Filing this by Chi Trib’s Sid Smith under wish-I-wrote-it:
Shot simultaneously in a dozen or so locales, “Election Day” offers a snapshot, and a vibrant one, of our national diversity: urban dwellers in New York City; Arab-Americans in Dearborn, Mich.; farmers in Stockholm, Wis.; African-Americans in Quincy, Fla.; and Native Americans striving to get out the vote in Pine Ridge, S.D. Factory workers and dishwashers share their experiences. So does a convicted felon voting for the first time.
The movie deals with some thorny issues of disenfranchisement, in Florida in 2000 and in Shaker Heights, Ohio, in 2004. But this is more about the hues of the nation’s fabric, more an amiable glimpse into everyday life during one of our quadrennial watersheds. It’s a pleasant pastime rather than a revelation, though here and there it zeroes in on underlying anxiety. How did we get to be so divided, a woman wonders near the end, and no one seems to have an answer.
“Election Day” ran last night at the Siskel Center on State a few doors south of Lake and runs again, same place, Monday at 6 p.m. Tix on line or at the door. Nice refreshment bar for your usual popcorn, espresso, etc.
The director Katy Chevigny and producer Maggie Bowman were on hand for q&a. Maggie will be there Monday. They are also to be on WBEZ-FM’s “Eight Forty-Eight” show, 9 a.m. Monday, though .
As for viewer response to last night’s showing, (a) the parents approved, which is the first thing for a producer of anything to worry about, as we all know even if we don’t admit it, and (b) so did everyone else.
Blithe Spirit 