On the box

August 23, 1995
Issue 

On the box

Actively Radical TV — Community television's progressive current affairs program tackles the hard issues from the activist's point of view. CTS Sydney (UHF 31), every Friday, 10.30pm.

Movie Matinee: Rosa Luxemburg (1986) — German director Margarethe Von Trotta's absorbing account of the life of the great Polish revolutionary, murdered by the Social Democrats in Germany. SBS, Friday, August 25, 12.30pm.

Documentary: Phoolan Devi, the Bandit Queen — Devi has become well known due to the recent feature film based on her life. Her early life of beatings, rape and abuse is not uncommon for a woman from the low caste in India. What made her life different was her willingness to fight back. She formed a gang of bandits and took violent revenge on her abusers. After Phoolan Devi negotiated her own surrender, police were forced to tread carefully lest the oppressed react in her support. Not formally charged, Devi spent 11 years in jail and was released only last year. The makers of this film follow Phoolan Devi to her village, interview her family and gang members, and visit her jail, where she recounts her tragic and heroic life. SBS, Friday, August 25, 8.30pm.

Mojo Working: John Lennon — John Lennon was mystical and radical singing songs of love and rebellion. ABC TV, Saturday, August 27, 1.30pm.

Vampires, Devilbirds and Spirits — Carnival, calypso and folklore come together in a spectacular celebration of the wildlife of the Caribbean. ABC TV, Sunday, August 27, 6pm.

Apartheid — The first of a two-part history of the apartheid era. This episode covers the earliest settlement in South Africa and the Boer War, and outlines how racism was institutionalised from the very beginning and how the black majority fought back. SBS, Sunday, August 27, midnight.

Defenders of the Wild — Primatologist Rufin Oko patrols the Congo's Odzala National Park with an armed anti-poaching force to protect elephants, gorillas and chimpanzees. SBS, Monday, August 28, 7.30pm.

Dreams in Ebony — This film traces the emergence of the superb ebony sculptures of the Makonde people of Tanzania and Mozambique. SBS, Monday, August 28, 8.30pm.

A Difficult Homecoming — This BBC program explores the reality of the post-1989 eastern European countries. Europe looks set to be divided between rich and poor countries as capitalism wipes away the last of these countries' industries and welfare systems. The euphoria that followed the fall of the Stalinist regimes has been replaced by apprehension. SBS, Tuesday, August 29, 8.30pm.

Movie matinee: Samba Traore (1992) — Burkinabe director Idrissa Ouedraogo's classic film of morality in an African village. SBS, Wednesday, August 30, 12.30pm.

Movie: A Silent Traveller (1993) — A drama about divided loyalties among Kurdish villagers as the struggle for the liberation of their homeland rages around them. From the Netherlands. SBS, Wednesday, August 30, 9.30pm.

Satellite Wars — Is satellite TV a force for freedom and democracy, or will it ravage the diverse cultures of the world and undermine traditional broadcasters? ABC TV, Thursday, August 31, 8.30pm.

The Last Bolshevik — Part 2 of this documentary includes footage of the "film train" in which Soviet film maker Medvedkin traversed the Soviet Union in the 1930s, carrying a projector and laboratory. The crew would arrive at a farm or factory, make a film with the workers, process it overnight and then hold discussions with the participants. SBS, Thursday, August 31, 8.30pm.

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