Customer Reviews (1)

Muslim Caliphate 1930s
(From dustjacket): Late in the C19th Muslims, separated by distance, language, and history, first thought to make their world whole by assembling in congress. "Islam Assembled" traces the roots of political activism in Islam as it took form in these gatherings. From the first fitful initiatives undertaken by a handful of Muslim cosmopolitans to the era when the West began to divest itself of its Muslim possessions and the need for the congresses diminished, "Islam Assembled" traces in detail this crucial but previously untold story. The congresses followed one another in no particular sequential order and they bore no formal relationship to one another. The initiative moved from continent to continent, and the action unfolded not only in Mecca, Cairo, and Jerusalem, but also in such unlikely places as Moscow, Geneva, and Tokyo.
So scattered was the evidence that no attempt has hitherto been made to study the congresses in an integrated fashion and to measure their cumulative effects. The passage of time has made possible a comprehensive study, based upon sources only now within reach. Kramer sets out to trace the congress idea through its earliest evolution, to examine in depth the first and largely unsuccessful initiatives, and to assess the congresses convened between the two world wars. In the course of his study he brings out the central theme of the congresses, Muslim attachment to the political concepts of a united Islam, even as the Muslim empire and caliphate waned. "Islam Assembled" explores, for the first time, the moment when Muslims first equated the sheer expanse of Islam with political power in the modern world.
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Product Description

New Media: A Critical Introduction is a comprehensive introduction to the culture, history, technologies and theories of new media. Written especially for students, the book considers the ways in which 'new media' really are new, assesses the claims that a media and technological revolution has taken place and formulates new ways for media studies to respond to new technologies.

The authors introduce a wide variety of topics including: how to define the characteristics of new media; social and political uses of new media and new communications; new media technologies, politics and globalization; everyday life and new media; theories of interactivity, simulation, the new media economy; cybernetics, cyberculture, the history of automata and artificial life.

Substantially updated from the first edition to cover recent theoretical developments, approaches and significant technological developments, this is the best and by far the most comprehensive textbook available on this exciting and expanding subject.

At www.newmediaintro.com you will find:

• additional international case studies with online references  
• specially created You Tube videos on machines and digital photography
• a new ‘Virtual Camera’ case study, with links to short film examples
• useful links to related websites, resources and research sites  
• further online reading links to specific arguments or discussion topics in the book 
• links to key scholars in the field of new media.

Customer Reviews (5)

New Media: A Critical Introduction
This is a great textbook that discusses new media and the technological revolution. There are many theories discussed and many case studies to review to get a better picture of how technology has evolved and affected our lives. A couple things I don't like about this book are that it lacks updated information in today's world (blogs, social networking, mobile devices & future technology). The pictures in the book are all black and white and there is a picture of Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 and the old version of the XBOX. There is no mention of Safari, Firefox or Linux o/s. I think this book was made in 2003 and I know that technology changes very quickly, it is 2010, iPhone 4, Facebook, Twitter, Kinect and iPad are not mentioned at all. Overall it is a good book to read if you are really interested in new media but if not you will find it difficult to read through the technical terms and jargon.

New media
Shipping service was excellent.

I don't particularly care for the book.I think they spend too much time taking the long way of explaining theories and ideas.Could be a bit more to the point.

Plenty of theory - yet lacking real world application
This was my textbook for a class I was taking on New Media. The book is mildly agonizing to read as the authors ramble on and on about theory and spend little time on real world application. Some good information, but the majority lacks anything special.

Great resource
Definitely an addition to my library. This was a great starting point for further research in a few areas of digital media. I recommend this book for anyone in or interested in digital arts.

A Book Too Far...
I afforded 4 stars, because I consider it useful. Unfortunately, I couldn't receive it directly to my address. I am from Romania, and when I ordered this book, the answer was it was not possible to deliver the book to my address, so I gave the address of a friend of mine in Germany. Now I have to go (during my holidays in Austria) to my friend's, in Munich, Germany, in order to get the book. Too bad, though... All the more I paid for the books in advance, so no opportunity not to pay for the merchandise. The fun part, because there is also a fun part, is that my friend is non allowed himself, I repeat, in Munich, Germany, to receive all the books I had in mind. I can understand Romania is somehow unreliable, but Germany???
Best regards,
Bogdan Gamalet - Bucharest, Romania ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from American Economist, published by Omicron Delta Epsilon on September 22, 2005. The length of the article is 2923 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: From poverty to obesity: exploration of the food choice constraint model and the impact of an energy-dense food tax.
Author: Seth S. Martin
Publication: American Economist (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2005
Publisher: Omicron Delta Epsilon
Volume: 49Issue: 2Page: 78(9)

