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Movies / On DVD / The Fog of War
The Fog of War

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The Fog of War (2003)

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Reviews Counted:133

Fresh:130

Rotten:3

Average Rating:8.4/10

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for images and thematic issues of war and destruction

Runtime: 1 hr 47 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Theatrical Release:Dec 19, 2003 Limited

Box Office: $4,052,471

Synopsis: Documentarian Errol Morris directs THE FOG OF WAR, a captivating look at Robert S. McNamara, who served as the Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The movie... Documentarian Errol Morris directs THE FOG OF WAR, a captivating look at Robert S. McNamara, who served as the Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The movie does not exclusively focus on this part of McNamara's career, however, and instead gives a broad overview of the man he was, his multitude of roles--a Harvard Business School graduate, a Colonel in the Air Force during WWII, president of Ford Motor Company--and his opinions on a variety of historical topics. Inspired by two books written by McNamara--IN RETROSPECT (1995) and WILSON'S GHOST (2001)--Morris gives McNamara a forum to talk about the decisions he made and the influence he had during his career. At the age of 85, McNamara has gained necessary perspective to do just that. Sharp as a tack, loaded with charisma, and generally fascinating, McNamara easily carries the film with his revealing interviews. Meanwhile, Morris's use of archival footage--along with maps and other effective visual aids--add context to McNamara's commentary, and Philip Glass's ominous, pulsing score gives the film's important subject matter the gravity it deserves. [More]

Starring: Robert S. McNamara

Starring: Robert S. McNamara

Director: Errol Morris

Director: Errol Morris
Producer: Michael Williams, Julie Ahlberg
Composer: Philip Glass
Studio: Sony Pictures Classics

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Release:

May 11, 2004

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Reviews for The Fog of War

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

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

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sunday Times (Australia) | comment Comment
05/08/04
Sunday Times (Australia)

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/01/06
Empire Magazine

Click to read the article

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

Mesmerizing stuff.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
12/19/03
E! Online

Morris’ real genius is that he knows how to listen, knows when to stop questioning and thereby let people reveal themselves, more than they intended

Full Review Source: Killer Movie Reviews | comment Comment
12/21/03
Andrea Chase
Andrea Chase
Killer Movie Reviews

Emerges as a fascinating enterprise that evokes nothing so much as Victor Hugo's 'dialogue of the deaf' in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Full Review Source: New York Observer | comment Comment
01/08/04
Andrew Sarris
Andrew Sarris
New York Observer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Offers a fascinating history lesson -- and one you'll probably never read in any book.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
02/05/04
Bill Muller
Bill Muller
Arizona Republic
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There is nothing simple about Robert McNamara and nothing simplistic about Errol Morris's involving look at him.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/09/03
Bob Westal
Bob Westal
Film Threat

Startlingly forceful — an extremely intimate, sympathetic and provocative personal biography as well as an illuminative audit of human fallibility. One of 2003's best films.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Today | comment Comment
01/09/04
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Entertainment Today

History needs to be re-examined, but it is rare for a filmmaker to have unfettered access to a reclusive figure who was so crucial in making history.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
02/06/04
Bruce Kirkland
Bruce Kirkland
Jam! Movies

Brilliant.

Full Review Source: San Jose Mercury News | comment Comment
01/22/04
Bruce Newman
Bruce Newman
San Jose Mercury News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

McNamara, a robust conversationalist, is so lively that he bursts out of what is essentially a talking-head documentary.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
02/12/04
Carrie Rickey
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Errol Morris tries to pin down Vietnam War chess-master Robert McNamara, and the results are fascinating -- also troubling, deeply confusing and way too artistically precious.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
12/20/03
Charles Taylor
Charles Taylor
Salon.com

Whether or not you agree with his politics, McNamara is a fascinating man... it's a compelling documentary that may scare you a little and will certainly make you think.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
12/19/03
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

Morris' smart, argumentative film is deceptively simple.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
02/05/04
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

When it comes to war, Robert S. McNamara wants us to know that our history with war has taught us plenty. Not that we've learned much from it.

Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | comment Comment
11/18/05
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

This is the most culturally significant documentary imaginable and should be mandatory for repeated viewing by all public officials the world over.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
05/10/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Morris uses McNamara's long life and firsthand experience to indicate how technology has made the ethics of war much more difficult to tread.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
02/27/04
Dan Lybarger
Dan Lybarger
Kansas City Star

[McNamara's] humility is that of a player who has decided to keep certain hole cards his own, forever. We could think about this movie for just about as long.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
01/30/04
David Elliott
David Elliott
San Diego Union-Tribune
 
 
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