Steal This Movie!

Starring:Vincent D'Onofrio, Janeane Garofalo, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Kevin Pollak, Donal Logue, Kevin Corrigan, Alan Van Sprang, Troy Garity, Ingrid Veninger, Stephen Marshall, Joyce Gordon (II), Bernard Kay, Jean Daigle, Johnie Chase, Joshua Dov, Michael Cera, Craig Ryan, James Binkley, Walter Masko, Brian King (IV)
Director: Robert Greenwald
Studio: Lions Gate
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Product Description
A unique journey into the life of activist & radical Abbie Hoffman (Vincent D'Onofrio), as he battles for social justice and journeys thru the maze of music and politics that defined the late sixties and early seventies.

Features:

Production Commentary Tracks

Cast, Crew & Subject Interviews

Bobby Seale Interview

Pig For President Spots

Deleted Scenes

Production Artwork

Scene Access

Interactive Menus

Storyboard Comparisons

Trailer

System Requirements:

Running Time 107 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE
Amazon.com
Vincent D'Onofrio is one of our most aggressively commanding actors, and he makes a good choice to impersonate Yippie activist Abbie Hoffman. All loping, shambly charm and occasional frenzied explosiveness, D'Onofrio's Hoffman is close enough to the real thing that, just like the Yippies themselves, he appears magnetic and forceful to the already converted, but a fraudulent, egomaniacal hambone to everyone else. (Even those unimpressed by D'Onofrio's indulgences can only admire the simmering commitment Janeane Garofalo brings to the role of his wife Anita.) Which is more than you can say for Robert Greenwald's unfocused hagiography, which should manage to pull off the rare feat of displeasing anyone no matter what their opinions of Hoffman. Racing through the years with the greatest-hits flippancy toward a life unfortunately all too familiar from movie bios (see Abbie try to levitate the Pentagon! Nominate a pig for President! Battle loneliness and depression while on the run from the cops!), Steal this Movie plays more like a lecture than a happening. Even the most obvious points are hammered home with the type of bone-headed didacticism that does more to grate on an audience than win it over. Lest we miss a thing, there are occasional voice-overs by a badly impersonated Nixon and J. Edgar Hoover to explain exactly what's going on. The film plays with all manner of actual footage and FBI surveillance photography, but the mix of styles is more chaos than anarchy; the boxy, amateurish camera work drains all possible giddiness from even the most rapturously absurd of Hoffman's pranks. Straining with clumsy urgency to capture the tenor of its subject, Steal This Movie gets the self-righteousness down but misses out on the passion, and the liberating spark of play. --Bruce Reid

Average customer rating:

pretty balanced: he admits to arrogance and buffoonery, but inspired change
Steal This Book; Woodstock Nation - It all comes to life!
Very Good Film
"for what its worth".............a vintage perspective...and a fine movie
D'Onofrio is brilliant, the script is inspiring

Steal This Movie!
Starring: Vincent D'Onofrio , Janeane Garofalo , Jeanne Tripplehorn , Kevin Pollak , and Donal Logue
Director: Robert Greenwald
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( S ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000055WFW
Release Date: 2001-01-23

Amazon.com

Vincent D'Onofrio is one of our most aggressively commanding actors, and he makes a good choice to impersonate Yippie activist Abbie Hoffman. All loping, shambly charm and occasional frenzied explosiveness, D'Onofrio's Hoffman is close enough to the real thing that, just like the Yippies themselves, he appears magnetic and forceful to the already converted, but a fraudulent, egomaniacal hambone to everyone else. (Even those unimpressed by D'Onofrio's indulgences can only admire the simmering commitment Janeane Garofalo brings to the role of his wife Anita.) Which is more than you can say for Robert Greenwald's unfocused hagiography, which should manage to pull off the rare feat of displeasing anyone no matter what their opinions of Hoffman. Racing through the years with the greatest-hits flippancy toward a life unfortunately all too familiar from movie bios (see Abbie try to levitate the Pentagon! Nominate a pig for President! Battle loneliness and depression while on the run from the cops!), Steal this Movie plays more like a lecture than a happening. Even the most obvious points are hammered home with the type of bone-headed didacticism that does more to grate on an audience than win it over. Lest we miss a thing, there are occasional voice-overs by a badly impersonated Nixon and J. Edgar Hoover to explain exactly what's going on. The film plays with all manner of actual footage and FBI surveillance photography, but the mix of styles is more chaos than anarchy; the boxy, amateurish camera work drains all possible giddiness from even the most rapturously absurd of Hoffman's pranks. Straining with clumsy urgency to capture the tenor of its subject, Steal This Movie gets the self-righteousness down but misses out on the passion, and the liberating spark of play. --Bruce Reid

Product Description

A unique journey into the life of activist & radical Abbie Hoffman (Vincent D'Onofrio), as he battles for social justice and journeys thru the maze of music and politics that defined the late sixties and early seventies.

