tlavideo.com

Review

"We was robbed," Lee was quoted as saying at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival when sex, lies, and videotape beat out Do the Right Thing for the Jury Prize. That easily could apply to the 1997 Academy Awards, as well, when this riveting documentary was somehow passed over for a statuette.

Told with present-day interviews and archival footage, 4 Little Girls recounts the story of the title teens who were killed by a racist's bomb while they attended Sunday school in early 1960s Birmingham. The film also examines the attitudes of the people - both black and white - in that city at the time, and how the rest of the country reacted.

Several of the interviews may move you to tears, and there's a jaw-dropping, and rather sad, talk with former Alabama Governor George Wallace. But what one comes away with most from this fascinating film is the astonishing courage and depth of spirit of the families and friends of the victims in the face of such unspeakable hatred.