Citizen Jane: Battle for the City

Documentary, Biography | 2017 | NR. 1hr 32min
CAST: Thomas Campanella, Mindy Fullilove, Alexander Garvin DIRECTOR: Matt Tyrnauer FINAL WEEK: ENDS JUNE 1

Citizen Jane is a timely tale of what can happen when engaged citizens fight the power for the sake of a better world. Arguably no one did more to shape our understanding of the modern American city than Jane Jacobs, the visionary activist and writer who fought to preserve urban communities in the face of destructive development projects. Director Matt Tyranuer (Valentino: The Last Emperor) vividly brings to life Jacobs' 1960s showdown with ruthless construction kingpin Robert Moses over his plan to raze lower Manhattan to make way for a highway, a dramatic struggle over the very soul of the neighborhood.

Movie

Reviews

In the context of today's stymied political trench wars, there is inspiration to be found in Jacobs' example of local activism, original thinking, and rational argument blossoming into useful change.

Gary Thompson, Philadelphia Inquirer

This straightforward and bracingly optimistic documentary explains the ways that shaping politics and wielding power can ease urban decline or inflate it.

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune