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HOME OF THE BRAVE Send This Review to a Friend
The murder of Viola Liuzzo, a mother of five from Detroit who was shot while in Selma, Alabama, in support of Martin Luther King’s historic anti-segregation march in 1965, highlighted the hatred on the part of those trying to bury civil rights. She deserves to be remembered and honored, and that’s exactly what “Home of the Brave,” a new documentary, does. Written and directed by Paola di Florio and narrated by Stockard Channing, the film not only digs into the lives of Liuzzo and her family, but recollects the era of the intense battles and examines her legacy.
Liuzzo was the subject of an FBI smear campaign after her shocking death, which occurred when she was chauffeuring a black activist and a group of Klansman drove by on a lonely highway. They got her, but her assassination helped inspire passage of the Voter’s Rights Act.
A centerpiece of the film is the effort by Mary, a daughter of Liuzzo, to retrace her mother’s path from Detroit, where she was married to a teamster. In effect, the experience puts Mary much closer to understanding her mother and the impact of what had been achieved by her unintentional sacrifice. One of the most heartwarming moments of the film is when Mary is received enthusiastically by a congregation of African-Americans who appreciate Liuzzo’s heroism.
The film also covers the troublesome retreat of Mary’s two disillusioned brothers, and this helps to provide a portrait of the effect of what happened on the family as well as on the country. “Home of the Brave” is an important reminder for the present generation of the price paid by those who rose to the occasion and supported the movement in the 1960s. Rights enjoyed today did not come cheaply.
It is also worth paying attention to how this film is being shown in New York. The method is digital, with the use of a computer—no tape or film—in the projection at the new Emerging Cinemas space at Theater Row, 410-412 W. 42nd Street. The wave of the future? An Emerging Pictures release.
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