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TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7 TRIAL
But none of those things are indictable.ĭOMAN: (As John Mitchell) And imagine how impressed I'll be when you get an indictment.īIANCULLI: The trial began in September 1969 and took six months. GORDON-LEVITT: (As Richard Schultz) I see them as vulgar, anti-establishment, anti-social and unpragmatic. GORDON-LEVITT: (As Richard Schultz) Personally or. But before I do, let me ask you, how do you see them? GORDON-LEVITT: (As Richard Schultz) No, sir.ĭOMAN: (As John Mitchell) You're 33, and you're about to be named lead prosecutor in the most important trial in your lifetime after being handpicked by the attorney general. JOHN DOMAN: (As John Mitchell) Are any of those people in this room? And there were people who see these men as martyrs.
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TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7 FREE
JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT: (As Richard Shultz) Sir, there are people who will see this as the Justice Department restraining free speech. (SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7") Schultz is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, John Mitchell by John Doman. That's where Sorkin begins the story of the trial of the Chicago Seven, with a young assistant district attorney from Chicago, Richard Schultz, summoned into Mitchell's office to find a way to bring federal charges against some of the protesters. Nixon was elected on a law-and-order platform, he and his new attorney general, John Mitchell, set out to punish the leaders by finding a way to put them on trial. The result was a conflict in the streets that got wildly out of control after Chicago police squared off against protesters - violently.īut after Republican candidate Richard M. And the Black Panthers were there, too, although their leader, Bobby Seale, was in town only briefly. The Students for a Democratic Society led by Tom Hayden were there so were the Youth International Party, the Yippies and their colorful leaders, Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin. Two months later, the Democrats gathered in Chicago to choose a presidential candidate, but several protest groups and their leaders gathered there also to demonstrate against the Vietnam War. Kennedy, until he was assassinated the very night he won the California primary. Democratic President Lyndon Baines Johnson had declined to seek a second term, and the person who emerged as the most likely candidate was Robert F. But hosted may be far from the most appropriate description. That was when Chicago hosted the Democratic National Convention.
TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7 SERIES
Our TV critic David Bianculli has this review.ĭAVID BIANCULLI, BYLINE: Aaron Sorkin's newest drama is based on an actual trial from 1969 and relies heavily on actual transcripts, as well as a series of flashbacks to Chicago in the summer of 1968. It's called "The Trial Of The Chicago 7." It premieres Friday on Netflix and is already in some theaters nationwide. Playwright and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, who began his career by dramatizing a military trial in "A Few Good Men," returns to the courtroom for his latest drama.
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