ManiakJiggy This is How Movies Should Be Made

Inclubabu Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

FrogGlace In other words,this film is a surreal ride.

Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Blackhawk1989 'The Power of Nightmares' is not only an amazing documentary, it is a fantastic piece of entertainment and an example of how to make something truly watchable and informative. The program documents the rise of both the Al-Quida and the Neo-Conservatives and draws worrying and powerful comparisons between the two. The program is a masterpiece of editing, superb narration and soundtrack, and most importantly, it breaks information down in a way that is easy to understand without dumbing it down so much that it looses its point. I would easily count the opening montage of this program as one of the best i've ever seen.I don't like to think of myself as a liberal or a conservative, and that is probably part of the reason I find this show so fascinating. Right-wing groups and bloggers have been quick to scream about liberal conspiracies and demonising the United States, but the show simply reports the tale through simple facts. The idea of the liberal dream in the 60's is held as responsible as the conservative dream of the 80's, and terrorism is demonised for what it truly is, a murderous and totally wrong idea.The interviews are similarly conducted in a simple and factual way. There is no need for quick edits, sound effects or clever angles in these sections, the interviewer simply asks a question and allows the response to speak for itself. The interview when a US intelligence officer admits that he truly believes that having no evidence of Soviet weapons was evidence in itself is easily one of the most disturbing things to come out of this documentary.No program is perfect however, large portions of the story appear to have deliberately sliced out to keep the pace and length down, the Arab-Israeli conflict is totally omitted and the facts start to become a bit too speculative towards the ending, with predictions taking the place of narrative.Overall this is one of the best political documentaries ever commissioned, I urge you to see it, even if you view it as a piece of propaganda the productions alone are well worth enjoying, as is the superb soundtrack and use of some brilliant stock footage.

dbborroughs 3 part BBC documentary/essay that is unlikely to get a regular release in the US. I got a copy from the first 3 issues of Wholphin the McSweeny's sister DVD magazine which had one part in each issue. The film shows how the rise of fundamentalist Islam began at the same time as the birth of the neo-conservative movement and how the two are variations of the same theme (you understand why this won't play in Peoria). the film suggests that both groups want to gain power by creating a world view that will allow them to rule by fear. It also supposes that the grand terrorist network isn't there and that the Islamic we fear isn't going to happen.Enlightening, frightening and the sort of thing that gets the little grey cells going this is an interesting historical look at the way things are and why we are in the situation we're in. Its not the be all and end all since while it does connect many of the dots it also leaves out many details that could color the central thesis. As with many films history isn't this neat. The film was made 4 years ago and much has happened since then, and I'm not certain all of the points still hold true.The films biggest flaw, if you can call it that, is that the film is much too long at three hours. To be certain the film was made to be seen on three nights over three weeks, but the amount of information contained is so dense even that is too much (I watched this over a couple of days and feel overwhelmed by it. I was almost ready to hang it up half way in simply because its just too much.) Too much or not its worth seeing, or rather it still demands to be seen simple because it will put things in to a new perspective. Is it the correct one, I don't know that would be fore you to decide, but make the choice and try and see this.

jf-urrusti Honestly, everyone should see this thoroughly researched, no-nonsense documentary. It's food for thought. Congratulations to the director. My gratefulness to the BBC.At a time when TV news programs carry just about everything except news, at a time when hypocrisy and lies are what the media delivers basically, viewing this film is a rewarding experience to see this documentary which is just the opposite.This documentary is an essay on how some governments lie to the people and about how they present as fact events and characters that are merely fictional.Where can I buy it on DVD? Is there any chance that the documentary will be released in America? If anyone knows the answers to my query I will be very grateful to him/her for them.

Benoît A. Racine (benoit-3) I have already seen two of the three episodes of this excellent BBC documentary which the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is showing in three parts on its CBC Newsworld channel. I will see the third one tonight.I can understand why it has never been shown in the States and why it probably never will. These three small TV hours contain way too much brutal truth for any American to endure with any degree of comfort. The parallels between the devious agendas of the American Neo-Conservatives and the fundamentalist Islamic terrorists are uncanny: same logic, same malevolent means, same reliance on fear instead of reason.I can't understand, though, how Michael Moore' s sentimental and illogical hogwash documentaries get such a large release when a film like this one, which involves much more hard work and intelligence never gets to be shown where it could do the most good: in America.