of history.

If you want to see just how Marxist our film industry has become, by all means watch this, Wonderful performances, and a total distortion of the Sacco-Vanzetti case. But drama has never had to be valid, just effective.IF you want to check on the Marxist Progressives attempts to rewrite history, this is one of the most interesting. Forget history. Go with propagandaAnd this is effective. Some terrific work by David Straithearn and others. And the scenery chewing of Mitchell Palmer is great fun... The humble people (AKA immigrants) just trying to get their rights against the capitalist imperialists, who can resist?Don't miss it.If you want to know where Barack Obama has come from, make sure you watch THIS.

OK, I love period pieces and tried to like this one despite the obvious budget constraints of No God, No Master as it moved along, but the no- nuanced presentation of the historical characters made it a task. The simplistic and fiery speech of Galleani (face lit from underneath to emphasize "evil") was a prime example. Flynn in the middle of a melee of activists and cops as his boss (who instigated the fight) looks on passively, is another. Say what you will about baddie Palmer, he seemed to have an awful lot of patience with the uncooperative Flynn.Just taking it as a movie - a "work of art" as opposed to reportage - it failed to satisfy. The all too many plot lines were hard to follow and hard to buy into. The "romance," in particular, was just too cute and convenient and made some of the final scenes pretty screwy. But maybe my attention drifted and I missed some details. Would that I could convince a smart friend to watch this movie and answer my questions, because I am befuddled and left to wonder...Why was the boy taken?What are we supposed to conclude when Flynn finds Louise Berger living in a nice apartment, rather than a tenement hovel?Is Flynn partially blind? If not, how come such a brilliant couldn't see the car following him during his ride in the country?How did agent Swanson beat him to the hideout? Who the !#!!^>< is agent Swanson?Why was the boy in the barn? Are the anarchist bad guys also pedophiles?If Flynn is such a liberal and is so disgusted by Palmer's actions, why doesn't he want to talk to the press when the boss first makes the offer?Why in blazes was the boy in the barn?

Obviously this movie is made by someone with a great love for the Italian community, or rather what was the Italian community during the years of emigration in early 20th century, who are now integrated citizens and part of the USA. Just like the Irish, who came before. And everybody else, who followed. The USA is founded on emigration. On people coming to USA to seek their fortune and thus providing the labour, on which the modern age was build. That's a lot of eyes, but unfortunately the stories told from those days are mostly the same, and in the same historic perspective.This movie narrows the focus to depict a fragment of the battle to define exactly what democracy is - and who gets to define it. Labour unions are at the forefront of this battle, recognising the oppression that makes a few people very rich and powerful enough to bend the government. For example the banker J.D. Rockefeller, who was able to call in national guards to terrorize and kill his striking miners, who were kept under slave-like conditions. One can never see the whole of a story, without losing important details. But "No God, no master" manages very well, I believe, to show how both the powerful and the powerless are only just people, and how bridges of understanding can be build through simple acts of diligence and kindness. Besides being presented with a less knows aspect of the story of how the nation was build, I loved the feeling of being "back then". Indie movies can't recreate and build fake streets, but rather than resorting to CGI like many Indie movies (and over-funded movies too - neither with quite satisfactory results) No God, No master makes do with camera angles, select streets and plain good storytelling in frames to create the illusion of streets from a 100 years ago. My only critique was a tendency to take "tension music" right to the edge. I would say this was unnecessary as the plot was sufficient to keep me interested and leaning forward. All in all a decent movie I have no problems recommending. 7/10 for just making a good movie.