Educational Media Reviews Online

Books of James chronicles the life, work, and activism in the AIDS movement of James Wentzy, a filmmaker who moved from South Dakota to New York City in the 1970s. Told through archival footage and images of the director and his milieu in both New York and the rural Northern Plains, Wentzy first reads from his diaries (the eponymous “Books of James”) and presents his filming of activist groups after he stopped writing his diaries in 1990.

While the experimental film is both something of a coming-of-age story as well as a social documentary and critique, Books of James does not succeed in presenting either a full picture of Wentzy’s experiences and growth in New York or in explaining the social, political, and ethical issues extant during the early days of the AIDS crisis or today.

Divided into three sections—“The Personal,” “The Political,” and “Postscripts” –Wentzy begins with the narration of selected portions of his diaries, from 1977 to 1990. While this section purports to be “personal,” the narrative offers nothing terribly evocative about the author. That is, Wentzy writes and narrates mundane experiences and thoughts; there is very little difference between his “Books” and other diaries or self-reminiscences that might be written by anyone. It would be useful to begin the film with such thoughts, but viewers will hope for some sort of growth to be presented in the individual. The lack thereof makes it very difficult to at all empathize with the writer. Additionally, the notably experimental-type film employs somewhat odd images to accompany the narration: While vintage images of the New York or South Dakota of a generation ago add authenticity to the overall film, the director includes too many images of Wentzy’s walking, hiking, and driving trips. The author seems involved somewhat in the New Age or spirituality movements of the 1970s, but why the director emphasizes this aspect in the narrative is unclear, and it is difficult to understand how or why we are to identify with or become invested in the work. Indeed, one of the most “difficult” aspects of a film about a gay writer/filmmaker following urban gay life, or the divide between a rural upbringing and Eastern city life, or the AIDS crisis itself, is that his “books” do not even mention a friend’s death by AIDS until the late 1980s. Even this potential springboard for discussion is glossed over too quickly, after a brief digression that his friend’s passing will probably be promoted as death by a more “acceptable” illness, such as cancer.

The second portion of the film investigates Weltzy’s chronicling of AIDS activism. The archival images are striking: The politically pointed anger, the panoply of individuals’ experiences in dealing with and coming to terms with the crisis, the sheer scope of the protests -- these are important images that will prove shocking to viewers who might have grown to be more complacent about an illness that is now often seen as “manageable,” not the absolute death sentence it was thought to be at the outset of the epidemic. The voices of the activists, victims, family members of the stricken, and political protesters make for evocative and useful imagery. Many of the criticisms raised are issues that have perhaps never been properly addressed and are still current in our nation debates. Some members of the crowd demand funding for research, condom distribution, rights of sex workers, etc. Similarly, there exist images and speeches regarding the inability of the government to address or ameliorate the problem for purely political reasons (as President Reagan was famously said to have ignored the epidemic for years). As with the potentially interesting and educational elements of the film’s first part, though, too little is made of this narrative, and the viewer is shown images—individually thought-provoking, perhaps—but there are never truly written into a “story” that provides insight, answers, or even many questions.

The third section of the film, “Postscripts,” relates Wentzy’s activities and thoughts in the new century. While his brief discussion on dosing himself with medications is germane to the purpose of the film, his thoughts on 9/11 and other musings are not truly “connected” to the overall story. It is useful, for instance, to recount Jerry Falwell’s controversial statements immediately after 9/11, but it is difficult to discern where the narrative is heading with these thoughts. Finally, Wentzy airs his views on the current state of gay activism: How a self-empowering movement has come into a truly dismal state of culture and gay senses of “community.”

Experimental film techniques close the film, recapping Wentzy’s thoughts and experiences.

Images of nudity in life and art as well as drug use restrict “The Books of James” from some audiences who might benefit most from the film, never having experienced images of the protests or the political debate of the time for themselves.

Books of James works best as a filmed self-reminiscence and is perhaps useful for its images and narrative regarding the eruption of initial AIDS protests; libraries and collections specifically charged with collecting works on the early days of AIDS protests might wish to have Books of James for its collections of germane scenes in the film’s second portion. Otherwise, though, the film is not recommended for general collections.

Awards

• Best Documentary Feature, Tel Aviv LGBT Film Festival, Israel 2007
• Special Programming Award for Outstanding Artistic Achievement, Outfest, Los Angeles, 2006