DocumentaryYear2024Duration1h 29mIMDb6.1

Power

Documentary

Driven to contain threats to social order, American policing has exploded in scope and scale over hundreds of years. Now, it can be described by one word: power.

Trailer

Cast

Yance Ford

Director

Aaron Bekemeyer

Self - Lecturer in Modern History, Harvard University

Wesley Lowery

Self - Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist and Author

Elizabeth Hinton

Self - Historian, Yale University, Author, America on Fire

Nilesh V

Self - Former New York City Resident

Paul Butler

Self - Professor, Georgetown Law, Author, Chokehold

Lyndon B. Johnson

Self - 36th President of the United States

Yance Ford

Writer

Ian Olds

Writer

You Might Also Like

Documentary★ 6.1

Power

Documentary★ 3.9

Addicted to Sexting

Documentary★ 7.6

Wick Is Pain

Documentary★ 6.9

Rat Film

Documentary★ 7.2

The Business of Drugs

Documentary★ 7.5

The Many Lives of Martha Stewart

Documentary★ 6.2

Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal

Documentary★ 5.4

Senzo: Murder of a Soccer Star

Documentary★ 7.2

Bad Surgeon: Love Under the Knife

Documentary★ 5.4

Can I Tell You a Secret?

Documentary★ 7.0

Miriam: Death of a Reality Star

Documentary★ 6.1

Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult

Documentary★ 6.4

Daughters of the Cult

Reality-TV★ 5.7

The Garden: Commune or Cult

Documentary★ 5.2

Sex Next Door

Documentary★ 6.9

Sex, Explained

Documentary★ 7.9

Animal

Documentary★ 6.1

The Principles of Pleasure

Documentary★ 8.0

The Mind, Explained

Documentary★ 7.5

Top Guns: The Next Generation

Documentary★ 6.1

Trust Me: The False Prophet

Documentary★ 6.8

Michael Jackson: The Verdict

Documentary★ 8.2

Emergency NYC

Documentary★ 9.2

Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey

Comments

10 Comments

RüeggerMar 22, 2025

WeshMar 22, 2025

Ali algmatyMar 22, 2025

user7447007100502Mar 22, 2025

Altaf SugatJun 11, 2024

adinathembiMay 27, 2024

To some of us this information is unfortunately not new. Hate it or love it these are the facts and it's an ugly truth. More people should watch it and really drink it in. A good watch IMO. The negative reviews are very telling of the mind set that holds us all back in one way or another. It makes you think what is even the point of law enforcement especially knowing what we know now in this day and age. Makes you really wonder who are they really protecting? It's definitely not the poor. Regardless of ethnicity if you're not in the 1% you're pretty much screwed. The system is not broken it is designed purposely this way smh.

✨KO✨May 27, 2024

No pun intended - the documentary is trying to shine a light into the power police has (in the US) ... which may exceed enormously from what they were intended to have and be for the people. As a comic book hero said: with great power comes great responsibility. It is easy to paint a whole force as bad - what needs to happen is trying to root out the bad people and find a way to have people who are secure in their job and their attitude. Because let's keep it real: it is not an easy job. But that is why you need way better training for those who want to actually become and help the people ... with the power that they hold. The movie makes a few good points, but could go deeper on others. Also this is as I already stated confined to America ... but the world is so complex you could never have done all of the police ...

msika😍💯May 27, 2024

Questions about unchecked police power have become one of today's hot button social issues, and the public is deeply divided about it, depending on who one speaks with. Writer-director Yance Ford's latest pours ample fuel onto this fire with a cinematic essay that clearly has an impassioned view on the subject, making a strong case that some will obviously agree with but that others are likely to decry as an agenda-driven leftist treatise. Through a series of interviews with academics who have studied the issue and criminal justice insiders, viewers are shown the dual-edged sword surrounding this subject. While the film acknowledges that there is a need for policing in light of the prevalence of violent crime, it also argues that the supposed deterrent to this problem - a greater police presence with wider, legally sanctioned latitude in carrying out its mission - is simultaneously contributing to its growth, circumstances that have long gone unrecognized and/or willfully ignored as a result of longstanding prejudicial societal conditions that have only furthered the proliferation of this issue. Those conditions, in turn, are dissected in terms of how and why they fell into place through the years as a means to curtail the freedoms of those who were seen as posing an inherent (if somewhat overblown and paranoic) threat to the social order imposed by an entitled power structure (namely, anyone whose demographic attributes didn't match those of the self-appointed elite). Archive footage thus explores the efforts of early police forces to contain the lives and activities of slaves, indigenous peoples, immigrants and labor organizers, all of whom were considered suspect simply by virtue of their own innate identities. And, from these dubiously sanctioned roots, the power of those in charge has only grown more formidable and pervasive in forcefully holding down those who are perceived as dangers to the status quo, such as student radicals, social and political opponents, and others outside "the mainstream," thanks to the supply of increasingly alarming means more typical of paramilitary operations than the civilized maintenance of law and order necessary for the functioning of a supposedly mature democracy. Good cases are made in favor of these arguments, to be sure. And, in all fairness, the film incorporates the views of constituents within the system who are legitimately trying to reform it internally. Admittedly, though, "Power" has a tendency to become somewhat circular in making its point, redundantly repeating its genuinely valid contentions but without offering solutions to a scenario that only seems to growing worse without impactful efforts to contain it, a decidedly missed opportunity to meaningfully address the situation. Perhaps that's what is needed next, with this offering serving primarily to draw attention to and raise awareness of the issue, but I think the public at large is already sufficiently cognizant of the situation that this release could have gone farther in tackling its subject. Sustained recognition of the problem is certainly a noteworthy takeaway from this production, but it's unfortunate that it didn't seek to expand on that notion and offer us more in terms of providing answers - and hope for the future.

OwenJay👑May 27, 2024

I see it as the film was mostly right about policing in a police brutality way, controling the lower class and minorities, but we do need to control violence/criminals. We all should know by now Police brutality happens daily, we all should know far too many police lie and cover up for each other. There has to be a balanced alternative. We need to be responsible for our own behavior, EVERYONE. I don't think this film was biased as some has said. I think we need to just keep trying to strive to do better. Most importantly we need to get rid of the politicians who are committing crimes all the time.

Prayash KasajooMay 27, 2024

Watched this at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Interesting, yet it feels repetitive with the main subject it wants to explore. The topics about police corruption and abuse of power has been explored within the media for years and the documentary explores the subject with some pretty interesting insights and conversations to explain the issues and the topics. Lance Ford who created "Strong Island" was impactful and while his direction here is good, his sense of exploration and emotion feels lacking and not as strong as his previous movie. With the movie using many archival footage, interviews and presentations, the style ends up feeling dry as it ends up feeling like the typical and basic Netflix documentary with some really odd editing choices and repetitive tone. The subject is a very serious matter which I do agree with some of the main points but I wish the documentary didn't feel as repetitive as it is. Overall, it is a interesting story but it runs dry at the end of the day.

Featured Picks

Looking for more entertainment? Explore our recommended gaming hub and short-drama destination.

Instant Games

Gamixo

Play casual browser games with puzzles, cards, sports, and quick challenges ready in seconds.

Short Drama

VSKIT Drama

Watch trending mini-series, romance stories, and fresh short dramas with fast daily updates.