betsy-mickel Instead of concentrating on the history of the case, which many people are already familiar with from a very wide variety of media and methods, this film focuses on what Abu-Jamal has done with his life and his celebrity over the last three decades--books he's written, commentaries he's sent out from behind bars, and the writers, artists, Nobel laureates, academics, other prisoners, ordinary folks that he's influenced. The use of a mix of compelling talking heads (Cornel West especially!), dramatized scenes with an actor portraying Abu-Jamal in his Lilliputian cell, Abu-Jamal himself in early interviews, a sketch of some of the factors that prompted the forces of the state, ah, the Commonwealth, of Pennsylvania to target him in the first place make the documentary lively, and the "coda" at the end--"Manufacturing Guilt"--made the story more comprehensible to those friends I urged to see the film, friends who knew less about his actual case. Many books have been written about the man, but this film covered a lot of territory in a short space.

Jeff Camp This film is about Mumia Abu-Jamal and does an amazing job of humanizing him. It chronicles his life and provides incite into many aspects of American culture. The film includes interviews with supporters and opponents of Mumia and it allows the viewer to draw his/her own conclusion. His story is a story of American history that should be told and retold. This film does a great job of condensing his story into a fascinating and exciting time slot. After watching this film you cannot deny how special of a person Mumia Abu-Jamal is. The world would be a better place if more people watched this film.

Bob Ab All I literally watch are documentaries.... besides a small handful of other shows, Sanford & Son, King Of Queens, Breaking Bad etc. I know a thing or two about documentaries, and I must say Long Distance Revolutionary is one of my favorites! It's obvious that time and organization went into the making of the film. It boggles my mind, and is beyond ridiculous that the ratings would be as low as they currently are. It seems like a concerted effort was made on behalf of the Anti-Mumia camp to "low-vote" this film. Disregard the reviews and decide for yourself if it's your cup of tea or not. 10/10 in my opinion. For the anti-mumia crowd, who naively believes the "official story", remember.... The Best Indicator of A Future Behavior, Is A Past Behavior. There have political prisoners in the past, and will be more in the future. Cointelpro is NOT a conspiracy theory. Use your better judgement, and look outside of the box.

carolp6798 Mumia Abu Jamal: Long Distance Revolutionary is a magnificent artistic journey through Mumia's life. It spotlights his talent, brilliance, and perseverance in the face of insurmountable odds. It shows the absurdist Kafkaesque tragedy that our criminal justice system has become. A former Black Panther and a leftist journalist Mumia had a perspective that challenged the status quo and made his capture and silencing an imperative to the FBI and the Philadelphia police under the iron fist of Frank Rizzo. Filmmaker Stephen Vittoria brings out Mumia's humanity while never losing sight of the racial and class politics so intrinsic to Mumia's message of love to the world. Cornel West says Mumia is a long distance revolutionary because of his love for and dedication to humanity. He says Mumia is a blues man to the life of the mind, and a jazz man of ideas. Vittoria makes these musical allusions vivid in the film. He does this under the severe constraints set by the Pennsylvania prison system. He was not allowed to film Mumia, yet managed to use stills and vintage footage to maximum effect. The audience comes away from the film knowing they have experienced a truly remarkable man. Vittoria tells us that Mumia is so remarkable Paris has designated him an honorary citizen, and St. Denis, France, the city of kings, has named a street after him. This movie doesn't address the question of Mumia's actual guilt or innocence, but in a companion feature on the DVD , "Manufacturing Guilt", Vittoria shows how the evidence against Mumia was heavily fabricated. Fundamental police procedures such as testing for explosives on his hands that would indicate whether or not he had recently fired a gun were not done. At the same time a witness was coerced into giving a false confession which she later recanted. On appeal the evidence from Mumia's trial proved so flimsy, he was removed from death row after 30 years.