Medium Cool

Effectively blending experimental documentary-style techniques with a fictional narrative, Wexler’s unique Medium Cool captures a slice of time in American history when the US was divided by political upheaval and social unrest.

Robert Forster (in his first lead role) plays John Cassellis, a TV news cameraman who, together with buddy and colleague Gus (Peter Bonerz) seems to be forever out and about recording events of which many others may regard as controversial and disturbing – yet to Cassellis these events merely present life in all its aspects – from beautiful to ugly, from horrendous to violent.
In the opening scene we see Cassellis and Gus filming a gruesome car accident on the motorway, and it is only after the badly injured are captured on film that Cassellis has enough conscience to call an ambulance. In an eerie twist towards the end of the film, this very deed will come back to haunt him…

Next we see a group of people, the two news cameramen amongst them, discussing the ethics of their profession and the responsibilities they have towards humanity and not just viewing figures and sensationalist news reporting. And yet, Cassellis in particular seems strangely detached from any emotional involvement and social conscience whilst out on the job, instead preferring to frolic around in the nude with love interest Ruth (Marianna Hill). Nonetheless, Cassellis is forever keen to report the truth and nothing but, and it is not any different when he and Gus enter a poor ghetto of Chicago to interview black cab driver Frank Baker (Sid McCoy) who found a bag on his back seat containing mega bucks and which he handed in – only to be accused of not having handed in the full amount. In the ensuing scene the well-meaning cameramen are confronted by various black tenants who greet them with suspicion and provocation – a clear indication that racial issues and oppression played a vital part in the socio-political conflicts of 1968 America.

It is only when Cassellis discovers that his news station has provided the FBI with the stories and various film footage gathered by him and other journos that he flies into an almighty rage. The ensuing arguments lead to Cassellis’ dismissal but also the fact that his own conscience comes to the forefront. Along his newfound status as an unemployed, now self-employed ‘drifter’ he meets single mother Eileen (Verna Bloom), an Appalachian native who has moved to Chicago with her son Harold (Harold Blankenship). At first, a tender and caring friendship develops that soon turns into something more profound – and Cassellis seemingly takes to the role as a ‘surrogate’ father who looks after young Harold, a shy and introverted boy with a passion for providing pigeons with a home on the large rooftop.

These recent events lead up to the film’s climactic scenes which fuses documentary footage (filmed by Wexler) of the emerging anti-Vietnam riots held by political activists during the National Democratic Convention. As Eileen walks through the rioting crowds, desperately looking for her missing son, and Cassellis is filming the Convention before helping her in her search, movie fiction and brutal reality blend.
At the end, we see Eileen and Cassellis getting into a car together and driving off. A radio announcement suddenly announces a car crash in which a woman was killed and the male driver badly wounded – the camera than backtracks and we see the actual car crash involving Cassellis and Eileen, which eerily reflects the film’s opening scene.

A captivating performance by Robert Forster and a sensible portrayal by Verna Bloom as single mother Eileen add much to the fictional storyline, though it is young Harold Blankenship – a complete unknown from the ghettos of Chicago – who wins us over with his performance.
Medium Cool is an important and bold film made at a time when Hollywood had little ideas as to how to deal with the emerging controversial and political issues at the time, or rather, were perhaps to afraid to tackle such topics.

This Dual Format edition offers the following SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Gorgeous 1080p presentation of the film on Blu-ray from the 4K digital film transfer approved by director Haskell Wexler
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• Audio commentary with writer and director Haskell Wexler, editorial consultant Paul Golding, and actor Marianna Hill
• “Look Out Haskell, It’s Real!”, extended excerpts from Paul Cronin’s documentary
• Excerpts from Sooner or Later, Harold Blankenship is interviewed almost 40 years after appearing in Medium Cool
• Haskell and the Cameras, Wexler demonstrates the cameras used to make Medium Cool
• Original theatrical trailer
• 28-PAGE BOOKLET featuring a summary of the government-commissioned report on the Democratic National Convention riot of 1968 illustrated with archival imagery