The rift between words and swords

"I don't know if I write the poetry or the poetry writes itself."

"Urban Scribe," a new documentary film by Princeton Film Foundation Vice President Jane Han '02, tells the story of a new generation of poets, whose work is based not just on the words themselves, but on the performance. The rough cut premieres Saturday at 10 p.m. at 185 Nassau St.

The relatively recent spoken word movement is particularly virulent in New York. Many of the characters we meet in Han's film are showcased at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, a haven for underground artists, where the music is the poetry, and "the power to decide what is good and what sucks" is in the hands of the people. The Cafe plays host to so–called "poetry slams" — competitive poetry readings where the audience judges both the content and the performance style of the poets. "Underground — that's where true art is," one featured poet remarks. "Poets come not just to read their poems, but to slam the other poets," one of the cafe organizers says.

In addition to introducing the viewer to slam poetry as an art form, "Urban Scribe" provides a window into the lives of four up–and–coming poets on the New York scene: Celena, Saint, Heru and Bryonn. During filming, in the summer of 2000, Celena and Byronn, were top finishers at the National Championships, in Providence. The four personal segments, provide the backbone for a tight, well–structured, entertaining yet educational look at an aspect of contemporary culture about which most of us are unaware.

"Urban Scribe" has a very mature feel and, with few exceptions, could pass for a professional documentary. Especially noteworthy are the cinematic transition sequences in which Han sets her characters' writing to music and images. She displays a nice sense of rhythm, combining visual effects and rich audio textures to create wonderful dream–like scenes.Experimenting with visual effects is often a dangerous enterprise for young filmmakers, and I have seen many examples where it backfires completely. "Urban Scribe" is not one of them. The film's weak elements are, somewhat paradoxically its simplest: interviews with individual poets. The interviews can be choppy at times, in part a reflection of the chaotic minds of the interviewees. The characters are interesting enough, however, that they hold the viewer's attention throughout.

Several poets cite their relationship with God or search for God as a key inspiration. Saint says, "I'm just releasing all these frustrations about how God is not in my life." Heru, on the opposite end of the spectrum, implies that he is the reincarnation of Christ, remarking that if Jesus came back now, he would be on the poetry circuit.

The poetry itself is not generally religious, but does tend to be highly political, and frustration with racial and class tensions is a predominate theme. It is interesting to note, however, that, as a movement, slam poetry spans all ethnicities and demographic backgrounds. The barriers to entry are low, and consequently, the quality of poetry varies widely. But I'm a doctor, not a poetry critic. And as student documentaries go, this one is not to be missed.

"Urban Scribe" will be screened this Saturday, at 10 p.m. in the James Stewart '32 Theater, 185 Nassau St. Running time is 56 minutes. A poetry slam featuring Celena Glen and Bryonn Bain, follows at Terrace Club.