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http://imdb.com/title/tt0436971/ This is a far ranging documentary that is essentially about the modern military industrial complex, and its profound influence on our national politics and foreign policy. Of course a major focus of it is the current Iraq invasion, but the film takes a historical approach and traces the roots of the phenomenon from the Cold War, leading off with Eisenhower's famous speech at the end of his presidency warning about the democracy corrupting power of the MIC. There are some narratives that run through the film and give it structure: One is about a NYC cop whose son died in the World Trade Center on 9/11 and the evolution of his views on war since that event, one is an interview with the stealth fighter pilots who dropped the first bombs in the current Iraq conflict, and the events leading up to that. Various interests and political points of view are represented, with much time being given to neocon think tankers and policymakers like Richard Perle and company, as well as opposing viewpoints from people like former Air Force officer Lieut. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski who has written many articles about the influence of the neocon faction on the formation of the war policy in the Pentagon. This is one of the best done and most powerful documentaries I've seen. The film is crisply shot and pleasing to look at, and it is edited so that it flows very smoothly through its length, with an excellent soundtrack. Lots of archive footage, from the Eisenhower speech, Vietnam era footage, Rumsfeld/Saddam footage, Bush speech footage, and military hardware footage for the war porn enthusiast. The tone is solemn, and appropriately so given that its subject is the gradual but sure death of representative democracy in the U.S. at the hands of the MIC, and how as a society we have essentially failed to heed Eisenhower's warning and allowed his direst warnings to come to pass. There is none of the snarky humor that one might see in a Michael Moore film, but it is absorbing and never boring nonetheless, in my opinion. Highly recommended for anyone interested in politics and war.
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Aug 20, 2007 02:28
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 20:29 |
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