march 25 - 29, 1998

photo: PUBLIC HOUSING

"Issues that are all too familiar--drugs, crime, teen-age pregnancy, the frustrations caused by government red tape--take on a new immediacy thanks to the extraordinary intimacy of Mr. Wiseman’s working methods. Through one revealing, well-chosen episode after another, he succeeds in turning sad generalities into powerfully affecting specifics."
-- Janet Maslin, The New York Times

program notes and times

In his latest examination of American institutions, Frederick Wiseman turns his unwavering eye on the poor who inhabit Chicago's Ida B. Wells public housing development. We've read about the despair of urban poverty and the grinding cycles of addiction, unemployment, racial discrimination, and teenage pregnancies, but here we witness the Byzantine intricacies of the relationships between the residents and the police, the guidance and drug counselors, and the representatives of state and federal agencies. Some offer hope and the groundwork for improvement, others preach an unattainable utopia. This remarkable film takes us into corners all Americans should know.

Wednesday, March 25: 2 pm
Thursday, March 26: 2 and 6:15 pm
Saturday, March 28: 4 pm
Sunday, March 29: 4 and 7:45 pm