BookWars (2000) on Netflix
PG-1320001h 19mDocumentary
A street bookseller looks back on his years selling used books on New York sidewalks. He recalls the vendors beside him and the Mayor's campaign to move them off the pavement.
- Watch on NetflixThis title is not on Netflix right now. Please check back later for updates.
- Watch on Prime
- Watch on NordVPN
- Netflix3.9/5
- IMDb7.5/10112 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes80%
Trailer
Plot summary
After graduating, the narrator finds himself nearly penniless in New York and starts selling his own books from the pavement to make the rent. The trade brings him among the booksellers who work the sidewalks of West 4th Street in Greenwich Village: Rick Sherman, a semi-professional magician, Al Mappo, who sells only maps and atlases, and Pete Whitney, a collage artist and toad collector. On 6th Avenue, mostly black and minority sellers work in much the same way and, many of them say, under closer police attention. Marvin wears a black hat; Ron, from Jamaica, is outspoken. In winter, Rick works parties as a magician, Pete grooms cats, and the bookseller goes to New Mexico, where he works on a Western. Spring brings Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's "Quality of Life" campaign, which targets unregistered vendors.
Cast
- Rick Shermanas Self - Street bookseller…
- Ron Harrisas Self - Street bookseller
- Everett Shapiroas Self - Street bookseller…
- Polish Joeas Self - Street bookseller…
- Al Geldmanas Self - As Street Bookseller 'Al Mappo'
- Marvinas Self - Street bookseller…
- Al Mappoas Self - Street bookseller…
- Margueritteas Self - Street bookseller
- Zachary Aptekaras Self - Kind bookseller
- Thomas Duklethas Self - Bookseller
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about BookWars (2000)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- BookWars won the Best Documentary Award at its world premiere at the 2000 New York Underground Film Festival, and the filmmaker was then banned from the festival venue, Anthology Film Archives, for over-zealous guerilla promotional activities.
- Initial shooting of BookWars was financed by selling used and out-of-print books from the filmmaker's own sidewalk bookstand, with each sale buying more film and video stock so production could continue.
- In total, production of the documentary BookWars took five years and 20,000 miles of driving across the United States to complete.
- The German-French broadcasting group Arte/ZDF picked up the hour-long broadcast version of BookWars while it was still nearly complete, and its advance paid for the final edit, mix, narration and postproduction.
- BookWars pioneered internet releases while they were still uncommon, streaming on a pay per view basis on the Cinemapop media portal in 2001.
- Because the initial phase of shooting was funded completely out of pocket, BookWars was shot on whatever camera was available, mixing Mini DV, Super 8 film, Regular 8 and Hi-8 video, and Super VHS.
