IMDb on iPhone and iPod touch Learn more Learn more Download from the App Store
IMDb > Medium Cool (1969)
Medium Cool
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotes
Overview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv schedule
Awards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage board
Plot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotes
Fun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQ
Other Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDesk
Promotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo gallery
External Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clips

Medium Cool (1969) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   1,170 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writer:
Haskell Wexler (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Medium Cool on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
1970 (Japan) more
Genre:
Tagline:
Beyond the age of innocence... into the age of awareness
Plot:
TV news camera find himself becoming personally involved in the Violence which erupts around the 1968 Democratic Convention. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
2 wins & 1 nomination more
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Minority View: Medium Cool by Haskell Wexler
 (From DearCinema.com. 8 July 2009, 9:37 PM, PDT)

Robert Forster: The Hollywood Interview
 (From The Hollywood Interview. 14 April 2009, 12:19 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
Captures the time, place and feeling more (38 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Robert Forster ... John Cassellis
Verna Bloom ... Eileen
Peter Bonerz ... Gus
Marianna Hill ... Ruth
Harold Blankenship ... Harold
Charles Geary ... Buddy
Sid McCoy ... Frank Baker
Christine Bergstrom ... Dede
William Sickinger ... News Director Karlin
Robert McAndrew ... Pennybaker
Marrian Walters ... Social worker
Beverly Younger ... Rich Lady
Edward Croke ... Plain-clothesman
Doug Kimball ... Newscaster

Peter Boyle ... Gun Clinic Manager
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
111 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Canada:R (Ontario) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:R (re-rating) (1970) | USA:X (1969) | UK:X
Filming Locations:
Company:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
In the psychedelic nightclub sequence, the band seen performing on the stage is The Litter, a Minneapolis-based group. However, in the original release version, their music is not heard; instead, we hear a piece by Frank Zappa's 'Mothers of Invention'. more
Quotes:
John Cassellis: Jesus I love to shoot film. more
Movie Connections:
References "The Beverly Hillbillies" (1962) more
Soundtrack:
Emotions more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
Captures the time, place and feeling, 23 May 2009
8/10
Author: Frederick M from Canada

Movies have a way of capturing the moment better than recreating it. I can only dread what a recreated 1968 in Chicago would look like from a Hollywood perspective. It would probably resemble something out of Forrest Gump. But Medium Cool happened to capture some brutal fight scenes with police in Chicago as well as scenes from the black ghettos. You can't recreate this stuff. This isn't a documentary but cinema verité and combines fiction and non-fictional elements. It's all shot with Chicago of 68 in the background. A landmark and infamous year for the US with the assassinations of RFK and MLK as well as the 1968 Democratic National Convention which was met with severe state repression. The state wasn't negotiating at this time, it was brutally sending men off to war and attacking those at home with the hired goons of the police force.

It's a great movie which manages to combine fiction and non-fiction and shows us what the sixties were really like. It wasn't all love beads and LSD, although there is an amusing psychedelic sequence which takes place in a club.

I think what I liked most was that even people who were non-political were being dragged into the politics of the time. Events were that serious at the time and people had to begin picking sides, the pleasant, white, middle-class interior of the Chicago DNC or outside fighting and raging against the police.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (38 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Medium Cool (1969)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Wild Man Fischer On Soundtrack Originally? wpbooks-1
Great interview with star Robert Forster Alwood
Medium Cool-Underrated? csu16387
Connection to 'Blow Up'? ghtx
'This Revolution' to introduce 'Medium Cool' to a new audience? numberonealcove
Wexler 'bio' film ragtime_millionaire
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Steal This Movie Across the Universe El diputado Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson Die Blechtrommel
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb Drama section IMDb USA section
Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.