The Fog of War (2003)

The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara is a fascinating and revealing documentary centred around the life and times of former US Defence Secretary Robert McNamara. The film is the distillation of around 20 hours of interview tapes that tell the story very much as McNamara sees it. It's not clear whether this approach was written into the contract - "do it this way or you have no documentary film" or if the filmmaker intended it to be structured this way. Whatever, The Fog of War won an Oscar for Best Documentary. That's recommendation enough (in the case of most films).

After the recent spate of documentary films that have ranged from fly on the wall (Etre Et Avoir, Spellbound), to confrontational political diatribe exposures (Fahrenheit 9/11, Bowling For Columbine), to mountaineering docu-thriller (Touching the Void), to fast food obesity busting health expose (Super Size Me) and everything else in between, The Fog of War at first seems almost to be a little too convential in style and format with its talking head interview scenario interspersed with file and film footage of the monumental events of the 20th century that the film deals with.(Note that there is another recent well-praised 'talking head' documentary in the form of Blindspot: Hitler's Secretary). All reservations are soon lost however as the film quickly draws the viewer into its web of intrigue and information.

McNamara is a fascinating subject and filmmaker Errol Morris has chosen his subject well. What you come away with is the opinions of one man, ostensibly, but the film is much more than that. This is also a man of 85 who has been there, done and bought the t-shirt. At times jaded, exasperated and emotional, McNamara tells it like it was (and is). What is quite astounding is to find a former politician who appears to be very truthful and honest about what he believes happened during his spell in the corridors of power during the monumental Sixties. A spell that was overshadowed by tumultuous, seismic political shifts, dangerous standoffs and social unrest. McNamara, seen by the public at the time as being one of the chief architects of the Vietnam War, was despised by anti-war protesters.

We have distinct sections that deal with the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The film also touches on the assassination of President Kennedy and McNamara's early years, his war years and his meteoric rise to success with the Ford motor company that was shortlived as he jumped ship to the White House.

This fascinating and insightful documentary couldn't be more timely. McNamara is now very much of the opinion that the US should not make unilateral decisions globally and now believes such actions to be gross folly. If, say, someone were thinking of moving into the realm of politics, they could do a lot worse research than watch The Fog of War.

McNamara throws up some interesting and profound philosophical questions about the nature of warfare and the mass killing of humanity. The questions are difficult to answer, perhaps even impossible. One is left with the sense that there are no easy solutions to any of these problems. Certainly, McNamara believes that there is evil in the world and that it can never be fully extinguished. He surmises that the best we can hope for is that it is suppressed and not allowed to grow.

He also believes that mankind avoided global nuclear war in the Sixties by blind luck and that it is almost inevitable that at some point in the future, nuclear weapons will be used in aggression, leading to the destruction of whole countries as a result. A terrifying and sobering thought that we can only hope is wrong.

The film is divided into 11 lessons that are taken from McNamara's comments and in a way summarise his beliefs and opinions. One is left with the impression that this is a man of deep knowledge, understanding and wisdom and, those who might consider McNamara to be an architect of war and guilty of Vietnam should at the very least watch the film to gain further insight into the man and perhaps even form a different opinion to the one they originally held. McNamara acknowledges that he may be guilty of war crimes, in the light of the Japanese firebombings during 1945 in which he took part. 

The Fog of War is a documentary feature that will stand the test of time. It is a poignant portrait of a powerful man reflecting on an ambiguous and troubled life where tough decisions had to be made. For the political establishment, it is a historic document that exposes the difficulties and pressure of high-level diplomacy, decisions to go to war and the perils of nuclear brinkmanship. If nothing else, there is enough anecdote and memoir here even for those with just a passing interest in the 20th century history.

This is an intriguing, revealing, intelligent and timely documentary that gets;

9/10.

The Fog Of War: Official Site (Please note, this is a superb example of a promo site for a film!)
Robert McNamara
The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons From the Life of Robert S. McNamara
McNamara quotes in The Fog Of War
Errol Morris.com
Lessons unlearnt