Friday, May 12, 8:30 PM, Charles Theatre 2

Directors: Nick Doob and Chris Hegedus

Cast: Al Franken, Ann Coulter, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Henry Kissinger

Country: USA
Year: 2006
Running Time: 90:00 minutes
Format: video

“I take what they say and use it against them. What I do is jujitsu.” Once best known as a comedian from TV's Saturday Night Live, Al Franken has in recent years added best-selling author, radio talk show host, and political attack dog to his resume. For Al Franken: God Spoke, Nick Doob & Chris Hegedus' cameras followed the multitasking Franken around for two very busy years. The result starts with a fly-on-the-wall view of Franken promoting his best-selling book "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them", fresh from winning the law-suit filed against him by Fox News for using the phrase “fair and balanced” in the subtitle of his book. The audience will see Franken feuding with Bill O'Reilly, debating with Ann Coulter, campaigning against George W. Bush, launching liberal radio network Air America, maneuvering his way around the Republican National Convention, and participating in a USO tour in Iraq. Along the way, we get to know Franken and his wife, and witness moving moments that show the humanness of a celebrity. When in the public eye, Franken takes his political satire very seriously, using it to educate as well as entertain. He shows he is rarely at a loss for words and has the ability (and the support staff, Team Franken) to use factual information in order to make his point, while still making people laugh.

-- Skizz Cyzyk

Presented By: Chris Hegedus and Nick Doob

In the mid '70's, Chris Hegedus and legendary documentary filmmaker, DA Pennebaker, began partnering on a host of acclaimed films, including the Academy Award nominated The War Room. In 2002, she was awarded the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentaries for STARTUP.COM (which screened at the 2001 Maryland Film Festival). Since the early 70's, Nick Doob has been director, cinematographer and editor on numerous award-winning films, including the Academy Award winning From Mao to Mozart. He has shot a number of Pennebaker-Hegedus films, including Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, The War Room, Moon Over Broadway, and Only the Strong Survive.