Album Description
While residents along the Southeastern United States evacuated for Hurricane Katrina, Biloxi, Miss., resident J. Justin Pearce and his friends filmed a sarcastic prediction of the destruction the storm would cause. Although Justin evacuated just before Katrina hit, he knew there were people trapped on the Coast, including his family. In efforts to find his grandmother, he learned the plight of many others. He quickly focused all his efforts on providing relief to residents in South Mississippi. Journey into Justin's diary, and see Biloxi from just before Katrina, never before seen storm footage, before/after montages of Biloxi's historical homes, and testimonies from Katrina victims interlaced with Justin's compelling first-hand account of the changes people undergo when everything they've ever known is stripped away.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 5.0 based on 12 reviews)

Touching

This documentary touched home on so many levels. I went to school with several of the people included in this documentary, including the film maker. I was blown away at the accuracy of emotion, and the general good humored nature...'before the storm'. I grew up in Biloxi, St. Martin & Ocean Springs. I was in OS at the time the storm started to roll in, and as as Pearce and Trocesset documented, my friends and family all laughed this storm off, as we'd done our whole lives. Never did we know the chain of events that would occur. We never knew that evacuating on August 28th would mean splitting up friends and family for months and years to come. I never knew that when Jim Cantore said, "Take a look folks...you'll never see it this way again," that he MEANT what he said. I would have taken more pictures. I would have driven down the beach once more. It is nearing three years since this happened, and though so many good things have come from Hurricane Katrina (including meeting my fiance), I still weep when confronted with the reality that we Mississippians all faced. Who knew on August 28th-while we rode the calm before the storm-that we would return to rubble, searching morgues and shelters for our loved ones, and and entirely different way of looking at life as we knew it. J. Justin Pearce put this documentary together not only as a film maker, but as a resident. It was an emotional ride between seeing my home as it was before Katrina, and afterward. Thank you so much for the opportunity to see it from a resident's eyes.
January 14, 2008

Awesome!

This was an awesome film! i really did hit home considering i live in Ocean SPrings and i did not evacuate...i was in the attic and could feel our roof starting to come off..this film is the only one i know of that actually shows biloxi and ocean springs, ms and not New Orleans...Bravo! Also, the girl in the film, Erin Redmond, graduated with me in Ocean Springs 2002..
April 02, 2007

Gritty...moving...POWERFUL film of Hurricane Katrina's destruction

When I found this movie about Hurricane Katrina with NO mention of New Orleans, I wanted it immediately. I hoped I would be seeing something no other media outlet's shown before, and I was not disappointed. I live in Virginia, I have never been to southern Mississipi or the Gulf coast and I've never experienced such life-changing destruction. Yet this movie really hit home. The people in the film could be MY friends and family - the conversations, the banter, the laughter. The gorgeous homes on the coast could have been from my neighborhood. The denial that something truly bad could EVER happen to my home is so personal, yet universal. It's those connections that make the devastation shown throughout the film that much more powerful and humbling. This film makes you feel like you are a part of Justin's life. I think every American across the country should see this. You leave it feeling awed by the power of Mother Nature, but also inspired by the strength of her survivors.
June 18, 2006

The Reality of Hurricane Katrina

Just wonderful! A very powerful movie. The best DVD I have seen on Hurricane Katrina. It was heart wrenching to watch the devastation of so many lives. Enjoyed the small window showing the Gulf Coast before Katrina while seeing the after effects of Katrina. This movie really shows the power of a hurricane. One can really get the feel of the lives that were effected by the hurricane and see just how beautiful the gulf coast was before Katrina. It also shows how people do not always take warnings seriously.
May 17, 2006

Hometown Destruction

When I left Biloxi in November of 1969, we had been destroyed by hurricane Camille.Watching this film brought it all back and more.My heart goes out to ya'll and Justin did a great job.Thanks for including tunes of our new cd "Take Me Back Biloxi", I'm glad I could add a small part to your film. I highly recommend this film. Tommy Miles(Harmony-n-Gritz)
May 07, 2006

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