A Towering Task: The Story of the Peace Corps Parent Guide

“A Towering Task” premieres on May 22^nd 2020 in a virtual theatrical release. For more information, check this link.

Established by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, the Peace Corps has seen over 230,000 volunteers deployed to dozens of countries in need of assistance. From its Cold War beginnings, the Peace Corps has extended across the globe, offering young Americans an opportunity to represent their country and help others. Rocked by administrative changes, budget cuts, Nixonian relocations, and scandals, A Towering Task explores how the Peace Corps has survived - and the changes it has had to make.

Documentaries tend to walk a fine line between entertainment and education. A Towering Task leans almost entirely into education, with minimal editing and little extraneous detail. It means that the film can pack in a lot of detailed information and fascinating interviews with former Peace Corps administrators, volunteers, and even President Jimmy Carter – all of which comes at the cost of the pacing, which starts to drag a little after the one hour mark.

That’s not a deal breaker, at least for me. I’m willing to admit that my knowledge of the Peace Corps was functionally limited to “that thing Kennedy did and Nixon hated, probably a hearts-and-minds type deal”. While none of that is fundamentally incorrect, it is a tiny part of the picture, and watching a more complete view unfold is both worthwhile and interesting. Learning is fun, and anyone who tells you different just enjoys being dumb. (Of course, opinions differ about what subjects are fun to learn more about…)

As with many largely educational films, A Towering Task has almost no content concerns. You could show this to a six-year-old: they’d be bored nigh unto tears but there’s no thing that could disturb them. I’ve seen public news broadcasts with more objectionable content. This is a phenomenal resource for junior high or high school teachers (or home-schooling parents) looking to explore the Cold War and the changing priorities of the American government and the international system.

The balancing act of educational and entertaining is a tough one, but I respect A Towering Task for fully committing to the former. Is it slow? Yep. Is it visually interesting? Not usually. Is it a fascinating insight into the development of a historically significant program? Absolutely. And that should be worth a lot more than the first two considerations in this context.