March to Aldermaston DVD (March Against Nuclear Death) (Richard Burton) Easter Weekend 1958

A new world was in birth when, on Easter weekend of 1958, thousands of Britons staged the first "March against Nuclear Death." Alarmed by a spiraling arms race - Britain had just joined the nuclear club the year before - and spurning the lockstep logic of the Cold War, a massive crowd gathered in London's Trafalgar Square, then set out on a three-day, fifty-mile march to Aldermaston, the headquarters of Britain's nuclear program.

Their experiences are vividly conveyed in this film, a storied collaboration involving several leading figures from Britain's "New Cinema" movement, including Lindsey Anderson, Karel Reisz and Chris Menges; Richard Burton provides a resonant reading of Christopher Logue's eloquent narrative. As much a cultural as a political document, March to Aldermaston captures a telling moment in British life, as a looser, more optimistic culture broke through the grim austerity of the postwar years. Today, the movie elicits an unexpected shock of recognition, as it restores to view a major turning point in the politics of protest, one that clearly anticipates the 1960s and still greater upheavals to come.

Narrated by Richard Burton. Directed by Lindsey Anderson, Karel Reisz.

United Kingdom, 1959, B&W, 30 minutes. Digitally Restored

DVD SPECIAL FEATURE:

• Historical Origins of the Peace Symbol

NTSC Region 0 encoding (Entire World)

Libraries and Institutions Please Note: Educational Editions with PUBLIC PERFORMANCE RIGHTS and DIGITAL SITE LICENSES are available.