No End in Sight (2007)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Surprisingly incoherent and boring

Fantastic!

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

This documentary is amazing. It describes the IRAQ issues very well and shows the arrogance and ignorance in the mistakes made in Iraq. Amazingly the problems were well understood and still occurred. It is ridiculous and scary that this level of stupidity can exist in the USA at top levels and terrifying to see it proved so well here. One can only hope more people will see this documentary. It is relevant to anyone wanting to understand the IRAQ situation clearly, and even more it gives you an understanding that the future events there will most likely escalate to effect the entire world we live in. The interviews are well done with intelligent people who were "in the know" and also the use of the news cuttings that reflect the position of the Bush Government is well done too, illustrating the massive lies the public have been told. You get to see the EXACT decisions made in the beginning which echo through the entire IRAQ disaster to this day. It also shows the unfortunate perspective of soldiers who have been let down by these decisions. The perspective of people in IRAQ and the emotional content is handled well, this area has been hidden far too long from the public. You are left realizing just how irreparable the damage done to the IRAQI people is.

I wish to compliment this piece alongside another British theater play called Stuff Happens. The content of both pieces—No End in Sight & Stuff Happens—displayed pithy and compelling accounts of the events that led to the US's involvement in the Iraq war, yet both were also respectfully motivated by political agendas. I do not mean to imply that these pieces were mere exercises in propaganda (though some might argue otherwise), but rather that they attempted to display the facts as objectively as possible while simultaneously suggesting the imprudence, and perhaps immoral behavior of the Bush Administration. Both pieces are enormously complex and in no way can provide easy solutions to the monster that the US has helped create. Of course, it is difficult for US citizens to even think they have helped create this monster—most would rather scapegoat such responsibility to their government leaders; leaders chosen by the majority of US citizens. The argument that both pieces seem to make is: Are Americans right for shifting this blame to the Bush Administration? As both would heavily suggest, they are.I felt that Stuff Happens was weaker in its execution as compared to No End in Sight because it relied more upon speculative guesswork than factual information. I do not deny that much of the information was taken from real-life news conferences, television interviews and public addresses; however, the closed-door conferences, especially the private meetings between Bush and Tony Blair created more of a dramatized and perhaps even fictional quality to the piece, thus lessening the play's credibility and overall objectivity. As to what was exchanged during those meetings can only be assumed. But the premise of assuming the truth only precludes certainty from solidifying the truth, and can therefore only lie within the realms of either probability or possibility. The author can rightfully exclude the possibility of those conversations taking place—and indeed, I think he knows he's beyond possibility. He's made a much more persuasive argument that leans upon probability; probability of the US's mistake to enter the war, and is upheld by various witnesses that sensed the immorality of the Administration. Where the author of Stuff Happens argument is weakened by excessive assumption, the author of No End in Sight strengthens the same argument by more reliance upon facts, thereby lessening the viewer's skepticism. The film does not attempt to necessarily hide or manipulate the facts, but rather ironically suggests those who would hide from and manipulate the facts. The author suggests that the viewer has very good reasons to be skeptical of the US' political leaders because many of them refused to be interviewed for the film. The implication here could mean multiple things: those who hide from the truth; those guilty of creating the Iraqi monster; those who refuse to take responsibility for the war, and so forth. Could some of these implications be true? Yes, and indeed I think some of them are, but I also think the issue is more complicated than that. I think it is unfair to label the entire Bush Administration as wholly corrupt. In other words, the author still had an agenda behind the piece. Perhaps certain members of the Administration had denied interview access because of how their words might have been spun out of context to fit another's opposing agenda. That could be true too. The author is only showing what he chooses to show, but I must admit he did a pretty good job of persuading an opinion that seems more probable of proving the dirt on our leader's hands. He carefully created a persuasive tapestry of political hypocrisy—showing how remarks made by certain members of the Administration contradicted what was actually taking place out in Iraq. For example, cabinet member Rumsfeld told political news analysts and journalists that there was no insurgency or anarchy in Iraq—the on-sight film footage, however, proved those statements false; President Bush is shown speaking about giving Iraq food, freedom and prosperity—again, the footage contradicts his words. The author uses other contrapuntal and ironic devices to stress the idea of the Administration's corruption: US soldiers listening to country music while killing Iraqi citizens, as well as other juxtapositions of the Administration joking with the newsroom about the situation at hand.Both pieces are powerful in their aims. Stuff Happens falls slightly behind No End in Sight regarding credibility, while No End in Sight secures a very sturdy position in its attempts to awaken more Americans to political awareness and activity. It's a formidable piece that will not easily be conquered and will be remembered for many future years to come. All Americans can benefit from watching this film closely and pondering upon what is shown. I highly recommend it.

First I just want to come out with it, I'm for the withdrawal from Iraq, so I am partial to this film.OK moving on.The talking heads were poorly done. The Documentarians gave us all the background info on each esteemed contributor, but no time to digest. I felt as though giving 10 sec intro for each talking head would have made each contribution stronger. My other issue with the film is that it kind of zooms through some issues. The first issue being America supplied both the Iranians and the Iraqis with weapons during the Iraq-Iran war. There were others, times when they were being slightly revisionist in their history.Not for the average bloke. If you like to feel "in the know" and enjoy documentaries it is a must.8/10

This is the story that the White House would rather you not see. This Oscar-nominated film gives the true picture of the death and destruction of a country that was no threat to us. It is very clear throughout this film that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Wolfowitz were either 1. The most incredibly incompetent people ever to serve in government, or 2. war criminals. I leave it to you to choose.Not only does the film show the utter incompetence of our so-called leaders, but the absolutely ignorant decisions made by those they appointed (Paul Bremer at the best example) and how those decisions have contributed to the quagmire we are currently involved in.Almost a million people have dies and a country destroyed, as well as the economy of the US in the toilet. The entire mess can best be summed up by the Special Jury Prize given at the Sundance Film Festival: "In recognition of the film as timely work that clearly illuminates the misguided policy decisions that have led to the catastrophic quagmire of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq." Nothing more than this shows that our country has been taken over by the same fascists that ran Germany, Italy and Japan during WWII. Of course, that should be no surprise as Bush's grandfather traded with the Nazis.Everyone should see this film to know just why we are now the most hated country on Earth.