:
Rupert Pate,
Rupert Pate,
Evamarii Johnson,
more...
:
Kevin Willmott,
Kevin Willmott
see all cast/crew...
: 
: IFC Films/Genius Entertainment/Hodcarrier Fil
: Documentary, Political & Social Issues, Mockumentaries
: 89 min.
: English
: Spanish
see additional details...
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American history is turned on its head in this bitterly satirical mockumentary from writer and director Kevin Willmott. Taking the form of a BBC documentary about slavery in America, C.S.A. traces the history of the Confederate States of America, beginning in 1863 as the Southern States turned the tide in the War of Northern Aggression when, with the help of British and French troops, they won a decisive victory at the Battle of Gettysburg. Two years later, Ulysses S. Grant surrendered to Robert E. Lee as the Confederacy emerged victorious against the United States of America. As Abraham Lincoln and many other supporters of the Abolitionist cause fled to Canada, the Northern States were gradually absorbed into the Confederacy, and the right to own slaves became the uncontested law of the land. Over the course of the next 150 years, the Confederate States of America grew to become the most powerful nation on Earth, and persevered through wars in Spain and Latin America that expanded Confederate territories, and stood tall against Japan thanks to an alliance with German leader Adolf Hitler. In the present day, the Confederate States of America remain a power to be reckoned with, despite foreign pressures to eliminate the slavery programs that are the economic backbone of the country, a long simmering "cold war" with Canada, and the ongoing conflict against the Muslim Menace. Featuring staged interviews with "noted historians," mock newsreel footage, and inside-out versions of present-day news and entertainment programming, C.S.A.: The Confederate States of America received an enthusiastic reception in its screenings at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
GreenCine Says:
CSA: Confederate States of America (2005). "I made it as a comedy because I want to reach the audience who would never go to see a serious film about slavery," said filmmaker Kevin Willmott in our interview with him, about his alternative history film which posits the question - what if the South had won the Civil War? "A brilliant and irresistible counterfactual overview of American history," raved the San Francisco Chronicle's Mick LaSalle, "Ultimately not just amusing but moving because it reminds us that the Civil War was not some sectional disagreement or an argument between two equally worthy points of view, but rather a struggle for the country's moral decency and the future of democracy."
CSA: The Confederate States of America "exhibits a canny aptitude for using its wealth of make-believe details as a prism for our contemporary culture's continuing legacy of tense racial inequality," Nick Schager has written in Slant. The premise: the South won the Civil War. What happened then? David D'Arcy talks to the maker of this faux documentary, Kevin Willmott. Full article >>
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| Did we really win?
by Ultranova
September 8, 2006 - 12:35 PM PDT
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2 out of 3 members found this review helpful
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| This is one of the best examples of indie American filmmaking that I've seen in recent times. You'll laugh (and feel uncomfortable about it), but more importantly you will have been provoked into thinking - really thinking - about race and America. The faux commercials spread throughout the production elicit the most laughs (and gasps)... but then at the end it is revealed that many of the most egregious products shown were REAL American products that were produced and marketed well into the 20th century. Its at that point that the sickening realization of how f*cked up we really are hits and you're left wondering if it made any difference that the North "won" the Civil War. Every American high school senior should be made to watch and comment on this amazing bit of black comedy (no pun intended). Two days later, and I still can't stop thinking (and talking) about this movie - to me a sure sign of cinematic success. |
| An American Original
by talltale
August 15, 2006 - 1:42 PM PDT
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2 out of 3 members found this review helpful
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The first thing we see in Kevin Willmott's gloriously funny and pertinent mockumentary CSA: CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA is a quote from George Bernard Shaw to the effect that, if you tell the truth, you had best make it funny or they'll hang you for your trouble. Shaw was right--and brilliantly funny--and if Willmott does not come up to his level, he's still made a movie of which I believe Shaw and his Shavians would quite approve. Imagine a string of absolutely top-level "Saturday Night Live" or "Mad TV" sketches, all pertaining to the same theme, strung together into a nearly-90-minute parade of wit and satire, and you'll have a pretty good idea of the film at hand.
What might have resulted had the South won the Civil War is the question here, and the answer is only a level or two removed from the reality of today's life. Willmott presents a would-be documentary in the style of something from the BBC, complete with commercials for household products and the Home Shopping Network--all skewed to his very clever theme. This guy and his crew know and understand history, entertainment, cinema and the human penchant for hypocrisy (as did Shaw) and they serve all of it up to a fare-thee-well. In addition to the laughs, you may occasionally find yourself a little saddened by what you see and hear, which is, I suspect, exactly what Mr. Willmott wants. This is a splendid example of an American "independent." |
| Can You Say "Black Comedy"?
by ZenBones
August 10, 2006 - 4:32 PM PDT
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5 out of 5 members found this review helpful
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-- May Contain Spoilers --
I doubt that there is another film out there that has a sharper edge to its satire than this one. The director, Kevin Willmott, does not restrict his satire to the South. He brilliantly weaves our real American history in with his fictional history, making the point that the USA's treatment of people of color - from most of our wars to globalization - stems from the same place that slavery stems from. It may not be blatant racism like in the South, but there is an understated attitude by those in power that people who are not white are The Other, and somehow a little less valuable as human beings. The film also drives home its point about America's treatment of African-Americans through the way they were represented in the media from the 1900s to 1960s, and through products from that era that had blatantly racist names and images. The film is hysterically funny; particularly the mock TV commercials for those products and for items that in some ways are in use today. There also are some really hilarious satires of docudramas that re-enact historical events (my favorites: Jefferson Davis taking advice from his slave "Popsy", who is played by a Shakespearean actor in black-face, and a revised edition of "Birth of a Nation" that basically seems no different than the original version). It's all funny because it is all recognizable, yet at the root it's not funny. 'Black comedies' are so wonderful in that way because they reveal that darker edge of truth. It is often through irony that we can recognize the resemblance between the present and the past. Watch The 700 Club today and replace the word "homosexual" with "black" (or colored or Negro or even "the 'N' word", as was more common a hundred years ago). It's all the same bigotry; when hating blacks went out of fashion, a new target was created. Willmott gets into the very root of bigotry: most people just need to have someone to step on. Fill in the blank: Blacks, Mexicans, Muslims, Jews, Gays ...
... But I won't give away any more because the element of shock is crucial to one's viewing experience. Do rent this, and watch it a few times. There are layers and layers of details to be admired, and truths to be pondered and discussed for hours.
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 6.81)
73 Votes
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