PBS has announced that it will be releasing the devastating, powerful documentary The Central Park Five on blu-ray DVD on April 23rd.
Made by acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ken Burns (The Civil War, Baseball, Frank Lloyd Wright, Jazz, etc) along with daughter Sarah Burns and son-in-law David McMahon, the film chronicles the 1989 true story set in New York City, on the racial boiling point, rocked to its foundations, when five black and Latino teenagers were arrested and convicted for the brutal sexual assault of a Central Park jogger despite the fact that the actual guilty person was arrested shortly afterward.
After serving their sentences, the five had their convictions eventually vacated and they have, since then, filed a civil lawsuit against the City of New York and the police officers and prosecutors who were responsible for their original convictions.
As Ken Burns said about his film: “This is a radical departure for me as a
filmmaker, Eschewing narration, bringing in many
new stylistic elements – I think the intensity of the circumstances, and the
political and tragic implications absolutely demanded that we implement an
intensified discussion. What I think adds to our story is the humanity of the
five young men who are at its center, especially because no one was willing to
do that during the original media coverage and trial.”
No details yet about extra features but there are sure to be plenty of them.