When the Levees Broke

I am generally a fan of Spike Lee, if frequently critical of his excesses and lack of discipline (and this film could have been shaved by a few minutes to come in at four hours even), but When the Levees Broke follows 4 Little Girls to suggest that he might do his best work in the documentary genre (of his features, only the epic Malcolm X rivals their impact.) This requiem for New Orleans, before and after Katrina, is masterfully composed and amazingly self-effacing (no narration, and just twice did I catch Spike's off-camera voice asking a question.) And I would call it noninflammatory despite a fair amount of Bush-bashing (wholly justified to call the anti-spade an anti-spade.) With a judicious mix of news footage and sustained engagement with a group of talking heads who become genuine characters, Lee makes palpable the human devastation of Katrina. Multifaceted if less than comprehensive, the film is particularly astute in its music, from the opening strains of Louis Armstrong singing “Do You Miss New Orleans?” to Fats Domino’s “Walking to New Orleans” at the end. It shows what was lost not just in terms of infrastructure but of a special brand of creole culture. Tragic but engrossing, this documentary calls citizens to hold their government accountable, to take a genuine interest in “homeland security” as a collective concern, and not in bungling, boondoggling, ideological military adventures abroad. (2006, HBO/T, n.) *8-* (MC-88.)