For_Immediate_Release:
JONESTOWN: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PEOPLES TEMPLE FACTS
On Nov. 18, 1978, more than 900 members of the Peoples Temple died in the largest mass suicide/murder in history. What drew so many people across racial and class lines to the Peoples Temple? How could a diverse group of 900 people be convinced to commit suicide? What was a California congregation doing in the jungles of Guyana? And who was Jim Jones to command such loyalty that parents would murder their own children? Using never-before-seen archival footage and survivor interviews, this doc tells the story of the people who followed Jim Jones from Indiana to California and finally to the remote jungles of South America in a misbegotten quest to build an ideal society.
OUR REVIEW
by Dave White
Who's in It: Jim Jones
The Basics: If you've ever talked about "drinking the Kool-Aid" and wondered where that expression came from, here's the documentary you need. It'll get you up to speed on recent historical events. (Also, for the record, it wasn't Kool-Aid, it was Flavor Aid.) It's about Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple, a radical Christian experiment–turned–cult–turned–mass suicide in 1978, and it'll blow your mind.
What's the Deal? You think those folks in Jesus Camp are out of control? You ain't seen nothin' yet. This was the '70s in San Francisco, where just about anything went, and disillusioned left-wing folks all joined this guy's church. Then they all lost their minds, moved to South America and became his playthings. Simplifying it, I know. But it's so inexplicable that as good as this movie is, it's still a mystery as to why people would just give up their will like that.
Freakout Moments: Well, there's the interview with Jim Jones' surviving adopted son. Good thing his last name is Jones. People won't automatically go, "Wait, are you …?" Then there's the part in which you get to hear audiotapes of the actual mass suicide, with Jones scolding his followers to stop crying about it and yelling, "Die with a degree of dignity!"
Other Freakout Moments: How his followers called him Dad. Meanwhile, he was having sex with lots of them and barking at them 24/7 via tapes of his teachings, which were broadcast over loudspeakers.
The Moral: It is in your best interest to steer clear of religious lunatics.
Source: http://search.msn.com
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Keywords: Peoples Temple, California congregation, survivor interviews, Indiana