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Product Description
The Ultimate Ketel One Cocktail Guide Featuring Seth Martin with Anthony Dias-Blue and an introduction by Carl Nolet, Jr. *From setting up your home bar to serving up impressive cocktails like The Ultimate Apple Martini, you'll learn from one of the nation's premier bartenders that creating the world's most beautiful cocktails with Ketel One can be easy and fun. *Follow along with renowned bartender Seth Martin on this exclusive DVD as he walks yu through basics of bartending and the step-by-step secrets to preparing the Ultimate Ketel One Cocktails. ** Also Featuring: A brief Lesson on Vodka Tasting with Anthony Dias-Blue, An Introduction to Ketel One with Carl Nolet jr. This is a DVD not a audio CD ... Read more

Product Description
With dozens of movie and TV roles to his credit-including Dr. Evil's son in both Austin Powers movies, a werewolf/musician on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and parts in such box-office hits as Can't Hardly Wait, Idle Hands, and Enemy of the State-red-haired, wisecracking Seth Green is one of young Hollywood's most recognizable faces. He's also one of the hottest talents around, bound for a long and awesome acting career. So what's the skinny on Seth? Does he love what he does? How does he spend his free time and who does he hang with? Is there a special girl in his life? What kind of girls does he like? Authors Lean and Elina Furman give you all the awesome answers and fun facts about this major up-and-comer!
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Customer Reviews (3)

* * * SETH GREEN * * *
This book was very imformative, the colour pictures appriciated (!),and although an actual interview with Seth would have been more usefull, the interview snippets allow the reader to appriciate the number of films and programmes Seth has been in.
The book covers most of Seths life and displays information that would otherwise be hard to come by if you are one of these people (myself included) that like information given and to not have to got searching for it!
Overall a worthwile enjoyable read, only if you like Seth Green of course!

Sethual Healing
Seth Green is gorgeous and hilarious: we all know that.But did we know much else about him?Not really.I was curious to find out.

This"unauthorized biography" wasn't as indepth as I would personallyprefer, but a quick and enjoyable read to find out about my red-headedcutie.It was aimed entirely at teeny-boppers and Buffy fanatics, but itwas great to be reminded of the large number of movies he's been in.Hehad always been a familiar face to me back before the original AustinPowersmovie even came out.

It would have been good to read more abouthis getting up to no good or just reading more stuff he's said because he'sextremely articulate, intelligent and funny. I guess the writers wereafraid they might corrupt their young readers.It's great that he justlies and exaggerates in interviews - what a cack!

It should have hadolder pictures of him as well as recent ones, since a big slice of the bookwas about his life as a child actor.But I guess you can't complain.

Ican't believe he's the same kid that was in "Can't Buy Me Love"because that kid looked freaky deeky!

It was sad to see him basicallyleave Buffy, but I was happy for him because I'm sure he has a long roadahead in movies.And to be honest, the more dude-ish he is, the better! It'd be great to see him in a quality romantic comedy or maybe just afull-on comedy where he's the main star. Watch out Jim Carrey!

CAN IT GET GET BETTER THAN THIS?
THIS BOOK IS GREAT, A GREAT BOIGRAPHY OF TODAYS SPUNKIEST HUNK SETH GREEN, GIVES YOU SOME OF THE MOST COOLEST GOSSIP AND FACTS ABOUT HIM, I AM PERSONALLY HIS NO.1 FAN AND KNOW LOADS ABOUT HIM AND I DID ENJOY READINGTHIS BOOK AND YOU WILL TOO. ... Read more

