I have certainly seen many musical documentaries over the years. My favorite for obvious reasons has to be Don’t Look Back. Koch has the be the best non-musical documentary that I have ever seen. In my opinion producers Neil Barsky and Joan Davidson deserve an academy award for this film.
I commend the producers for being objective by showing people who loved and hated Ed Koch. They shouwed how he confronted many of the urban problems that faced NYC from 1978-89. Koch of course was the consummate politician and made many friends and enemies in his lifetime. I had not recalled that the AIDS activists felt that Koch did do enough to fight the disease in its early days. There was a scene where the City Council was voting on renaming the Queensboro Bridge the Ed Koch Queensboro bridge. Councilman Charles Barron voted against it saying that Koch was insensitive to the concerns of Blacks.
I was touched by a scene where Ed was shown visiting his nieces and nephews breaking the fast after Yom Kippur. He had time to be a family man and was very proud of his Jewish heritage.
The film did a good job of showing the controversy over Koch’s sexual orientation. Since he never married many thought he was gay.
I wish there was more time devoted to his role as a journalist after he left office. He actually wrote movie reviews for newspapers and hosted radio shows on WABC and later on WEVD. On numerous occasions he appeared as a guest on a Saturday morning show of a radio personality whose name will not be mentioned. Alan Berman knows who he is.
The film was released about the time of Ed Koch’s passing. Hopefully when the DVD is released there will be an addendum showing part of his funeral.
Whether you are a Democrat, Republican, or Independent, this film is for all New Yorkers who lived in the city during the Koch year. The man was colorful and controversial to say the least.
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