Phil Ochs: There but for Fortune
| Phil Ochs: There but for Fortune | |
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Promotional poster
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| Directed by | Kenneth Bowser |
| Produced by |
Michael Cohl Kenneth Bowser Michael Ochs |
| Written by | Kenneth Bowser |
| Music by | Phil Ochs |
| Edited by | Pamela Scott Arnold |
| Distributed by | First Run Features |
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Release date
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Running time
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97 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Phil Ochs: There but for Fortune is a documentary film on the life and times of folk singer-songwriter Phil Ochs. The film, released theatrically in January 2011, was written and directed by Kenneth Bowser. Its title is taken from one of Ochs' best known songs, "There but for Fortune" (1963).
The film features extensive archival footage of Ochs, as well as scenes reflecting the turbulent political climate of the 1960s during which he emerged as a spokesperson on causes such as racial injustice, political oppression, the horrors of war, and labor issues. In addition, it includes interviews with family members and many of the artists and activists who knew him from his arrival in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s through his death in 1976. Also featured are comments from contemporary figures on Ochs' influence. This documentary was broadcast on January 23, 2012 on the PBS series American Masters.
The film is a biography of Ochs as well as a history of the anti-war movement, the folk song revival in the United States, and left-wing political activism during the 1960s. Tracking Ochs' rise to fame during the folk and protest song movements of the period, the film depicts his growing involvement in the radical politics that developed over the decade. Throughout, he wrote hundreds of songs, many of them ripped straight from the daily news. As the film's interviews bring out, Ochs firmly believed his music could change the world for the better.
Besides the archival footage of Ochs and the interviews with others involved in the folk movement, the film features extensive news clips of the events of the times, including the Civil Rights struggle in the South, assassination of President John F. Kennedy, rallies protesting US military involvement in Vietnam, assassinations of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy, shootings of students at Kent State, and the "police riot" at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Ochs became a part of the inner circle that sought to defeat US policies, and the film shows interviews with some of the movement's central figures, several of whom were close friends with Ochs, including Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin, co-founders of the Youth International Party, and Tom Hayden, who went on to become a California State Senator.
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