Wait, John Lennon was political? Wow, how did I miss out on this…?
It isn’t as though we haven’t gotten enough documentaries which have tackled the life and times of John Lennon over the years – I’m thinking first and foremost of “Imagine: John Lennon,” but it’s not like he hasn’t popped up elsewhere – but, to be fair, this is the first time there’s been an attempt to focus specifically on his life and times as a political activist.
There’s a quote on the back of the DVD box from Yoko Ono where she says, “Of all the documentaries that have been made about John, this is the one he would have loved.” Well, she’d probably know better than anyone…and, yeah, she’s probably right. He would have loved the idea that his attempts to bring peace to the world were, if not 100% successful, at least still being spoken of this far into the future. When viewed through the eyes of a world that’s survived such traumatic events as the L.A. riots and 9/11, however, you find yourself staring blankly at the screen on occasion, wondering exactly how naive Lennon really was to think that he could change the world with his methods.
Sure, they’re quaint and well-intentioned. Having a bed-in for peace makes a statement that he’s anti-war without risking confrontation with the authorities. Suggesting that there would be no issue with race if everyone was inside a bag and you couldn’t see their skin…well, that’s a little more off the wall, sure, but there’s a valid point somewhere within the eccentricity. Ultimately, though, the greatest achievement of John Lennon was to show that a pop star could have a social conscience, and if having that conscience required losing fans, then so be it.
As to “The U.S. vs. John Lennon,” what makes it so fascinating is the placement of Lennon’s actions within their proper historical context. What may be viewed as naive now was still quite sufficient to draw the attention of the Nixon White House and result in Lennon being put under FBI surveillance. You can kind of see why, too; he was, after all, hanging out with noted radicals such as John Sinclair, Bobby Seale, and the like. Really, though, it was less because of the company he was keeping and more because he was, despite his preference to keep himself as far away from that niche as possible, a Beatle…and when you’re a Beatle, the kids listen to you. Sure, they might not agree with everything you have to say, but you’ve still got their ear, and that’s why Nixon felt Lennon was so dangerous and, indeed, a legitimate threat to his Presidential campaign. In the end, Nixon still won another term, but the effects of Lennon’s political leanings made enough of an impact on society that the film manages to score talking-head commentary from Walter Cronkite, Mario Cuomo, Gore Vidal, and many others.
Yoko and John might prefer “The U.S. vs. John Lennon” to the other Lennon docs, but, on the whole, it’s not one you’d want to start your new Beatle fans with. It is, however, key to understanding why a man would have the music world at his feet yet essentially throw it away to follow his politics, instead; more importantly, it shows how far ahead of his time John Lennon really was.
