A 1983 release of a future society where women stage a rebellion against the male dominated world they live in. More of an agitprop distillation of a dramatic 'what if' of a time to come w/the immediacy of a found footage documentary/social message screed, finds women fed up w/the status quo focusing on an outspoken gay, black woman who's a DJ who fills her airwaves w/the vitriol & anger (justified since we see men alternately trying to rape their counterparts or dismiss them from the workplace w/o a justified rationale) spurring a movement (the intended rape is thwarted by a phalanx of 10 speed riding Valkyries blowing whistles). When the DJ is arrested (the powers that be fear her power is becoming uncontrollable) she commits suicide in custody which sets the scene for a guerilla movement (replete w/automatic weapons) culminating in the destruction of the transmission antennas on top of the World Trade Center (eerily foreshadowing the '93 & 9/11 attacks). Yes, the film is rough w/all the odd ends kept in for flavor & texture but it touches on so many totems of protest (the metoo movement, Black Lives Matter, et al) one can forgive the unpolished sheen of the presentation. No big stars to remark about but genre fave, the late, great Ron Vawter shows up as a power broker out to derail the outspoken radio DJ, writer/actor Eric Bogosian has a quick scene as a TV tech & character actor Mark Boone Junior pops up as a perv accosting a woman on a train.
Review of Born in Flames
