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MOVIE: Fog Of War
Starring Robert MacNamara; Directed By Errol Morris
Music by Phillip Glass (Sony Classics)
Reviewed by Rusty Pipes
Fog Of War is one long interview, but the man being interviewed is none other than Robert S. MacNamara, and that makes this movie important.
Harvard educated and the very definition of intelligent, MacNamara ran Ford Motor Company in the 50s and the World Bank in the 70's; but he is most famous as Secretary Of Defense under Kennedy and Johnson. He is the man who many say was the architect of The War In Vietnam. In Fog Of War he has eleven lessons to tell us, all delivered with a participant's veracity that is rare indeed.
The Director of Fog Of War is Errol Morris, who created the strangely fascinating documentary, Fast, Cheap, And Out Of Control. We are in good hands. Cinematically, Morris doesn't fool around much; this documentary is almost all one-shots of MacNamara himself, supported by archival footage that looks grainier than usual, all greatly enhanced by a beautiful Phillip Glass score. There's also archival audio -- some of the actual conversations MacNamara had with the men he served were taped -- lending even more authenticity to the movie. It's a ringside seat to many of the most important events of the last century.
MacNamara is 85 years old now, but still sharp. He's unapologetic about the things he did but he's also clear-eyed about what mistakes were made and what they cost. He tells us of how we barbequed hundreds of thousands of people (far more than Hiroshima and Nagasaki) in firebombing Europe and Japan during World War II, how close we came to nuclear war in 1962, and of the events that got us into Vietnam. He fudges a bit when he says he doesn't remember authorizing Agent Orange's use in Vietnam, but he does at least say it happened on his watch and it was wrong. In the end, he is showing us the limits of raw military power in times of conflict and even more, the limits of rational analysis itself as it applies to political endeavor.
MacNamara's words will haunt you for days. It makes me think Fog Of War should be required viewing for those that think war can solve political problems, but unfortunately most cities will not have this movie show up in any theaters. Even in here in LA I had to go out of my way to find it. Definitely see the DVD when you get a chance.
The Skinny:
Am I glad I saw the movie? Absolutely
Would I go to see it again? Definitely, even if it's not in a theater. There's too much to absorb in one pass.
© 2004 - Rusty Pipes