|
|
 |
Where In The World Is Osama Bin Laden?
R1 - America - Genius Products Review written by and copyright: James Teitelbaum (25th August 2008). |
|
The Film
 Morgan Spurlock, the man responsible for the documentary "Super Size Me" (2004), returns with another commentary on American life, but this time he is tackling much bigger and much more weighty issues than fatsos who eat too much fast food. This time, Spurlock is examining the state of United States foreign policy, the War on Terror, and perspectives on America as observed by regular people living in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel, Palestine, and elsewhere. Spurlock starts off with the snarky proclamation that he intends to go find Osama bin Laden all by himself, in order to make the world a safer place for his coming child. From that launching point, he engages on a quest that is less about finding bin Laden, and more about finding out what people on the other side of the world really think about the United States of America. This is a more enlightening and necessary journey than most people might realize. Peeling away the layers of propaganda and disinformation that we are subjected to every day, Spurlock's interviews with shopkeepers, school children, and farmers in some of the most dangerous regions on Earth reveal people who are - shock! - human beings just like those of us in the west. Almost unanimously they claim to like individual Americans, but to loathe our government. Most of them denounce radical Muslims as strongly as we might in the west, and most of them see bin Laden as a villain. Spurlock really paints the residents of this region, which our media so often portrays as dangerous, violent, radical people, as decent humans. He eats with them, laughs with them rather often, and paints them as anything but haters. Of course, documentaries can be just as fictional as any drama. The filmmakers and especially the editors can use the footage they have gathered to sculpt any perceived reality they like. The story that Spurlock tells is one of hope, a reminder and a message that Westerners and Middle Easterners are all just people, and it is basically the American government's meddling that has created this climate of fear and violence in the world. Most of the people interviewed seem happy and friendly. Dissenting opinions are kept to a minimum, and are shown sparingly: a group of Hassidic Jews who do not want to be on camera are not depicted in a flattering light. One must wonder: for all of the of the 'friendly Muslims' that we see, how many more interview subjects behaved like the angry Jews, but were not used in the final films in order to push Spurlock's agenda at us? We'll never know, but this is almost irrelevant: the message here is positive and actually gives a ray of hope while hinting at a solution to the problems at hand. Spurlock's suggestion is that bin Laden is not our real problem, but rather that the manipulative warmongering that the United States has spent the past six decades engaging in, has now turned around and bitten America in the ass. The suggestion that bin Laden's position as the world's Boogeyman is a situation created by America is not a new idea, but it is one that is worth examining more closely.
Video
Aspect ratio is 1.85:1, anamorphic. I was surprised at how good the camerawork here is. There are a handful of shots that are real stunners, really beautiful. Color timing between this footage, shot in many countries and many lighting conditions, is fairly well balanced; the film looks consistent. I noticed no compression problems, but with a total running time of under two hours (including all extras), I'd be more surprised if there were issues. Running time is 1:29:55, divided into 16 chapters.
Audio
"Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?" is presented in the original English Dolby Digital 5.1, with English and Spanish subtitles. Given the guerrilla style of the shoot, with Spurlock and (presumably) a very small camera crew traipsing through dangerous locales, the audio is surprisingly good. That isn't to say that you'll want to use this documentary to show off your new 5.1 system, but the interviews are clear and legible, and mostly free of noise.
Extras
Genius Products has included an alternate ending, a series of featurettes, interviews and an animated clip. Below is a closer look. Alternate ending is entitled "Western Showdown" which runs for 1 minute 51 seconds; an animated Spurlock vanquishes an animated Bin Laden using logical and peaceful rhetoric. "Three Girls Saudi" featurette runs for 2 minutes 37 seconds; three girls talk about women's freedom in Saudi Arabia. There's an interview with Martin McGuinness that runs for 3 minutes 46 seconds; an Irish man talks about the conflicts in Ireland and compares them to the Middle East. "Watergate" is a featurette that runs for 2 minutes 38 seconds; Spurlock goes to visit the head of the bin Laden unit at the CIA. There's an interview with Saad Ibraham that runs for 1 minute 38 seconds; the interview is about democracy in the Middle East. There's also an interview with former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres that runs for 3 minutes 40 seconds; the interview is about Israeli-Palestinian relations. Finally there's an "Afghan Animation" clip that runs for 1 minute 28 seconds; animated segment recapping Afghanistan's troubles.
Overall
|
|||||
|