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Movies / On DVD / Bush's Brain
Bush's Brain

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Bush's Brain (2004)

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Reviews Counted:48

Fresh:30

Rotten:18

Average Rating:6.1/10

Consensus: Most of the evidence is more circumstantial than conclusive, but it's still a disturbing portrait of misuse of political power.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 80 mins

Genre: Musical & Performing Arts

Theatrical Release:Aug 27, 2004 Limited

Synopsis: Not to be mistaken for an exploration of the 43rd US President's gray matter, BUSH'S BRAIN takes a look at the shadowy figure of the man behind George. W. Bush's rise to the Oval Office. Karl Rove... Not to be mistaken for an exploration of the 43rd US President's gray matter, BUSH'S BRAIN takes a look at the shadowy figure of the man behind George. W. Bush's rise to the Oval Office. Karl Rove may be an unfamiliar name to many, but to the Bush family he is an invaluable political ally who has worked in a carefully disguised capacity for many years. Rove ghosted his way through Bush Sr.'s presidency with such silent ease that a mention of his name would have been met with indifferent shrugs and feverish head scratching. His attempt to pull off the same trick twice when Bush Jr. was elected almost came to fruition, until the publication of James Moore and Wayne Slater's startling exposé of Rove in their 2003 book, also titled BUSH'S BRAIN. Filmmakers Michael Shoob and Joseph Mealey quickly picked up the baton from Moore and Slater, producing this damning filmic indictment of Rove and the Bush presidency. From political cover-ups, to an uncanny ability to manipulate facts and figures, the directors leave no stone unturned as they dig up the dirt on the little-known political aide. A scary, thoughtful film, BUSH'S BRAIN paints a worrying picture of Bush Jr.'s presidency, positing the believable theory that all has not been as it seems behind the walls of the White House. [More]

Starring: George W. Bush, Karl Rove

Starring: George W. Bush, Karl Rove

Director: Joseph Mealey, Michael Paradies Shoob

Director: Joseph Mealey, Michael Paradies Shoob
Producer: Joseph Mealey, Michael Paradies Shoob

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Oct 12, 2004

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Bush's Brain

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
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Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
10/06/04
Boston Phoenix

Littered with sloppy accusations and one-sided arguments, Bush's Brain, like so many political documentaries of late, is transparently manipulative.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
09/16/04
Allison Benedikt
Allison Benedikt
Chicago Tribune

They succeed in presenting a compelling series of dots, to use the current parlance, but they don't succeed in connecting them.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/10/04
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post

Like Brothers in Arms, the shamelessly softball Kerry doc, Bush’s Brain smacks of opportunism, rescued at the last minute from direct-to-video fate.

Full Review Source: FilmStew.com | comment Comment
09/07/04
Annlee Ellingson
Annlee Ellingson
FilmStew.com

It succeeds in generating discussion, but leaves you with a distasteful feeling. If you ignore the content and look merely at the quality of the film, it's lacking in focus.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
08/30/04
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

If this is all Rove’s enemies could muster, he’s got nothing to fear.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
08/21/04
Chris Barsanti
Chris Barsanti
Filmcritic.com

Disorganized, overly reliant on reporter commentary and full of extraneous side trips.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
09/23/04
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

Another week, another film to add to an already sizeable pile of anti-Bush polemics.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
08/21/04
Ed Gonzalez
Ed Gonzalez
Slant Magazine

It's a competent examination of an important subject, but in a year that has been filled with stunning political documentaries with high production values, it suffers from an overreliance on talking heads.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
08/20/04
Eric Harrison
Eric Harrison
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Offers little proof, beyond the circumstantial, to convince anyone outside the hallelujah chorus of its accusations.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
09/03/04
Glenn Whipp
Glenn Whipp
Los Angeles Daily News

The movie feels like a rush job and at times its tactics are as suspect as those attributed to its subject.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
08/26/04
Jack Mathews
Jack Mathews
New York Daily News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film poses an interesting question ... but few of the Texas witnesses to Rove's reign and Beltway insiders interviewed here offer much of an answer.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
08/27/04
Ken Fox
Ken Fox
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Simplicity may be appealing, but it has its limits.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
09/02/04
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
08/21/04
Kimberly Jones
Kimberly Jones
Austin Chronicle

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
08/21/04
Oz
Oz
eFilmCritic.com

I'm not sure that depicting Rove as a demonic Wizard of Oz does much more than stir righteous indignation among the already indignant.

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
08/29/04
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lacking the narrative thrust and cinematic power of Fahrenheit 9/11, it will not dent President George W. Bush's executive armor as deeply as the Michael Moore documentary did.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
08/19/04
Philip Wuntch
Philip Wuntch
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A modest documentary that is little more than filmed journalism and pales in comparison with more ambitious recent non-fiction films such as Fahrenheit 9/11 and The Corporation.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
08/31/04
Richard Porton
Richard Porton
Film Journal International

The accusatory tone becomes overbearing.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
10/29/04
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
 
 
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