Product Description
The inspiration for this book can be found in the question posed in its subtitle. Aiming to define a new way of grasping the concept of reality, EXTRA plays with the idea that it is never really grasped. In a new realm of gliding over, through and between the surfaces of reality, art takes on diverse forms to reveal the extreme elasticity of the real. Twentyeight artists have come together to graft their layers onto reality pending its collapse such as Olaf Breuning, Wim Delvoye, Fischli & Weiss, Sylvie Fleury, Gelatin, Lori Hersberger, Christian Jankowski, Ugo Rondinone with John Giorno and Urs Fischer, Jim Shaw, Olav Westphalen and Erwin Wurm. Each artist has contributed an eight to ten page original visual essay. Collaborating in this drive to expose the depth and complexity of reality are critics, curators and physicists. David Deutsch and Seth Lloyd, quantum physicists, deliver a passionate round of "brain tennis" in their correspondence regarding the concept of multiple universes. The ephemeral texts of Martin Tupper appear throughout as nonsensical transmissions from another reality. Art critic Bob Nickas, along with several of the artists, round out and complete this multilayered collaboration.Edited by Marc-Olivier Wahler.~Essays by Bob Nickas, David Deutsch, Seth Lloyd and Martin Tupper. ~Foreword by Dieter von Graffenried.Flexi-bound, 6.25 x 8.25 in./440 pgs / 340 color 45 BW0 duotone 0 ~ Item D20286 ... Read more

Product Description
The inspiration for this book can be found in the question posed in its subtitle. Aiming to define a new way of grasping the concept of reality, EXTRA plays with the idea that it is never really grasped. In a new realm of gliding over, through and between the surfaces of reality, art takes on diverse forms to reveal the extreme elasticity of the real. Twentyeight artists have come together to graft their layers onto reality pending its collapse such as Olaf Breuning, Wim Delvoye, Fischli & Weiss, Sylvie Fleury, Gelatin, Lori Hersberger, Christian Jankowski, Ugo Rondinone with John Giorno and Urs Fischer, Jim Shaw, Olav Westphalen and Erwin Wurm. Each artist has contributed an eight to ten page original visual essay. Collaborating in this drive to expose the depth and complexity of reality are critics, curators and physicists. David Deutsch and Seth Lloyd, quantum physicists, deliver a passionate round of "brain tennis" in their correspondence regarding the concept of multiple universes. The ephemeral texts of Martin Tupper appear throughout as nonsensical transmissions from another reality. Art critic Bob Nickas, along with several of the artists, round out and complete this multilayered collaboration.Edited by Marc-Olivier Wahler.~Essays by Bob Nickas, David Deutsch, Seth Lloyd and Martin Tupper. ~Foreword by Dieter von Graffenried.Flexi-bound, 6.25 x 8.25 in./440 pgs / 340 color 45 BW0 duotone 0 ~ Item D20286 ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (33)

AAAAMAZING!!!!
What a wonderfully funny, light, gay, Broadway book!Absolutely Fabulous.

When one first starts reading this, one may think that this is an auto-biography.I honestly thought it was a true story until I realized the authors name is Seth and the main character is Stephen - it is that believable. Rudetsky paints such a real picture of Stephen - a pianist, sub conductor and eventually director of a show on Broadway!He references shows consistently and it makes you wonder what gossip is fiction and what is real.

I listed to the audio version of this book and it has to be one of the best audio-books I have ever listened to (well into the hundreds).

Seth is the one who narrates the book. My god, he is wildly funny.What is great is that he has pulled in a lot of known Broadway actors to read other characters of the story. Both Kristin Chenoweth (lead from Wicked) and Jonathan Groff (lead from Spring Awakening and now Glee) played parts.There were a ton of other actors - but these ones I knew well.So, not only to you have Rudestky - who is a riot but you have a slew of other actors actually reading their parts so this was more like a dramatization of the book. It was so fantastic.

I had never heard of Seth Rudetsky when I stumbled on this gem.Since I read this, I have made it a point to become a major fan of his.I know subscribe to satellite radio to tune into "Seth's Big Fat Broadway" show and when I was in NY last spring, I when to his Times Square recording and his chatterbox.While in NY, he mention that they may be re-releasing his other book The Q Guide to Broadway.I would love to read this so I am anxiously the new release.However, I haven't heard any news on it yet so I may just have to buy the old version. : (

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it for anyone who wants to get and insiders glimpse into the nights on Broadway.

"People can't control the universe"

Whether or not you're tuned in to the world of musical theater, you'll have to grin and gasp at author Seth Rudetsky's irreverent novel, Broadway Nights: A Romp of Life, Love, and Musical Theatre. Rudetsky, through his flaky protagonist Stephen Sheerin, dishes about the doings on stage, in the pit, and behind the scenes of some of the great musical productions.

