Film imagining Bush's death raises questions...

[jhain]

Review contained in yesterday's print version of the Philly Inquirer. Just went and found it online for your viewing pleasure:

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entertainment/columnists/carrie_rickey/15857780.htm

F: Sure, movies are protected speech. But is this exploration or exploitation? If the filmmakers wanted to criticize the Bush administration for the war in Iraq, or for the Patriot Act that expands the authority of the government and tramples constitutional protections on speech and privacy, couldn't Range and cowriter Simon Finch have made a movie about a Bush-like president and scored the same points?

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F: Is that the film's point? Or is the point that the filmmakers are manufacturing "facts" for propagandistic purposes, as the current presidential administration did with weapons of mass destruction? If it's the latter, it's too implicit to be dramatically effective.

more....

[Ian David]

1. They want to gain sympathy for Der Chimpenfuhrer by pretending he's dead

The only way Bush can boost his poll numbers above 50% is posthumously.

[jhain]

2. entirely possible, yet...

I am still encouraged by the writer's opinions- and happy to see them in print albeit a film review.

[hlthe2b]

3. I have so many mixed feelings about this documentary and

all the reactions fo it...independent of how I might feel about BUSH*.

The trailer that I saw looked like the film might well be unworthy of at least some of the harsh criticism. But, I can not get past my discomfort at a film like this being released during the term of an active presidency. My biggest fear is that the film itself and the hoopla that surrounds its controversy, will somehow spur some deranged nut to try something. That deranged nut could just as easily be a RW Bush* supporter looking to make a martyr out of him for future political gain...:shrug: This is a very discomforting thought.

[Turbineguy]

4. Ten years ago

I got fired from my job (it was nasty and it was personal). A few months later the guy who fired me had a heart attack and got emergency by-pass surgery. I had thought about something bad happening to the guy and figured I would be jumping for joy if it did. My immediate reaction to his trouble however, was sorrow and concern for his well-being. My second reaction was being glad of my first reaction.

But in the case of Bush, I do not know if I would feel similar.

[Lisa]

5. I think the film tried to draw parallels with the Iraq War situation (spoilers)

After the assassination (which lasts a fraction of a second), the plot turns into a police procedural following the investigation. The filmmakers seem to imply that it's a microcosm of the events leading up to the invasion of Iraq, after 9/11 -- basically the detectives and the Cheney administration are making the same mistake over again. The crime scene expert (one of the few officials in the film who aren't trying to burnish Bush's image, or cover their own errors), criticizes them for "reaching the conclusion and then trying to find the evidence". This results in an apparent wrongful conviction.

The Globe and Mail critic felt that a speculative movie about a sitting President was a fair subject. Whether a "Bush-like" president (just change the names slightly and insert actors' faces into the archival footage with CGI) would be as effective, could likely be argued either way.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061027.wdoap27/BNStory/Entertainment/

For the record, I thought that the way Bush was portrayed was actually quite sympathetic. And not many of the characters get that kind of favorable image (except the fingerprint expert and the son of the man who confesses, both of whom want to see the truth come out). The protesters seem unreasonable and clueless (e.g. the scene where some of them applaud after hearing the news, thinking it's a wild rumor) -- the investigators come across as biased and not entirely competent, and even the guy who is wrongfully convicted is shown to have made serious mistakes (trying to conceal his past).

[CJCRANE]

6. The film is ok

but the political scenario they portray is pretty tame compared to what's already happened in real life.

A real documentary like "9/11: Press for Truth" (about the Jersey Girls) sadly received less publicity but is much more interesting.