Features:

Production Commentary Tracks

Cast, Crew & Subject Interviews

Bobby Seale Interview

Pig For President Spots

Deleted Scenes

Production Artwork

Scene Access

Interactive Menus

Storyboard Comparisons

Trailer

System Requirements:

Running Time 107 Min

Format: DVD MOVIE

Customer Reviews:

pretty balanced: he admits to arrogance and buffoonery, but inspired change.......2007-07-02

This got me to re-think Abbie, whom I saw more as a provcateur than a politician of substance (in stark contrast to many of the activists in SDS, imho). What I remember most about him is Steal This Book, which is the perfect form of anarchy for affluent adolescents (us) in the suburbs (see the chapter "monkey warfare" for a guide to some of our misdeeds). I barely recalled that he was one of the Chicago 7.

He appeared far more self-aware in this film than I would have given him credit for, and it is clear that he actually did stand for some things, such as using the tools of the media to promote democracy and get out of Vietnam. In this fine film, you get to view his entire career, from the civil rights works he did, which I didn't know about, to his swan song as a local activist. It is a bit glib on his manic depression and its treatment, I found, but that also rounded out his portrait without creating an idol. The acting is genuinely excellent and the evocation of the time synches with my memory of the 60s: it was a great time to be an adolescent, I mean, what better thing to do than ditch high school as a protest? While much of it seems so callow today, it really is the last time America was interesting politically: as Abbie says, we stopped a war and had fun. Of course, the 1968 Chicago convention, which my parents took me to see, was a turning point in American politics, as the middle class were disgusted by the Dems, which added to the GOP's momentum as a result of civil rights alienating the South's democratic party. That is not really analysed in the film, but then, it is not intended as poli-sci I suppose.

Warmly recommended. It is a wonderful slice of history.

Steal This Book; Woodstock Nation - It all comes to life!.......2006-11-23

It seems a long time ago ... the 60s do. I grew up then, protested the War then, and did quite a few things then that seem a bit silly to me now. Today, as we are wont to say, 9/11 has changed everything. This old "hippie," though I look more or less the same, is now undeniably, and proudly even, a conservative in most every way.

Watching this film made me realize that it wasn't really all that silly. I admired Abbie Hoffman then; I admire him still today. He is not today's "liberal." There was no agenda. It was all heart.

We miss you, Abbie. This wonderful time-capsule of a film made that all too clear. Left me with a tear in both eyes, and a lump in my throat. Vincent D'Onofrio is perfect!

Steal the book; now steal the movie!

Very Good Film.......2006-08-04

Steal This Movie invites a new generation to appreciate the contribution of Abbie Hoffman to recent history. All of the performances are memorable, but Vincent D'Onofrio in particular nails his portrayal of the multi-faceted Hoffman. This is a very good film.

"for what its worth".............a vintage perspective...and a fine movie.......2006-03-10

paranoia strikes deep...and it was real......along the way i read about abbie and his cohorts in the papers and watched on t.v. and later read the books....including the surprisingly wonderful "letters from the underground," and now i've seen this special movie of a time and a man mostly misunderstood by the artful dissemination of misinformation.....i can't imagine this story being better portrayed as a tinsel town product...great casting and production...great feel for the times and the dynamics of abbie and anita....excellent use of actual footage and recreations....for some i might suggest watching the interviews with the cast and actual subjects in the movie...especially tom hayden and anita hoffman....before watching the movie..maybe not though...i watched the interviews last and they made a very good movie a very special event.......watch this movie and it will steal your attention and rally your emotions

D'Onofrio is brilliant, the script is inspiring.......2006-02-28

Bruce Graham, the writer of the screenplay, was not happy with the final outcome of this film. He is a playwriting teacher of mine at Drexel University, and although the man is amazing, he couldn't be more wrong about "Steal This Movie." He might not have been happy with D'Onofrio as Abbie Hoffman, but I was thrilled by it.

This is a must-see for Vince D'Onofrio fans, and for those of us looking for a bit of inspiration to let our voices be heard against today's war. Vincent D'Onofrio is one of the greatest character actors I have ever seen, and I love the choices he makes for his films. Brilliant every time.

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