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Taxi to the Dark Side

Play trailer Poster for Taxi to the Dark Side R 2008 1h 46m Documentary Crime Drama War Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 93 Reviews 90% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
This documentary explores the American military's use of torture by focusing on the unsolved murder of an Afghani taxi driver who, in 2002, was taken for questioning at Bagram Air Force Base. Five days later, the man was dead. The medical examiner claimed the driver died from excessive physical abuse. Taking this case as a jumping-off point, the film examines wider claims of torture that occurred at bases like Abu Ghraib and Guantánamo Bay during the Bush administration.
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Taxi to the Dark Side

Taxi to the Dark Side

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Critics Consensus

Taxi to the Dark Side is an intelligent, powerful look into the dark corners of the War on Terror.

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Critics Reviews

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Caryn James New York Times Nov 30, 2017
Gracefully weaving together interviews (some with the soldiers convicted of the beating), fresh images and official photographs, it suggests why so many politically themed fiction films have failed. Go to Full Review J. R. Jones Chicago Reader Aug 29, 2011
Like the Iraq war documentary No End in Sight, this movie about the U.S. military's systematic torture of terror suspects is a triumph not of reporting but of synthesis. Go to Full Review Peter Bradshaw Guardian Oct 18, 2008
4/5
Alex Gibney won best documentary Oscar for this gruelling, angry movie. Go to Full Review Bianca Garner Filmotomy Oct 4, 2024
Taxi to the Dark Side still makes an impact all these years later and it’s lost none of its original impact. Go to Full Review Ellie Lucas From the Front Row Jul 6, 2019
3.5/4
Gibney approaches his subject in a clear-eyed way that keeps the film from becoming a political screed. Go to Full Review Dorothy Woodend The Tyee (British Columbia) Aug 23, 2017
Taxi to the Dark Side. . .examines the war in Iraq with clear-eyed rage. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Lorenz L @Lorenz1060 May 9, 2026 This film – as viewed from a country in the EU in May 2026 – can only make me wonder what would have happened to America had President Obama pursued war crimes charges against Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and their whole disgusting army of justifiers (John Yoo and Alberto Gonzales to name two of the worst). Had they been put on trial, would America be in the pathetic state it is today, run by an idiot man-child who has rushed the country into another illegal and unjustifiable war? Does anyone wonder why we wear shirts and hats and badges which say MAGA: "Make America Go Away"? Another thing to consider: Bush lost the presidency; it was handed to him by your Supreme Court. That was when I lost all respect for your country and nothing since then has made me reconsider. See more Gareth v @geewah Jun 20, 2023 A relentless, disturbing look into one of the ugliest chapters in recent American history. Gibney shows why he is regarded as one of the best doco makers out there. See more Oct 10, 2020 Just saw this recently and although its an important watch I already have gotten this information elsewhere so its hard to find this that fantastic when it was mostly repetitive information for me sadly. See more charlie l @RT19434991 Feb 27, 2020 The subject covered here is both disturbing and harrowing, but sadly, not unexpected. See more Jan 17, 2020 Really speaks for a documentary made in the Bush Era See more Fong Kok Hoong F @RT29722865 Mar 4, 2018 Alex Gibney's Oscar-winning documentary elicits the criminality of the Bush administration for its disregard of Geneva Conventions in the War on Terror is ironically what brings the American justice to its knees. See more Read all reviews
Taxi to the Dark Side

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Cast & Crew

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Alex Gibney

Director

Alex Gibney

Narrator

Brian Keith Allen

Actor

Jack Cloonan

Actor

Greg D'Agostino

Actor

Carl Levin

Actor

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Taxi to the Dark Side

Taxi to the Dark Side (2007) A scene from the film "Taxi to the Dark Side." A scene from the film "Taxi to the Dark Side." A scene from the film "Taxi to the Dark Side." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis This documentary explores the American military's use of torture by focusing on the unsolved murder of an Afghani taxi driver who, in 2002, was taken for questioning at Bagram Air Force Base. Five days later, the man was dead. The medical examiner claimed the driver died from excessive physical abuse. Taking this case as a jumping-off point, the film examines wider claims of torture that occurred at bases like Abu Ghraib and Guantánamo Bay during the Bush administration.
Director
Alex Gibney
Producer
Eva Orner, Susannah Shipman, Alex Gibney
Screenwriter
Alex Gibney
Distributor
ThinkFilm
Production Co
Tall Woods, Discovery Channel, Jigsaw Productions, Wider Film Projects, X-Ray Productions
Rating
R (Graphic Nudity|Disturbing Images|Content Involving Torture)
Genre
Documentary, Crime, Drama, War
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 18, 2008, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 21, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA)
$274.7K
Runtime
1h 46m
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