Noujaim has done better than most of us at being in the right places at the right times to catch the imperial machinery in its most vulnerable, damning moments.
Comment
08/29/04
Control Room (2004)
96
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:105
Fresh:101
Rotten:4
Average Rating:7.8/10
Consensus: A fascinating, enlightening behind-the-scenes look at the Al Jazeera network.
Theatrical Release:May 21, 2004 Limited
Box Office: $2,222,612
Synopsis: "It benefits Al-Jazeera to play to Arab nationalism because that's their audience, just like Fox plays to American patriotism, for the exact same reason... because that's their audience... the big... [More]
Starring: Hassan Ibrahim, Samir Khader, Deema Khatib, Tom Mintier
Director: Jehane Noujaim
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Reviews for Control Room
Bush and Rumsfeld have called Al-Jazeera "the mouthpiece of Osama Bin-Laden." You might find truth to that statement next to Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction.
08/19/04
The optimistic viewer will see in all this blunt and messy contrariness the emergence of the first free press in the Arab world.
08/13/04
Shines most brightly when it's exploring unexpected ambiguities.
08/12/04
"Control Room" is more than just a compelling film. It's a public service.
08/12/04
Lieutenant Josh Rushing emerges as a voice of reason, a moral arbiter between al-Jazeera and Fox News.
08/10/04
Noujaim's viewers will learn little new about the inner workings of Al Jazeera, its philosophy, or its influence on its 40 million viewers.
08/08/04
Takes us behind the scenes at the much-maligned -- but much-watched -- Al-Jazeera before and during the war, and the result is fascinating and revelatory.
08/07/04
A thoughtful look at the network the Pentagon describes as "the mouthpiece of Osama bin Laden."
08/05/04
Important not so much in that it is a great documentary, but it raises some of the implications of our own biased media coverage.
08/02/04
Given that most Americans know the network only by reputation, or via Donald Rumsfeld’s public denunciations of it, a little more objective information would not have gone amiss.
08/01/04
With the western and Arab worlds increasingly at one another's throats, the sliver of hope for finding common ground this film provides is nothing short of a revelation.
07/20/04
Control Room demonstrates little filmmaking skill … all video stock and mostly harsh fluorescent lighting. What is being portrayed is more important than how.
07/19/04
'The press, not war, is the necessary evil in Control Room and information is now more powerful than missiles.'
07/18/04
Noujaim's documentary is clearly sympathetic to the journalists of Al-Jazeera, who all seem to be professional, intelligent and reasonable, but it is not blindly biased.
07/16/04
Top CriticModest in scope and not as well structured as it could have been, Control Room may not seem all that compelling 10 years down the road. But right now, at this very moment, it is essential, imperative viewing.
07/16/04
In this documentary, you get the feeling that people are actually listening to each other. It's refreshing in these times of Michael Moore.
07/16/04
More illuminating than not, and shines its brightest light on a truth that war and warmongers so ferociously ignore: Look hard into the other's camp and what you'll likely see is yourself.
07/16/04
It gives audiences in the Western world a glimpse into newsgathering efforts that are rarely if ever seen here.
07/16/04
What makes The Control Room important is that it gives us a glimpse of a viewpoint we might not otherwise see.
07/16/04
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