Strafpark (1971)

Strafpark: Directed by Peter Watkins. With Patrick Boland, Kent Foreman, Carmen Argenziano, Luke Johnson. “Punishment Park” is a pseudo-documentary purporting to be a film crews’s news coverage of the team of soldiers escorting a group of hippies, draft dodgers, and anti-establishment types across the desert in a type of capture the flag game. The soldiers vow not to interfere with the rebels’ progress and merely shepherd them along to their destination. At that point, having obtained their goal, they will be released. The film crew’s coverage is meant to insure that the military’s intentions are honorable. As the representatives of the 60’s counter-culture get nearer to passing this arbitrary test, the soldiers become increasingly hostile, attempting to force the hippies out of their pacifist behavior. A lot of this film appears improvised and in several scenes real tempers seem to flare as some of the “acting” got overaggressive. This is a interesting exercise in situational ethics. The cinéma vérité style, hand-held camera, and ambiguous demands of the director – would the actors be able to maintain their roles given the hazing they were taking – pushed some to the brink. The cast’s emotions are clearly on the surface. Unfortunately this film has gone completely underground and is next to impossible to find. It would offer a captivating document of the distrust that existed between soldiers willfully serving in the military and those persons who opposed the war peacefully.

“Punishment Park is a brilliant piece of cinema. Shot in the Southernu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eCalifornia desert using his patent faux documentary style, Watkinsu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ecreates a film like no other. He follows two groups of prisoners (oneu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003epre-sentenced the other post-sentenced) throughout the picture. After u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003etheyu0026#39;re tried by a military tribunal, they have the choice of eitheru003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eserving out a prison sentence or they can participate in Punishmentu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePark (a grueling three day hike through the desert with nothing but theu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eclothes on their backs) whilst being hunted down by local lawu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eenforcement officers who use the park as a live action trainingu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eground). I canu0026#39;t say enough about this movie. Sometimes it feels as ifu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eyouu0026#39;re watching a real documentary. This is one of Peter Watkins mostu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eaccessible films. I advise you to look out for it. You wont regret it!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHighly recommendedu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eA+”