To continue with the excitement of the AJFF (Atlanta Jewish Film Festival) we joined a packed house for the first screening of “Koch“. It was a wonderful documentary about the colorful former Mayor Ed Koch, who recently passed away (oddly enough, the day before the movie was released).
The film (direct by Neil Barsky) captured his rise and fall in the city of New York and showed the many positive results that came from his decisions (the biggest of which was his impact on real estate). You get to see a man who often times was misunderstood and inappropriately mislabeled. One man even goes on record to say, “I wouldn’t call Ed Koch a racist. He’s worst than a racist….. He’s an opportunist,” to which the crowd laughed.
It was a very informative documentary which gives you the opportunity to learn about him in a different life, the reasoning behind the decisions that were made, and how his Jewish faith guided him in office and his personal life.
We give condolences and a fond farewell to one of New York’s finest. No longer will he need to ask “how am I doing?” for we know he did just fine. 9 out of 10, great film, full of life and laughs!
-TPR