Mighty Ira
Directed byNico Perrino, Aaron Reese, Chris Maltby
Distributed byFoundation for Individual Rights and Expression
Release date
October 9, 2020
Running time
99 minutes
CountryUnited States

Mighty Ira is a 2020 documentary film by Nico Perrino, Aaron Reese, and Chris Maltby.[1][2] The film profiles the life and career of Ira Glasser, who was executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) from 1978 to 2001.[3]

The movie focuses on Glasser's advocacy for free speech and racial justice, as well as his defense of the rights of neo-Nazis to rally in the Chicago suburb of Skokie, Illinois in the 1970s, which at the time was home to many Holocaust survivors.[4][5] It also covers Glasser’s unlikely friendship with William F. Buckley Jr. and his upbringing as a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team.[6][7]

Production

The idea for Mighty Ira first originated in 2017, after Perrino met Glasser in New York City at the funeral of writer and jazz critic Nat Hentoff.[8] The film was produced by Perrino and his Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression colleagues Reese and Maltby.[9] Perrino, a millennial, said that he helped create the film because he felt his generation didn’t understand why Glasser’s generation fought for free speech rights.[10]

The name “Mighty Ira” comes from a line in a poem written by one of Glasser's ACLU colleagues, read at the end of the film. The title of the poem, “Ira at the Bat,” is a play on the famous “Casey at the Bat” poem by Ernest Lawrence Thayer that includes a line about “mighty Casey.”[11]

Release

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the filmmakers decided to forgo taking Mighty Ira on the film festival circuit and instead released it through Angelika Film Center’s virtual cinema program in October 2020.[12][13] The movie was later made available on streaming platforms, such as Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+.[14][15]

Glasser appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience and Real Time with Bill Maher to promote the film.[16][17]

Reception

Critical reception

Mighty Ira received generally positive reviews. The Hollywood Reporter called the movie "a warm portrait that poses ever-urgent questions,” while journalist Matt Taibbi noted that it is “elegant and thought-provoking.”[18][19] Spiked claimed the film is “a long-overdue tribute to a civil-liberties hero.”[20] Matt Fagerholm, writing for RogerEbert.com, gave Mighty Ira a more mixed review, awarding it 2.5 out of 4 stars.[21]

The film attracted interest from Jewish publications, where it received favorable reviews focusing on the film's treatment of the Skokie case and Glasser's relationship with 96-year-old Holocaust survivor (and former Skokie resident) Ben Stern.[22][23][24]

Film festivals

Mighty Ira won the grand prize at the 2021 Anthem Film Festival.[25] It was also awarded "Best Documentary Feature Film" at the 2021 Lake Travis Film Festival.[26]

References

  1. ↑ ""Mighty Ira:" A Documentary About The Man Who Defined American Civil Liberties". News. 2020-10-23. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  2. ↑ "Mighty Ira - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  3. ↑ Fagerholm, Matt. "Mighty Ira movie review & film summary (2020) | Roger Ebert". Roger Ebert. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  4. ↑ Hoffman, Jordan. "Film explores why a Jewish former ACLU head defended Nazis' right to free speech". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  5. ↑ Wright, Aubrey. "'Mighty Ira' exemplifies import of civil liberties". Columbus Jewish News. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  6. ↑ "43 years after Skokie, Ira Glasser is still fighting for free speech". The Forward. 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  7. ↑ ""Mighty Ira:" A Documentary About The Man Who Defined American Civil Liberties". News. 2020-10-23. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  8. ↑ Tonguette, Peter. "Film 'Mighty Ira' brings free-speech issues to screen at Columbus Jewish Film Festival". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  9. ↑ arsalanbaraheni (2021-01-06). "Why We Need to Watch Mighty Ira". Chicago Movie Mag. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  10. ↑ FAIR Film Festival: Q&A for Mighty Ira w/ Greg Lukianoff, Nico Perrino, & Alan Charles Kors, retrieved 2023-04-05
  11. ↑ SHG (2020-10-20). "Bunin Review: The FIRE's "Mighty Ira"". Simple Justice. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  12. ↑ "Interview: Nico Perrino Talks Mighty Ira (Exclusive)". Shockya.com. 2020-10-11. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  13. ↑ Glasser, Ira (2020-10-04). "How Freedom of Speech Protects You from Rulers Like Trump". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  14. ↑ "Watch Mighty Ira | Prime Video". www.amazon.com. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  15. ↑ Perrino, Nico; Maltby, Chris (2020-10-23). "Mighty Ira | Apple TV". Apple TV. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  16. ↑ #1595 - Ira Glasser, 2021-01-15, retrieved 2023-03-31
  17. ↑ Ira Glasser on Free Speech | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO), retrieved 2023-03-31
  18. ↑ Linden, Sheri (2020-10-07). "'Mighty Ira': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  19. ↑ Taibbi, Matt. "Is Traditional Liberalism Vanishing?". www.racket.news. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  20. ↑ "Mighty Ira: tribute to a civil-liberties hero". www.spiked-online.com. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  21. ↑ Fagerholm, Matt. "Mighty Ira movie review & film summary (2020) | Roger Ebert". Roger Ebert. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  22. ↑ "43 years after Skokie, Ira Glasser is still fighting for free speech". The Forward. 2020-10-12. Retrieved 2023-03-31.
  23. ↑ Goldman, Samuel. "Skokie Then and Now". Mosaic.
  24. ↑ Kirchick, James. "The Disintegration of the ACLU". Tablet.
  25. ↑ "2021 Awards". Anthem Film Festival. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  26. ↑ I.Faleye (2021-06-23). "'Toprak' and 'Mighty Ira' Win Top Filmmaker Awards at Lake Travis Film Festival 2021". VIMooZ. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
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