On the evening before its official release, John Lewis: Good Trouble opened the Tribeca Film Festival’s summer drive-in series Thursday night at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
“I wanted to see it because of John Lewis and his connection with the movement back in the 1960s,” moviegoer Marilyn Myers said just before the screening got underway.
The documentary chronicles the life of civil rights activist and longtime Georgia Congressman John Lewis. It spans from his early upbringing as the third of 10 children born to Alabama sharecroppers, to his fateful meeting with Dr. Martin Luther King, to his distinguished career in politics, where he’s known as an unwavering advocate for voting rights, gun control, health care reform and immigration.
Related Story: ‘John Lewis: Good Trouble’ Named Top Doc at NAACP Image Awards
The film is especially relevant, given the country’s current political climate and protests around the nation demanding equal rights for African Americans.
“It resonates with me,” said moviegoer Jeff Logan. “I used to work for Congresswoman Juanita McDonald on Capitol Hill, so I’m very familiar with Mr. Lewis.”
“I don’t know much, as much as I’d like to know and I figured this would be a good place to figure out what he’s all about,” added film fan Thomas Kelley about Lewis.
Released by Magnolia Pictures and directed by Dawn Porter, the movie features interviews with Lewis, 80, and his family, along with rare archival footage and commentary with some of his fellow lawmakers, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California), and fellow U.S. Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), James Clyburn (D-South Carolina) and the late Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland).
In addition to Thursday night’s screening, the documentary can be seen in select theaters starting July 3, (subject to change, pending coronavirus regulations) and on-demand at home via Apple TV, Amazon Prime, YouTube and other carriers (check local listings).
The Tribeca Film Festival’s drive-in series at the Rose Bowl runs from July 2 through July 26. During that time frame, more than 30 iconic films will be shown, including Jaws, The Wizard of Oz, The Goonies, Straight Outta Compton, Friday Night Lights and Do The Right Thing.
While the John Lewis: Good Trouble event was free, most of the movies will cost $30 per car.
The Tribeca drive-in series in Pasadena is one of four nationwide this summer, with the others at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; Orchard Beach in the Bronx, New York; and Nickerson Beach at Nassau County, New York.
For more information, head over to the Tribeca Film Festival website.
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