Stephen is a thirty-something pianist and conductor whose goal is to music-direct his own show, AND to find love and happiness with that one special someone, AND possibly to run a bed-and-breakfast in Vermont with that special someone, though he admits that last one might be better in fancy than in reality. But according to Stephen's therapist Monikah (and by the way, Stephen HATES the -kah!), he is his own greatest obstruction to reaching these goals. Monikah assigns him the task of writing a journal and this is the hilarious result.

Follow Stephen through his days and nights as he gets a shot at his professional dream, music-directing a new 60s retrospective show called Flowerchild. Watch in wonder as the complexities of mounting a major show are broken down to the essentials of hard work, wild and often groundless gossip, and regular brunches at the Manhattan hot spots. Try to guess whether Stephen will ever find a boyfriend who doesn't already HAVE a boyfriend. Polish up your knowledge of pop culture from the 1980s and 90s. Get to know Stephen's wacky parents (his father's toupee has seen seven Presidential administrations and his mother answers the phone with her "hello" tripping up and down the scales) and an eclectic group of friends and professional associates. This is one fast-paced book!

Seth Rudetsky is a well-loved musician, writer, performer and radio host on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio. He really knows Broadway, and now you can too if you grab this book. I listened to the Audible audio edition, hilariously performed by the author as Stephen Sheerin, with input from a stellar cast in the supporting roles. BROADWAY NIGHTS is an entertaining romp, but there's nothing like aperformance to raise the fun factor. Thoroughly enjoyable, five stars (at least!) for the audio version.

Linda Bulger, 2010

Cliched, contrived, and a little fun
This novel reads like a teenage fantasy. I think in some respects it is one. The characters (and I use the term loosely) seem to be simply imitations of people that the author actually knows, and so as a result he does not craft a character, he gives his imitation of a real person and calls it a character.
The book is an interesting look at the creative musical side of a Broadway show, and I would have liked more of that. Unfortunately the novel keeps coming back to the personal life of the neurotic, and unlikable, narrator. Since the narrator is not someone the reader wants to root for, the book has trouble connecting with its audience. I have a very strong feeling that much of the completely overblown praise for this novel is for its author. People like him, know him, enjoy his other work, etc. All that is fine, buts let's be honest...a good writer he ain't.
One thing I liked in the text, that I can see some folks hating, is the idea of the book as a therapist ordered journal, written by the narrator. It therefore reads in character voice with all the inherent colloquialisms, etc. However, the narrator is stereotypical and clichéd, and detracts from what little impact the text could have.
The dénouement and ending of the book are straight out of a gay after school special about Broadway, and I for one don't like to see people reduced to simplistic caricatures.
The novel is easy, light, and fun reading; I just would not buy it. Borrow it from a library. By the way, if you don't have an avid interest in musical theatre you will hate it. Be warned.

Great read, great experience, you will love it.
I came across Seth on line and watching his videos.His talent, someties pithy comments, and hysterical sense of humour made me want to do some research (and use his catch phrases)and voila!i found the books as well. I love this book. The writing is so clever and you can just hear the experience personally.If anyone is a newbie to broadway, a seasoned viewer or even someone who has treaded the boards, get this book. the read will leave you in a great mood.buy it!!
Barbara

Broadway Nights by Seth Rudetsky

What fun!!After listening to Seth Rudetsky on Sirius/XM Radio and seeing him do the show live in New York, I decided to download Broadway Nights from Audible.com.Seth is so enthusiastic and hilarious,I just knew it would be fun to listen to him tell the story in his own voice - and I was right! The story's main character, Steven,reads from his 'diary' about the ins and outs of his everyday life as a busy (if insecure) Broadway musician.Because of Seth's hilarious and witty styleand his enthusiasm, it felt like he was reading his own diary while conveying every emotion imaginable - the intensity and excitement of working on a new musical show, the up and down drama and craziness of romantic relationships and family, and the stunning range of his Broadway experience and talent.I love Broadway and I enjoyed learning so much more about the inside world of musicals and acting and rehearsing, I couldn't get enough.

