My Country, My Country

Critics Consensus

This war documentary offers a valuable look at Iraqi life under the U.S. occupation, and finds a compelling central subject in Dr. Riyadh.

72%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 15,428

Super Reviewer

Rate this movie

Oof, that was Rotten.

Meh, it passed the time.

It’s good – I’d recommend it.

Awesome!

So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

What did you think of the movie? (optional)
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
Super Reviewer
Step 2 of 2

How did you buy your ticket?

Let's get your review verified.
Fandango

AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew

Enter your Ticket Confirmation# located in your email.More Info

Cinemark Coming Soon

We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

Regal Coming Soon

We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

Theater box office or somewhere else
By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.
You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.
Super Reviewer

Rate this movie

Oof, that was Rotten.

Meh, it passed the time.

It’s good – I’d recommend it.

Awesome!

So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

What did you think of the movie? (optional)
How did you buy your ticket?
- Fandango
- AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew
  
  Enter your Ticket Confirmation# located in your email.More Info
- Cinemark Coming Soon
  
  We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.
- Regal Coming Soon
  
  We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.
- Theater box office or somewhere else
By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.
You haven’t finished your review yet, want to submit as-is?

You can always edit your review after.
Are you sure?

Verified reviews are considered more trustworthy by fellow moviegoers.
Want to submit changes to your review before closing?

My Country, My Country Photos

A scene from the film "My Country, My Country."

View All Photos (15)

Movie Info

In the summer of 2004, filmmaker Laura Poitras begins chronicling the efforts of Riyadh al-Adhadh, a Sunni physician, to run for office in Iraq's first democratic election. As a member of a political minority, the doctor tries to convince his fellow party members not to boycott the election, but with the entire political process hanging by a thread, he faces an uphill battle.

Genre:

documentary
Original Language:

English
Director:

Laura Poitras
Producer:

Laura Poitras, Jocelyn Glatzer
Release Date (Streaming):

Mar 20, 2007
Box Office (Gross USA):

$33.6K
Runtime:

1h 35m
Production Co:

P.O.V. Theatricals

Cast & Crew

Laura Poitras
Director

Laura Poitras
Writer

Laura Poitras
Producer

Jocelyn Glatzer
Producer

Laura Poitras
Cinematographer

Laura Poitras
Film Editor

Show all Cast & Crew

News & Interviews for My Country, My Country

Critical Consensus: "Descent" and "Talledega" Leave "Listener" and "Barnyard" in the Dust

View All

Critic Reviews for My Country, My Country

All Critics (36) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (31) | Rotten (5)

A compelling report.

October 13, 2006 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

Bill Stamets
Chicago Sun-Times
A memorable portrait of a nation's growing pains.

October 12, 2006 | Rating: 2.5/4

Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
In 90 captivating minutes, Laura Poitras' extraordinary documentary My Country, My Country gives you a greater understanding of the situation in Iraq than you'd get from 100 hours of Fox News or CNN.

September 29, 2006 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

Jeff Shannon
Seattle Times
What My Country, My Country does best is show us that while both the Americans and the Iraqis care about the country's future, their cultural backgrounds and world views inevitably make them seem alien to each other.

September 15, 2006 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review…

Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
Remarkable.

September 14, 2006

Ella Taylor
L.A. Weekly
... sobering documentary ...

September 8, 2006 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

Walter V. Addiego
San Francisco Chronicle
. . .[Director Laura] Poitras' film allows ordinary Iraqi people to state their experiences and their understanding about what is happening in their country. Their plainspoken words have far more impact than any series of talking head interviews.

August 23, 2017 | Full Review…

Dorothy Woodend
The Tyee (British Columbia)
Powerful and moving.

June 14, 2008 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Amber Wilkinson
Eye for Film
Part of the problem with the film, though, is that some of the scenes with the doctor and his family and the doctor and his patients have a staged feel to them -- as if, they were also putting on a "show."

July 14, 2007 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

Ted Murphy
Murphy's Movie Reviews
Poitras demonstrates fine judgement in making Dr. Riyadh the central focus of her well-detailed story.

February 5, 2007 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Jules Brenner
Cinema Signals
The documentary maintains an observant distance from the sweep of history, and even the elections.

December 21, 2006 | Full Review…

Cynthia Fuchs
PopMatters
Poitras creates a vivid portrait of Iraqi civilians siding with neither the U.S. occupation nor the insurgents but just looking for the killing to end.

October 20, 2006 | Rating: 3/4

Sean P. Means
Salt Lake Tribune

View All Critic Reviews (36)

Audience Reviews for My Country, My Country

Sep 14, 2008

I enjoyed how the filmmaker truly just observed and didn't really inject any opinion or politics into this. It's depressing to watch, however, because we were lied into going there, but once we got there (and continue to be) we really have done nothing to improve these people's lives and some sham elections don't count.

Sarah P Super Reviewer