Vietnam: A Long Time Coming

Peter Gilbert, Gordon Quinn, Jerry Blumenthal
USA, 1998, 120 mins.

Producers: Peter Gilbert, Gordon Quinn, Jerry Blumenthal
Co-Producer: Adam Singer
Directors of Photography: Peter Gilbert, Gordon Quinn
Editors: David Simpson, Jon Sutcliff, Sharon Karp
Music: Ben Sidran.

On New Year's Day 1998, a group of able-bodied and disabled cyclists embarked on a physically and emotionally arduous 1,200-mile bicycle trip from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City. It was the first official sporting event involv-ing American and Vietnamese veterans on the same team, and a film crew from Kartemquin Films (the makers of Hoop Dreams) was there to capture the experience. Envisioned as "a journey of reconciliation" by organizers World T.E.A.M. Sports (The Exceptional Athlete Matters), the trip opens old wounds, which in turn provoke trauma and tears as fierce conflicts and fast friendships erupt along the route. "The war within my heart is over," says one veteran, perhaps summing up this unique, emotional and inspirational odyssey. "After all, Vietnam is not a war, it's a country," - Eddie Cockrell