Although I couldn't wait to read Broadway Nights, the decision to download the audio version and hear Seth tell the story himself was a terrific decision, especially on a long road trip. It added a whole new level of enjoyment and I couldn't wait to get back in the car to hear more!Now, I hope that Seth will write Broadway Nights Part 2 - he has such a rich Broadway background and the character of Steven has so much more to do, Don't miss "Broadway Nights" or Seth Rudetsky! ... Read more

Product Description

The study of new media has, over the past decade or so, developed within a wide range of academic disciplines and theoretical paradigms. It has generated a great deal of excitement, hype, and confusion. The New Media & Technocultures Reader presents key texts which encapsulate and / or challenge and extend, the issues, debates and theoretical positions that do the most work in mapping and critically addressing the cultural implications of new media.

The New Media & Technoculture Reader will offer students further reading on key issues and debates raised in the introductory textbook New Media: A Critical Introduction, and explication of these debates through the selected texts. It will critically and theoretically contextualise the various disciplinary stances (visual culture; media and cultural history; media theory; media production; philosophy and the history of the sciences; political economy and sociology, etc.), offering students a rich and interdisciplinary resource. Critical editorial commentary will guide the reader through the debates, and between the extracts.

Product Description
All terrorist groups eventually end. But how do they end? The evidence since 1968 indicates that most groups have ended because (1) they joined the political process (43 percent) or (2) local police and intelligence agencies arrested or killed key members (40 percent). Military force has rarely been the primary reason for the end of terrorist groups, and few groups within this time frame have achieved victory. This has significant implications for dealing with al Qa?ida and suggests fundamentally rethinking post-9/11 U.S. counterterrorism strategy: Policymakers need to understand where to prioritize their efforts with limited resources and attention. The authors report that religious terrorist groups take longer to eliminate than other groups and rarely achieve their objectives. The largest groups achieve their goals more often and last longer than the smallest ones do. Finally, groups from upper-income countries are more likely to be left-wing or nationalist and less likely to have religion as their motivation. The authors conclude that policing and intelligence, rather than military force, should form the backbone of U.S. efforts against al Qa?ida. And U.S. policymakers should end the use of the phrase ?war on terrorism? since there is no battlefield solution to defeating al Qa?ida. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Growing Consensus
There appears to be a growing consensus within the U.S. Counter-Terrorism Community that the strategy formulated under the rubric, "Global War on Terrorism" (GWOT) has been a costly failure.As this latest Rand Corporation study makes clear, the al Qaeda movement against which the GWOT was in theory directed has actually grown stronger since 9/11 in spite of or because of the GWOT.

In this monograph Jones and Libicki have made a study (as the title implies) of how various terrorist movements over the last thirty years have actually been shut down. Realizing that each terrorist movement has many unique features unlike any others,they still maintain that the majority of such movements have been either assimilated into various political systems or destroyed by means of police and intelligence work. Indeed the serious damage done to the al Qaeda movement's Iraqi Branch in Anbar Province through a combination of local policing operations supported by U.S. and Iraq Army operations is one of the few examples they site where military force was effective against terrorists. On the whole they maintain that countering terrorism is essentially a law enforcement operation supported by effective intelligence collection and analysis not a military problem.

Having made this point, They then outline the elements of what they think would be a successful strategy against the al Qaeda movement. Their strategy reflects the strategic thinking of probably the majority of anti-terrorist experts in 2008. This does not mean that they are right, but suggest there is a consensus growing on what would constitute an effective U.S. Counter-Terrorism Strategy.

