Throughout his life, John Winston Lennon made a lot of things: a lot of music, a lot of news, a lot of history and a lot of people nervous.

Recently released documentary “The US vs. John Lennon” chronicles the years of Lennon's life when he made some very important people nervous. This was the time he spent opposing the Nixon administration as a political activist speaking out against violence and the Vietnam war.

While the film is clearly a documentary, it also follows a very clear story. Amid the usual documentary earmarks like still photographs, government documents and audio and video interviews, the story of Lennon's life is told. The audience sees Lennon go from a nearly orphaned boy to musical genius to political activist promoting peace and love.

The music of the film is what one would expect, however, that is by no means bad thing. The best of Lennon's solo material lined the film, which included live performances of many songs that were the soundtrack of the time. The audience is treated to videos of protest concerts and rallies as well as a performance from Lennon and Ono's famous "Bed-In" during which they stayed in bed for a week of their honeymoon to promote peace.

Rare footage is plentiful throughout the documentary, and as the story progresses through Vietnam, J. Edgar Hoover's days at the FBI and the Watergate scandal, never-before-seen footage and newsreels once believed lost are shown.

Aside from this special footage, the film contained many other facts and bits of information that were completely new to me. I consider myself a moderate Lennon fan, so I expected to learn a lot, but my expectations were more than exceeded. This film was definitely an enjoyable and educational experience.

Despite the overall strength of this film, I had a few complaints. My first and most obvious annoyance lies in the sometimes excessive use of production tricks and special effects. Backed by VH1 and distributed by Lions Gate Films, the filmmakers must have had some cash at their disposal and at times they seemed to flex their monetary muscles solely because they could. This wasn't always a bad thing, but at times it was more than a little distracting.

In particular, the constant use of green screening during interviews bothered me. Throughout the film, interviewees were shown against a contrived background composed of photographs, posters and memorabilia.

My other complaint applies to what I felt were a few neglected details in the film. No mention was made of Lennon's first wife, Cynthia, or their son, Julian. It is true this film was meant to tell of a different time than Lennon's first marriage, but without even a footnote in the long list of Lennon's life events, I felt a gap. Similarly, though everyone knows John Lennon was assassinated, the film didn't give any details about Lennon's death, and dealt with the tragedy very abruptly.

Considering its depth of detail, this film may be a little much for the occasional Beatles fan. For someone interested in the life and values of John Lennon, “The US vs. John Lennon” is a great way to celebrate who Lennon was and what he stood for.

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