CSA: The Confederate States of America (2004)

5/18/06

Having made its rounds of the film festivals and the big cities, writer/director Kevin Willmontt's 2004 mockumentary CSA: The Confederate States of America has finally arrived in Boise. This flawed and relatively low-budgeted picture is presented as the initial CS broadcast (on a San Francisco station) of a controversial British documentary on the history of the Confederate nation (this format allows for the insert of various fake commercials, my favorite featuring a Martha Stewart-type character). Through this look at an alternate American history the film makers are able to take on issues of American racism, imperialism, commercialism, ect. in a manner more likely to be viewed by audiences who would never otherwise see a Spike Lee 'presented' film. While I think the incredibly short lived Discovery Channel series What If? did a better job on the alternate history, CSA effectively conveys its political message, one that encourages us to examine the often unquestioned assumptions of our American culture.