Among the several common threads running through this consensus is the need for a broad range of actions to counter the al Qaeda ideology, a better understanding of the structure and principals of al Qaeda through better intelligence, the use of local police and security services rather than U.S. forces. Some of the enablers for this strategy would clearly be more relevant U. S. diplomatic operations, better police and intelligence liaison operations with foreign security services, and above all a viable U.S. Intelligence System. Such strategy may be well worth a try since the GWOT has apparently failed to achieve its primary goal.
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Product Description
Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: The Fly, the Fly Ii, Seth Brundle, Veronica Quaife, Stathis Borans, Martin Brundle, the Fly, the Fly, the Fly, Return of the Fly, Curse of the Fly. Excerpt:Curse of the Fly Curse of the Fly is the second and final sequel to the 1958 version of The Fly . It was released in 1965, and unlike the other films in the series was produced in England. Directed by Don Sharp . Screenplay by Harry Spalding. Starring Brian Donlevy , George Baker , Carole Gray, Burt Kwouk , Yvette Rees, Michael Graham, Judy Manson, Charles Carson. 86 minutes. This film was rarely seen for many years, as it was the only entry in the entire Fly film franchise that did not receive a videotape or laserdisc release. It did not receive its home video premiere until 2007, when it was released in a boxed set with the original series of films. Plot Martin Delambre (Baker) is driving to Montreal one night when he sees a running young girl in her underwear by the name of Patricia Stanley (Gray). They fall in love and are soon married. However, they both hold secrets: she has recently escaped from a mental asylum; he and his father Henri (Donlevy) are engaged in radical experiments in teleportation , and they have already had horrific consequences. Martin also suffers recessive fly genes which cause him to age rapidly and he needs a serum to keep him young. In a rambling mansion in rural Quebec, they have successfully teleported (the word is used) people between there and London. However there had been many failures producing horribly disfigured and mad people who are locked up in the stables. Martin's first wife is one of them. The police and keeper of the asylum trace Stanley to the Delambre place where they find out she has married Martin but it comes out that he had a previous wife whom he did not divorce. Charas, ... ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Emerging Infectious Diseases, published by U.S. National Center for Infectious Diseases on December 1, 2009. The length of the article is 2328 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Wild felids as hosts for human plague, Western United States.(DISPATCHES)
Author: Sarah N. Bevins
Publication: Emerging Infectious Diseases (Magazine/Journal)
Date: December 1, 2009
Publisher: U.S. National Center for Infectious Diseases
Volume: 15Issue: 12Page: 2021(4)

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

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Gandhi realized that he had first to live the life of a peasant to understand what it is to be an Indian. It will lead him to shed his westerners clothing, and don a simple loincloth, be subjected to racial slurs from none other than Half naked Indian Fakir; Mobilize awareness of local industry and less dependence on imported clothing and material; the historic dandee march for withdrawal of the salt tax; a fast unto death to stop the virtual slaughter of British troops by irate Indian mobs; and be imprisoned several times. Gandhi will soon realize that it is not enough to be just an Indian, for India has many facets - Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, and Christian. The British relied on these many facets as an excuse for their continuance as they wanted to ensure that the minorities are not oppressed by the Hindu majority. Concerned over the inroads made by Gandhi to unite the Hindus, Muslims, and all others under a common umbrella, the British invited Jinnah for talks, and it is here that a seed was laid for a separate country called Pakistan. When Gandhi came to know about this, he pleaded with Jinnah to unite the Muslims, even take over as the first Prime Minister with his choice of Muslim candidates for Parliament, but separatist Jinnah had already made his mind. The World Wars of 1914 and 1944 having taken it's toll on Europe and Britain in particular, the weary British finally decided to leave India in 1947 - not the India they had conquered - but an India that was ready to be divided in East Pakistan and West Pakistan. Now after the much awaited independence was the real test for Gandhi - a test that will make him or break him - as he started a fast unto death to try and stop the violence that was threatening to break out into a civil war, not realizing that he had indirectly fanned Hindu extremism, which would later be called the Shiv Sena, into taking the matter directly in their hands to ensure that Muslims are kept out of their Hindustan forever. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Great Soul's life.
It all began simple enough - with the purchase of a first class train ticket by Mr. Mohandas Gandhi, Esq., recently arrived in South Africa, and unaware that as an Indian, he was required to travel third class and not entitled to such a ticket. Literally thrown off the train for his transgression, the young attorney, embodied to perfection by Ben Kingsley, spent a full night sitting on the platform, musing how best to respond to such discrimination. Shortly thereafter, and after consultations with established members of his community, he wrote his first treatises and organized his first demonstrations. And when participants of a protest assembly stood up and proclaimed their willingness to die in the fight against suppression, Gandhi once and for all formulated his doctrine of nonviolent protest: "They may torture my body, break my bones; even kill me. Then they will have my dead body - not my obedience."

