Obscene

I find anything that shakes up complacency is great. Barnet Lee Rosset, Jr was just such an individual. He's responsible for replublishing banned books, and felt that every novel regardless of content must be published. In a documentary, you cannot rate... Full review

I attended the U.S. Premiere of "Obscene" at the 2008 SXSW Film Festival. But don't let the name fool you -- there is nothing obscene in or about this film. The only thing that's obscene is how government has tried to... Full review

I had the opportunity to see this film at the SXSW film festival in Austin, TX. It is a wonderful tribute to a great and almost forgotten American, Barney Rosset, the publisher of Grove Press and the Evergreen Review. Despite its... Full review

Fascinating documentary about a true American hero whose name deserves to be better known than it is.....Obscene is a fascinating documentary about an unsung hero of American literature..... ... Full Review

This fall, Rosset was also the subject of a documentary, "Obscene," directed by Neil Ortenberg and Daniel O'Connor, which featured a host of literary luminaries, former colleagues and footage from a particularly hilarious interview with Al Goldstein, the porn king. ... Full Review

From afar, Rosset seemed out to have a good time releasing books he dug (even some full-out erotica) and creating a non-stop hangout at the home office. With the Grove's edgy content appearing in contentious times, financial troubles were always on the horizon, and a sad note reveals Rosset, now in his twilight years, as without a fortune, regardless of his central influence in publishing. ... Full Review

But Rosset's controversies were never about grandstanding - he chose his obstacles and downplayed his business missteps out of authentic zeal that paid off with genuine social transformation. Grove championed a score of other literary landmarks throughout the '50s, '60s and '70s, but it was the books Rosset published that were deemed indecent that sealed the company's reputation as a crusading voice for free speech and an awakening counterculture. ... Full Review

Neil Ortenberg and Daniel O'Connor's "Obscene" is as vital, incisive and entertaining as its subject, Barney Rosset, who in his 80s is as witty and impassioned as ever in his defense of the freedom of expression. Yet Rosset is a survivor, admired and bemused by friends and the famous and distinguished writers he has published. ... Full Review

In 1951, Barney Rosset took charge of Grove Press, and via its flagship literary magazine Evergreen Review he spent the next few decades publishing some of the most important writers of the 20th century-Samuel Beckett, Jack Kerouac, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Edward... ... Full Article

Documentary.Directed by Neil Ortenberg and Daniel O'Connor.(Not rated.97 minutes.At the Roxie Film Center.) "Obscene," a tribute to New York publisher Barney Rosset, is an entertaining reminder of the ferocity of the culture wars of the 1950s... ... Full Article

If you read my earlier preview piece , you may have heard me kvetching about the number of movies at this year's Toronto Film Festival and how hard it would be for any one person to see more than 30... ... Full Article