Movie Review :: Fog of War

Movie Review :: Fog of War
Posted :: Jul 18, 2004 by Impact

Movie :: Fog of War
Director :: Errol Morris
Genre :: Documentary
Rating :: 9.5/10

Robert McNamara, one of the worlds most misunderstood people comes clean in Fog of War. This amazing documentary takes you throughout his life, from his first memory at two years old until he left his position as Secretary of Defense. The movie focuses mainly on his thoughts and feelings through World War II and the Vietnam War.

The movie is broken up into "11 Lessons From the Life of Robert McNamara." Each of the lessons are supported by exact examples from McNamara's life. McNamara spares few details about his thoughts and feelings in both World War II and in the Vietnam War (although McNamara does go into detail about the 13 day Cuban Missle Crisis). With plenty of actual footage and an abundance of taped conversations between McNamara and various officials (normally a president), McNamara's inner feelings about the wars and what he believed to be right at the time are open to the public eye.

During the Cuban Missle Crisis, McNamara claims luck as the only reason anyone walked away without nuclear war. No one was thinking quite clearly and no one knew what action should be taken. During the movie you find out that McNamara met with Fidel Castro years later to discuss what could have happened. McNamara asked Castro, if the US had attacked Cuba, would you have suggested the use of nuclear weapons to Khrushchev? Fidel responded with the horrifying response that he did suggest it. When asked what would have been the consequences, Fidel responded with "the complete and utter destruction of Cuba" and that he was willing to accept this.

McNamara looks back and questions many of the desicions made during his lifetime. He ponders whether the bombs should have been dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but focuses more on the firebombing leading up to the atomic bombs. Was it worth it to burn 100,000 people during one night? Lesson No. 5: "Proportionality should be a guideline in war," deals with these ideas and ties hand in hand with Lesson No. 9: "In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil." How much evil is acceptable?

The two things that struck me as things to walk away with were:
1) This is a movie based on hindsight. Looking back, things are different now, than they were then.
2) Learn from your mistakes and the mistakes of others. Study failures and successes, taking away the good points of each.

But while McNamara stresses these points throughout the movie, he understands that his mistakes and those of others will be repeated in the future. The movie ends with his eleventh (11) lesson: "You can't change human nature."

Many of the points made during the movie are points that need serious thought. They are not answered for you, but left open for your own decisions. In my opinion, the movie was fantastic. A great movie for anyone to see. It deals with times past, but in a reflective "Learn from your mistakes" manner. In the times that we live in and the current, very controversial, War in Iraq, this movie will spark your interest and get you thinking about the workings behind the scene.