Why We Fight (2005)

[X.]

One of the retired Lt. Col has this to say before the end credits "Why We Fight? That's because no one standing up and asking why!" Why We Fight is a question as much as it is an answer. Jarecki's documentary is anti-war, it is not anti-America. That’s an important distinction to make in our minds while we watch the doc and think and tell our friends about it. "Why We Fight" borrows its clever title from Frank Capra's propaganda film series for WWII. Interestingly at the time the government was able to instill a clear vision of why America chose to go to war. The American public was behind the government and in many ways - as some of the political commentators say in the documentary - it was last of the true fights, it was worth fighting although how it ended - with the Atomic bomb - is regretable (it did strategically position America as a superpower). America's present foreign policy is in contravention of Eisenhower's warning against "military-industrial complex." Eisenhower is the central figure in the doc, he stands for the American values, the fight for freedom, and he stands against the Lyndons, the Nixons, the Reagens and the Bushes. Jarecki uses a retired NYC cop to start the doc as a story (he lost his son on 9/11, he is angry and he later regrets his decision to have his dead son's name engraved on a bomb) and shows a man so angry at "the enemy" that the government "took advantage of my anger and need for vengeance." "Why do they hate us so much?" The doc basically purports, without mentioning neo-conservatism, the rise of "political actors" who have used the miliary-industrial complex to wage wars against countries. It also supports the idea of an Imperialist America (there's an interview with Gore Vidal) which wants to create a one-Superpower world. Despite what our feelings are towards the propaganda in the Arab world, their relentless determination to put religion over and above even nationalism, for some of them sometimes even humanity, the scenes of Arab civilian children, women and old folks being bombed by American F-17s will bring tears to our eyes. "Why We Fight" is anti-war but it is not anti-America. It is about the perservation of the ideals and values American was built on - truth, justice, freedom. We see a BBC logo at the start of the documentary which repels any suspicions of the doc's credibility and confirms the cowardice of American independent studios. The information presented is fragmented and we never once see Jarecki in front of the camera. It is a great documentary, and the editing and use of subtle background score are its strongest inputs. The doc is particularly critical of Bush and his cohorts namely Rumsfeld and Cheney and Wolfowitz. It takes the time to track Cheney's involved in the Halliburton scandal and grounds the theory of military-industrial complex into the salt of common sense. The doc is not anti-American, and I repeat this again because it essentially says that America is the root cause of our geo-political turmoil - "Why We Fight" even points out how the US manipulated the political situation in Iran when the leadership refused to sell oil at lower costs and how this led to the Islamic revolution. America's friends like Saddam Hussein became her (and the world's) enemies. It tells us how in a nation where the constitution guarantees freedom of information, the present government is manipulating public opinion. "Why We Fight" is lyrical and headspinning stuff that shocks, educates and can move us. ak


Rating:
  out of 

[madali]

Dude, paragraphs!

[X.]

Anything else I can do for you?

[madali]

I am just saying man! A few ENTERS here and there, would make for an easier read!

[kaytee]

I watched it last night and I was disappointed. Not with the message that the documentary was trying to portray but with the same only Bush bashing. And the whole America is bad and why we fight for no reason and etc etc.

Dont we all have our own opinions about these issues already formed especially coz of all the hundreds of war documentaries already out there. Yes the movie makes some solid point about America's need of domination over the world but we all know that by now or atleast I have come to terms with it.

I was so bored by watching the same old bashing of America that I fast forwarded the last 30 mins and was only reading the subtitles.

I rather watching the funny Fahrenhiet 9/11 again than this old sad saga.

[fizz]

I was so bored by watching the same old bashing of America that I fast forwarded the last 30 mins and was only reading the subtitles.

Lol!

I'll be the second to admit I did the same with Loverboy and Crash.

[X.]

"Why We Fight" is not really about Bush-bashing. His neoconservative administration just happens to be aggressively pursuing American foreign policy of the last 50 years (making the world unipolar, expanding capitalist imperialism). That's what the doc is about.

[X.]

Oh, Moore's "F 9/11" was propaganda. "Why We Fight" is not propaganda.

[kaytee]

Yes ak I get what the doc is about, but the question is don't we all know that by now that America is trying to achieve that. One day it is Afghanistan, the next North Korea, the next Iraq and now Iran. What I want to see is what's next after Iran?

Yes Moore's F9/11 was propaganda, but it still was the truth now that we know the facts or what we are told are the facts.

I just found F9/11 more intriguing and funny. When I watched F9/11 in the cinema I was literally in awe. Why We Fight just didnt do that for me, it was more like *yawn*.

[X.]

One day it is Afghanistan, the next North Korea, the next Iraq and now Iran. What I want to see is what's next after Iran?

Only Bush can answer that!

Yes Moore's F9/11 was propaganda, but it still was the truth now that we know the facts or what we are told are the facts.

"F 9/11," at the time it came out, was conjecturing based on good research (I won't deny that). I don't want to demean Moore because he's a very able documentary filmmaker...however I personally loathe grandstanding documentarians. Moore was all over the doc, interferring with the audience analysis, manipulating us. The doc was entertaining (that's why it was such a big hit, Moore has the gift of the gab) but it felt contrived and one-sided because Moore chose to mix personal feelings with good reporting. I will still say we don't know what the "facts" are because we know what we know from what we read and hear from the media. I am more in favour of "personal objective opinions" rather than referring to my own intepretations as "facts." At the same time, I am in agreement with you on the failures of the Bush regime.

I just found F9/11 more intriguing and funny. When I watched F9/11 in the cinema I was literally in awe. Why We Fight just didnt do that for me, it was more like *yawn*.

"Why We Fight" is an erudite documentary. It aimed to educate more than entertain.

P.S. All said and done, I do see the appeal of an audience-friendly product like "F 9/11."

[kaytee]

P.S. All said and done, I do see the appeal of an audience-friendly product like "F 9/11."

Then WHY WE FIGHTing?

C u at snakeplex..

[animatedude]

i haven't seen this film but from its title i can smell a propaganda...