A 25-minute film has been posted on YouTube that celebrates the Detroit of 51 years ago as a "city of contrasts," all of them good.
Viewed amid the troubles of 2012, "Portrait of a City" can be summed up in one word: Quaint.
Or maybe sad.
Or even incredible.
Produced by Ford Motor Co., the film is scored with schmaltzy music and narrated by a serious-sounding man who, in starchy language, gushes over the countless features of the city, from the river to the new civic center to the Rouge Park toboggan slides to Lakeshore Drive to the proximity of the north woods.
The narrator really loves the spirit of Detroit. Not just the statue, but what he perceives as a spiritual force moving among the residents.
"Detroit has always moved forward on faith, building and rebuilding, shaping its own destiny with the image and abilities of its people," he says.
"This is the way it is with the city of Detroit. Detroit is a city on the move -- growing, reaching out, yet recognizing the need for spiritual growth...
"The old gives way to the new, yet all hat is good is cherished and contributes to the dream of the future. Detroit, the city of contrasts, looks toward tomorrow confident that its great goals will be gained through the vision, cooperation and energy of its people."
The YouTube poster says the film celebrates the city's 250th anniversary, but that celebration took place 10 years earlier, in 1951.
