WATCH IN HQ! This is the final film that I put together for my production class this semester. Special thanks to all of my cast and crew members (Kelli, I owe you a gagillion fish-sandwiches and Leah I owe you 16 hours of manual labor on your first film)!
Academy Award winning director Richard Schmiechen (The Times of Harvey Milk) vividly portrays the life and work of the woman described by the Los Angeles Times as “The Rosa Parks of Gay Rights” in Changing Our Minds: The Story of Dr. Evelyn Hooker. During the repressive 1950’s, Dr. Evelyn Hooker undertook ground breaking research that led to a radical discovery: homosexuals were not, by definition, “sick.” Dr. Hooker’s finding sent shock waves through the psychiatric community and culminated in a major victory for gay rights – in 1974 the weight of her studies, along with gay activism, forced the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its official manual of mental disorders. Startling archival footage of the medical procedure used to “cure” homosexuality, images from the underground gay world of the McCarthy era and home movies of literary icon Christopher Isherwood bring to life history which we must never forget. Dr. Hooker’s insights into gay marriage and the gay community (a term she coined), and the filmmakers’ winning approach make this documentary education at its most exciting and enjoyable. Narrated by Patrick Stewart. Richard Schmiechen 1991 75 min. USA
Video Rating: 5 / 5
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