2016 73 minutes 978-1-944024-17-8 This film has subtitles English

Requiem for the American Dream

Noam Chomsky & the Principles of Concentration of Wealth & Power

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Synopsis

Requiem for the American Dream features Noam Chomsky, widely regarded as the most important intellectual alive, on the defining political reality of our time – the deliberate concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a select few, the death of the middle class, and the swan song of functioning democracy. 

Through profoundly personal and thought-provoking interviews filmed over four years, Chomsky unpacks the principles that have brought us to the crossroads of historically unprecedented inequality, tracing a half-century of policies designed to favor the most wealthy at the expense of the majority while also looking back on his own life of activism. A stunning introduction to current debates about the impact of inequality on democracy and a potent reminder that power ultimately rests in the hands of the governed.

Requiem for the American Dream was a NYTimes® Critics' Pick, charted at #1 on iTunes for 8+ weeks, and was released globally on Netflix and Hulu. The film was adapted into an eponymous book that hit The New York Times® Bestseller list and #1 in over 10 categories on Amazon's Bestseller lists. Published by Seven Stories Press, translations have been released in over 20+ languages.

Release Date:2016
Duration:73 minutes
ISBN:978-1-944024-17-8
Subtitles:English

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Filmmaker Credits

A PF Pictures Production
A film by
Peter Hutchison
A film by
Kelly Nyks
A film by
Jared P. Scott
A Media Education Foundation Presentation
Produced & Directed by
Peter Hutchison
Produced & Directed by
Kelly Nyks
Produced & Directed by
Jared P. Scott
Featuring
Noam Chomsky
Executive Producer
Diana Holtzberg
Associate Producer
Theron Powell
Associate Producer
Dal & Evan LaMagna
Original Music by
Malcolm Francis
Edited by
Alan Canant
Cinematography by
Mike McSweeney
Cinematography by
Rob Featherstone
Animation Direction by
Eve Weinberg
Animation by
Hala Alhomoud
Animation by
Noah Poole
Animation by
Eve Weinberg
Assistant Editing by
Theron Powell
Assistant Editing by
Greg Hartofelis
Assistant Editing by
Angela Hardenburg
Assistant Editing by
Jennifer Hobdy
Additional Cinematography by
Jared P. Scott
Additional Cinematography by
Ian DiSalvo
Additional Cinematography by
Tom Moore
Additional Cinematography by
Jared Kowalczyk
Additional Cinematography by
Anders Birch

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Praise

"If you want to understand neoliberalism in the U.S. over the past 40 years, you must watch Requiem for the American Dream. Every frame is vintage Noam Chomsky — impossibly learned but fully accessible, deeply insightful, morally passionate, and inspiring."
Dr. Robert Pollin
Distinguished University Professor of Economics and Co-Director, Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), University of Massachusetts Amherst
"The short, sharp, smart essay-film makes excellent use of Chomsky's insights while serving as one of the best entry points to the discussion of inequality popularized by the Occupy movement and furthered with Thomas Piketty's unlikely best-seller 'Capital in the Twenty-First Century'."
Hollywood Reporter
"It couldn’t be more timely, not only because the idea that it is its heart—the impact of the concentration of wealth and power on our politics—has received so much attention of late, but more specifically because its animating concerns are central to the current year's presidential election."
RogerEbert.com
"While the topic of inequality has been covered in several documentaries over the past decade, Hutchison, Nyks, and Scott’s essay film benefits from placing their entire focus on one man’s take: Noam Chomsky... While much of what he says is, by his own admission, hardly a surprise, its assemblage and tidy organization here makes this an essential contribution to the body of work exploring modern inequality."
Basil Tsiokos, whatnottodoc.com
"...a timely and essential film for anyone who isn’t part of the 1 percent in the U.S."
Progressive Pulse
"Requiem for the American Dream brilliantly narrates how concentrated American wealth seized political power to dismantle the American dream, and democracy, just when the historically excluded were poised to become part of both. Chomsky is a master of distilling complex histories and powers into their most essential elements."
Dr. Wendy Brown
Author of In the Ruins of Neoliberalism: The Rise of Anti-Democratic Politics in the West
"[Chomsky] melds history, philosophy and ideology into a sobering vision of a society in an accelerating decline... this well-paced and cogent seminar spotlights a man who, now 87, seems at the height of his intellectual powers."
The New York Times
"The writing and directing team of Peter D. Hutchinson, Kelly Nyks, and Jared P. Scott have struck pure gold with their new documentary. The four years spent filming Professor Chomsky have resulted in a detailed and provocative assessment of America’s attempts to move towards 'a more perfect union.'Requiem for the American Dream is a must see film for every citizen of the United States of America."
Vernon Nickerson, The Art of Monteque
"Chomsky, who has spent much of his career analyzing the impact of wealth inequality, is the ideal anchor for the film... Requiem for the American Dream is sure to pack a much-needed punch in America's gut."
Indiewire
"Requiem for the American Dream could very well be embraced as the final word on economic inequality in the United States. The vicious cycle of wealth influencing power and therefore influencing legislation is effectively illustrated in a series of episodic, easily digestible vignettes... By the film's end, the construction scaffolding currently covering the Capitol Dome looks less like a sign of restoration and more like a metaphor for the present state of American democracy."
RogerEbert.com
"Noam Chomsky tells this compelling horror story with moral authority and charismatic calm. The camera seems to speak his mind, moving back and forth between his memorable face, historical footage, vivid images, and collages cut from the currency of greed."
Dr. Nancy Folbre
Author of Greed, Lust and Gender: A History of Economic Ideas
"This enlightening documentary, directed by Peter Hutchinson, Kelly Nyks, and Jared Scott, focuses on the various forces which have brought about the death of the middle class. This may be, according to Chomsky, the enduring legacy of our times."
Spirituality and Practice

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