Who Bombed Judi Bari? Movie Comes with $50,000 Reward
Premieres Friday, November 16 at The Quad Cinema at 4pm and 8pm and continues through November 22. All proceeds go to WBAI.
Oscar-entry Documentary of Unsolved Mystery Chronicles FBI's Arrest of Redwood Activists and Car Bomb Victims; and a Victorious 1st Amendment Lawsuit.
The mystery of who car-bombed Earth First! and labor organizer Judi Bari in 1990 may be solved yet, as far as fellow victim turned documentary film producer Darryl Cherney is concerned. As they prepare for their NYC and LA theatrical premieres, his production company is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to arrest and conviction of the bomber while he simultaneously vies for an Oscar nod and self-distributes the movie he and Director Mary Liz Thomson crafted out of colorful archival footage of the redwood timber wars of the 1990's.
The 93-minute, award-winning documentary is engaged in weeklong runs at the Quad Cinema in New York starting Nov. 16 with Ed Asner speaking at the 4pm opening show, and the NoHo 7 in Los Angeles starting Dec. 7 with Ed Begley, Jr. speaking at the Dec. 13 closing night. It screens at the Ft. Lauderdale Film Festival Nov. 7-8; Daytona Beach Film Festival, Nov. 9; and the Hippodrome Theater in Gainesville, Nov. 13--with Heart Phoenix introducing.
Who Bombed Judi Bari? chronicles a great, unsolved mystery: who, on May 24, 1990, tried to assassinate one of the most prominent environmental organizers of her day, Judi Bari. Bari and her eco-cohort, Darryl Cherney, were car-bombed in Oakland in 1990 while on a musical organizing tour for three months of demonstrations called Redwood Summer. The feisty Bari was galvanizing thousands to camp out and protest the clearcutting of the giant trees. Despite receiving dozens of death threats, Bari and Cherney were arrested by the FBI and Oakland Police for bombing themselves. The pair went on to sue the authorities for civil rights violations, winning four million dollars, though not before Bari died of cancer seven years after surviving the crippling bombing.
Cherney is still in court with the FBI today. Part of the post-trial settlement included attaining the right to analyze evidence should the authorities choose to dispose of it. Of great interest are two bombs, both made by the person(s) who bombed Bari's car. A bombing two weeks earlier on May 8, 1990 targeted a sawmill and failed to explode properly, leaving the devise mostly intact. It is this first bomb, which contains about six feet of duct tape, which has tremendous evidentiary value. The FBI, however, refused to turn the evidence over as agreed or test it themselves. Two recent federal court rulings obtained by Cherney ordered the FBI to turn over the bomb remnants to an independent laboratory for testing. It is agreed that the same person(s),, made both bombs because an anonymous letter penned by "the Lord's Avenger" took credit for them, describing them accurately in detail.
Who Bombed Judi Bari? is composed of archival footage including a special Humboldt County live version of "Angel from Montgomery" performed by Bonnie Raitt; a live version of "Shady Grove" by the David Grisman Quintet performing at a tree-sit; rare footage of Woody Harrelson climbing the Golden Gate Bridge as an act of civil disobedience; a tribute to Judi Bari by California Governor Jerry Brown; and a powerful press conference held by the late, legendary environmentalist, David Brower.
The movie is narrated by Judi Bari herself, shot on camera as she told her life story through her deathbed testimony. As she weaves her tale under oath, the movie flashes back and forth to footage of the daring, action-packed, yet often humorous and musical scenes she depicts.
