Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry

GOING UPRIVER: THE LONG WAR OF JOHN KERRY is an extraordinary inside look at a politician, where he has come from, and how his roots have driven him forward in his public life. As a Vietnam War hero and subsequent activist, his story is a worthy subject for an important film about a defining era in America's past and how it influenced a man and dedication to the democratic process. This is also the story of a generation that came of age in the war-torn sixties, and has now come to prominence at the beginning of this century -- when issues of war, and their historical resonance for a new generation of leaders, hold center stage. Acclaimed director George Butler has known Senator Kerry since 1964 and in 1969 began photographing him in an effort to document his life and career. Using his unique collection of images, the film weaves together Butler's photography with archival material, interviews with Kerry's closest associates, and contemporary footage of him at home and abroad. As with Butler's earlier films Pumping Iron and The Endurance, the filmmaker proves himself a master at portraying American men affected by and affecting history.



"A compelling, blow-by-blow account of John Kerry's service in Vietnam -- and, more than that, the full revealing chronicle of how he ultimately came together with hundreds of his comrades to form Vietnam Veterans Against the War."-- Owen Gleiberman, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY



"GOING UPRIVER really concerns all soldiers who returned from Vietnam only to discover that their nation had failed them."
-- Ed Gonzalez, SLANT MAGAZINE