Shot largely on four Indian locations, Richard Attenborough's nine-time Oscar-winning biography of Gandhi is a sweeping epic that takes the viewer back to Britain's colonial past, covering all major events of Gandhi's political career from its beginnings in South Africa to the March to the Sea and India's independence, and contrasting the luxurious lifestyle of the foreign rulers with the poverty of those they governed; that India which, as Gandhi soon realized, not only the British didn't understand, but whose population also could not have cared less about the activities of the Indian Congress Party, at the time little more than a group of well-to-do city dwellers mentally and socially almost as far removed from the rest of their country as the British. Twenty years in the making, the movie is clearly reverential of Gandhi's genius, and of the man whose symbolic growth was reverse parallel to his retreat into simplicity, and who for that very reason, and because of his unfaltering commitment to nonviolence on the one hand and India's independence on the other hand, accomplished what only few people would otherwise have thought possible: to convince the world's biggest colonial power to give up the crown jewel among its colonies; and to do so in a gesture of friendship and without civil war. The one aspect of Gandhi's life that falls a bit short here is the effect that his overbearing symbolic status had on his family life, which necessarily had to suffer as a result (unable to cope with his father's fame and chosen lifestyle, Gandhi's eldest son, for example, threw himself into a life of alcoholism and prostitution). But Gandhi is not depicted as a saint, and particularly during his early years, we learn about the struggle that went into the formation of the man who later earned the title "Great Soul" (Mahatma). Even anticipating that he might be killed by an assassin's bullet, Gandhi once said that he would only deserve that title if he could accept that bullet with Rama's (God's) name on his lips: fittingly, the movie begins with his assassination and comes full circle at the end, affirming that Gandhi truly was a Great Soul throughout.

Attenborough found his perfect Gandhi in Ben Kingsley, who not so much plays but truly is the Mahatma; from his appearance to the inflection of his voice, attitudes and gestures. Over the year-long struggles to finance the movie, Attenborough's first choices for the role had grown too old to convincingly play the young Gandhi in South Africa, but eventually Michael Attenborough pointed his father to Kingsley, then with the Royal Shakespeare Company, who reportedly won the role by meeting Attenborough in full Gandhi makeup at their first get-together, thus instantly convincing him that he had found his man. Yet, despite his gift for mimicry and his part-Indian heritage, Kingsley nevertheless turned to his Indian co-stars, particularly Rohini Hattangadi, who plays Gandhi's wife Kasturba, to fine-tune his portrayal; and he recalls in an interview for the movie's DVD release that the skill he found the most difficult to master was to spin and to talk at the same time. The use of the actual British newsreels covering Gandhi's visit to England adds to the movie's sense of authenticity - and emphasizes yet again Ben Kingsley's achievement in transforming himself into the Mahatma.

In fact, his awardwinning performance so overshadows every other actor in the movie that it would be easy to overlook the fine performances of his costars, all of whom contributed to the movie's unique quality - to name but a few, Sir John Gielgud, whom Kingsley praises as "a national treasure" (British viceroy Lord Irwin), Roshan Seth (Pandit Nehru), Martin Sheen (New York Times reporter Vincent Walker), Candice Bergen (People Magazine's Margaret Bourke-White), Ian Charleson (Gandhi's early friend and colaborator Reverend Andrews), Edward Fox (General Dyer, the man responsible for the massacre at Amritsar, who testified at his court-martial that his intention had been to "teach a lesson that would be heard throughout India"); and Trevor Howard as Judge Broomfield, who had to sentence Gandhi to prison for his outright admission that he was guilty of the charge of advocating sedition because of his belief "that non-cooperation with evil is a duty and British rule in India is evil," and who nevertheless rose at Gandhi's entrance into the courtroom instead of making the prisoner rise for him, and commented on the sentence he had to impose that "if ... his Majesty's government should, at some later date, see fit to reduce the term, no one will be better pleased than I."

The movie ends with Gandhi's affirmation that when he despaired, he remembered that "all through history, the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers; for a time they can seem invincible, but in the end they always fall. Think of this: Always." Such a belief may be difficult to hold on to, particularly for us who are so much more fallible than the Mahatma. Yet, this movie eloquently pleads that it is, at least, worth our very best effort.

Also recommended:
Gandhi An Autobiography:The Story of My Experiments With Truth
The Essential Gandhi: An Anthology of His Writings on His Life, Work, and Ideas
Gandhi: The Man, His People, and the Empire (Philip E. Lilienthal Book in Asian Studies)
HALFWAY TO FREEDOM In the Words and Pictures of Margaret Bourke-White
The Last Emperor - Criterion Collection
Kundun
Anne Frank - The Whole Story
Henry David Thoreau : Collected Essays and Poems (Library of America) ... Read more