Cry of Jazz.

1. Using music as an expression of political consciousness is a very effective characteristic of The Cry of Jazz. It uses music not just as entertainment but as a stepping stone to the civil rights movement. The argument of who is allowed to play jazz music is purely racial which puts an interesting spin on this film. It paints such a very biased and tension inducing picture. I think for the most part it’s an interesting and convincing case, but I tend to usually switch off my brain for racial issues in movies. I think the argument about the development and the “death” of jazz proves to be accurate in the eyes of some and not in the eyes of others. If all music is changing forever then they all could be considered "dead" so yes that classical jazz from the 50's is gone, because it can't possibly be the same as it is today. 

2. I think the most effective parts of the film are moments like this "the jazz body is dead but the spirit of jazz is alive, the spirit of jazz will remake serious music but the sounds of jazz won't be used..." because i think this is a great leeway into different parts of music made later in time. It's like a prediction and a promise which is probably only interesting because it becomes true. 

I think the most ineffective parts of the film are the documentary style, it's just too boring for me because it doesn't happen to be a documentary that interests me. I think it is effective for that particular style it just didn't capture my attention.

3. I think you can almost always find relevance from older films here today, drawing on parallels of racial issues, composition of music, ownership, and biased opinions. I do not think this is a film that transcends all time, but it will historically always matter as a battle of our country that has not disappeared for some. I believe that it works better as a snapshot of a historical moment that will not have any influence on music or politics today.

Kasey Hartsock