Join the Boston Sunday Night Film Club this Sunday, Feb 23rd at 7p for Tread at the Brattle Theatre. Look for Sean wearing a nametag in the theatre lobby about 15 minutes before the film. As always, after the film we will descend on a local establishment for dinner/drinks/discussion.
On June 4th, 2004, a sixty-three-ton bulldozer, fortified with steel and concrete, systematically destroyed numerous businesses and homes in the small mountain town of Granby, Colorado. The rampage lasted for over two hours and resulted in millions of dollars in damage. State and local police were rendered harmless – incapable of even slowing the machine. Though it was armed with three high-powered firearms, no one but the driver died. His name was Marvin Heemeyer.
Cambridge-bred filmmaker Paul Solet cut his teeth on genre films – like his remarkable feature debut Grace – and he levies these skills to mount this thrilling documentary about one man’s descent into madness. The inspiration for Heemeyer’s homemade tank didn’t appear overnight – his paranoia and rage developed over years of the kind of in-fighting and petty grievances that rural, small-town life seems to excel at incubating. TREAD explores the polarizing perspectives on this man, his motives, and what drove him to the breaking point through news footage, recreations, and interviews with those who knew him – or thought they did.