Netflix's Trial of The Chicago 7 could use use a dose of the real Abbie Hoffman.

What the hell happened to all the larger-than-life characters I remember. This bunch could never have inspired a revolution..

This is the midweek what-to-watch edition of Snarky Senior — the newsletter from Erica Manfred, which you can read about here. If you like it and don’t want to miss an issue, you can get it in your inbox by subscribing.

“The 60’s are gone, dope will never be as cheap, sex never as free, and the rock and roll never as great.”
― Abbie Hoffman

I am so bummed to give a thumbs down for Trial of the Chicago 7.

I wanted to love it. I really did. I was an anti-Vietnam war protestor and a Yippie wannabee. I can’t remember why I didn’t go to Chicago in 1968 (sheer laziness probably) but I was there in spirit. I may not have known these guys personally but I worshipped them—I saw them speak in person, I shook their hands, I followed their every move. My favorite moment in left politics—ever— was Abbie Hoffman throwing dollar bills onto the trading floor on Wall Street. I used to quote regularly from Steal This Book.

Sorkin totally missed the originality and colorfulness of these characters. He turns them into self-righteous leftist everymen, which they emphatically were not.

I’m a huge fan of Sasha Baron Cohen ordinarily and though he’d be perfect for the role, but Sorkin must have told him to tone down Abbie. I met Abbie and saw him speak many times. He was electrifying, riveting, funny, incredibly charming. Definitely larger than life. Cohen seemed unsure of who he was playing—his Abbie fell flat on the screen.

Jeremy Strong as Jerry Rubin was totally miscast. Strong is a great actor but he radiates hidden depths. Rubin had no depths. He was strictly a pitchman. Like Abbie, he was charismatic, a fast-talker, but unlike Abbie he was more like Tom Robbins than Robin Williams. He eventually became a motivational speaker forgodssakes. Sorkin’s Jerry Rubin was Abbie’s short sidekick without much personality of his own.

And Tom Hayden? Have you ever seen Tom Hayden? I mean Eddie Redmayne, really? Tom Hayden was aggressively homely and totally charm-free. Eddie Redmayne is gorgeous and charming even when he tries not to be.

Kunstler was also a character, a grandstanding leftie lawyer with lots of flair and personality. Mark Rylance played him as nice, well meaning, but dull.

Even the great Frank Langella was miscast. He was so mild mannered. I remember Judge Hoffman as a lot more mean, ill-tempered and cranky.

The only character who got it right was newcomer Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Bobby Seale. He gave a riveting performance and captured Seale's rage and intensity perfectly.

It was an OK recap of the politics of that event and the time, and it certainly has a lot of resonance today. But it lacks the magic of the 1960s.

In those days the revolution had a face, in fact many faces. We had Hoffman, Rubin, Kunstler, Seale, Angela Davis. We had pioneering feminists like Steinem and Abzug, Where are today’s larger-than-life leaders? We’ve got aspiring revolutionaries, but who’s in charge? Who is inspiring us. Please stand up whoever you are.

And if there’s an Abbie Hoffman in the crowd we need you—desperately!!

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Snarky Senior" is for those of us who qualify for a senior discount, but aren’t content with the crap we can buy with it.

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