The Fog of War

source: The Fog of War

"The Fog of War" is a great documentary, it's very original in its approach to its subject, Robert S. McNamara. Instead of a simple biography, it focuses on the lessons in life that the 85-year-old McNamara has learned. Interspersed with stunning documentary footage, we get a glimpse of the way McNamara's mind works, a man who was partly responsible (in his own words) for the deaths of 3,400,000 Vietnamese soldiers and civilians (North and South), and 58,000 American troops in Vietnam, and also hundreds of thousands (millions?) of Japanese civilians during firebomb attacks on Japanese cities in 1945. And yet it's hard to connect the man with the atrocities he help perpetrate, he seems like such a nice nerdy fellow, which makes him all the more scary. I'd like to see this film again sometime, it's very truthful and never boring.

I really can't say how impressed I was with this film. The question here is who was directing who? This is a primary record of history as important as any other document on film I have ever scene. Diem being assassinated and Kennedy also soon after makes one wonder if maybe the stars were against us anyhow. I can remember the summer of 1963. All we were concerned about at the time was if we would beat the Russians to the moon. It was the better part of the cold war. Oh well. History can be so much rubbish except to those who will repeat it's mistakes.

Bobby McNamara is still as sharp as they come; a highly driven man with such intelligence, he is incapable of living an ordinary life. Unfortunately, Errol Morris decides to surround his persona with an over-dramatized Philip Glass score and 11 extremely vague lessons to construct his theme in FOG OF WAR. As a result, when watching the picture, we're not sure if McNamara had reached these conclusions himself or if they're just the rambling of a self-important documentary filmmaker. Either way, it hampers an objective view point and makes any connection to the current Bush presidency impossible. Nonetheless, McNamara is a man of wisdom. It was an honor to hear the thoughts of a brilliant man, who catapulted the Ford industry to prominence, while fighting Lyndon Johnson every step of the way in Vietnam. Therefore, I can't help but wish Morris hit record on the camera and listened as opposed to having the audacity to make a film that claims to be smarter than its audience.

McNamara relates his complex reasoning for his actions, within the context of the day. Whether that context is flawed, and whether he is ultimately part of the machinations of war or its creator (which is doubtful) this film does not let him off the hook in giving us a clear picture of the flawed logic that brought us the Vietnam War. Some may wish that Morris guided the discourse during the filming or in the editing process - but that would have produced a flawed film, full of bias, and out of character with Morris' body of work. Exceptional lesson in history that requires further reading or additional films to paint the full picture of the war for audiences under 40 or 35, to avoid the broad stroke efforts of the right to gloss over the failures of the war as has seeped into the History Channel or VH1 version documentaries on the subject.

A mass murderer waxing lyrical on the subject of his practice. The devastating horrors he wrought on untold numbers seems to have found no traction with this subject's conscience.

Listening to this guy talk about his life was something I honestly didn't know I needed. Not knowing who he really was, I started watching in a half-interested mood but it was quickly established that this guy had a huge impact on world politics during the Vietnam and Cold War era. And here in this documentary, he talks about some of the decisions, his mistakes, his succeses while giving some valuable life lessons for anyone doing any job. I think it's a must watch for any history fans of that period. Eleven life lessons from Robert McNamara; the US secretary of defence during the Kennedy presidency.

If you are thinking about staying home this weekend and want to watch a film that gets you thinking, then Errol Morris' Fog of War is your best bet. Winner of the 2003 Academy Award for best Documentary Feature, Fog of War documents Robert McNamara, U.S. Secretary of State under Kennedy and Johnson, and his recollection of everything from his tenure as President of Ford Motors, to his involvement, as an adviser, in the foreign policy and subsequent standoff of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Fog of War uses archival and interview footage with McNamara to explain the eleven lessons he learned from his time working as Secretary of State. His political savvy is captured on screen as he brings the viewers up to speed on some of the historical decisions he helped foster, the results to which saw him become the President of the World Bank. Fog of War acts as a reminder of the importance of past political decisions in a more comprehensive and constructive way thank Michael Moore is capable of.

Unlike most other documentary interviews I've seen, I found this interesting and even satisfying to watch. However, after reading what Wikipedia has to say about the Vietnam War, and skimming the six pages of McNamara's obituary in the NY Times, I can't say I'm greatly the wiser about what McNamara's personal responsibility might have been. Why was it called McNamara's War by Senator Morse ? It seems to me, whatever McNamara's role, that the buck stopped with Presidents Kennedy and Johnson. It was America's war and the Presidents' war. McNamara must have done his best to serve them, and I can't see why he should bear the blame for what must be reckoned their policies. Did he hide the futility of the war from these presidents ? I'm thinking he deserves a medal for guts and stamina, fighting against the odds until his death at 93.

It's been a long while since I first saw McNamara in the Fog of War, but it still rates as one of the best films I've ever seen, fiction or non-fiction. The scenes where he recounts the US bombings of Japan will always remain in my consciousness, and once you've seen the film, you'd be hard pressed not to remember them. But just as interesting was his descriptions of his time at Ford, and the use of egg cartons as inspiration for car manufacture. It also shows how great movie making can benefit from a less is more approach to shooting the subject. Truly one of the must see movies of one's movie viewing career.