Films that bring previously obscured truths about the political process to the attention of the public, showing for example how offices of public trust are used for private purposes.
OPERATION CURVEBALL EXPOSES DUPLICITY REGARDING IRAQ Most political observers know that the United States started the Iraq War based on a lie. Few, however, know where the lie originated. Operation Curveball, directed by Johannes Naber, puts the blame on the German government, though the role of the American government is also revealed. At the center […]
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HELD FOR RANSOM IS LINKED TO GUANTÁNAMO As one grows up, a career is not always obvious. Daniel Rye (played by Esben Smed), growing up in a small town in Denmark, is unsure of himself but knows that he enjoys photography. One day he applies for a position as assistant to an established photographer, flies
The Rescue, directed by Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, is a nailbiter that focuses on 12 preteen Thai soccer athletes and their coach (who play themselves in the film). In 2018, they were exploring caves in Tham Luang near Chiang Rai, Thailand, until they became trapped about 2.5 miles from the entry point as
WIFE OF A SPY EXPOSES A WAR CRIME In early 1940, importer/exporter Yusaku Fukuhara (played by Issey Takahashi) goes from Kobe to Manchuria with his nephew, Fumio Takeshita (Ryôta Bandô). Manchuria, then controlled by Japan, was a place where purchases could be made at lower prices than in rationed Japan—or so he
Blue Bayou features fictional Antonio LeBlanc (played by director Justin Chon), who was adopted from Korea by a Louisiana Caucasian family at age 3. During the film he faces many challenge and almost reaches the point of suicide several times. Later in the story, filmviewers learn that his adoptive parents evidently could not accommodate him
WHO WAS ON TRIAL IN AMERICAN TRAITOR? An American citizen named Mildred Gilliars (played by Meadow Williams) was in Germany when World War II began, hoping to became a famous actress. Approached by radio program director Max Otto Koischwitz (Carsten Norgaard) one day in 1941, he presents her with an extraordinary opportunity—work as a high-profile
KEN LOACH IS BACK WITH SORRY WE MISSED YOU Director Ken Loach has long demonstrated genius for portraying the plight of the working class. In Sorry We Missed You he traces the impact of nonunionization of workers on the family of Ricky (played by Kris Hitchey) and Abby (Debbie Honeywood) and their children, Sebastian (Rhys Stone) and Liza
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BURDEN IS HEAVY WITH STEREOTYPES Based on an event in Laurens, South Carolina, Andrew Heckler directs Burden as a unique portrayal of Blacks and KuKluxKlan members living side by side in a town of about 9,000 during 1996. The focus is on Mike Burden (played by Garrett Hedlund), a Caucasian who has returned to town
JUST MERCY HONORS THE ONE WHO GOT 140 BLACKS RELEASED FROM DEATH ROW Bryan Stevenson (played by Michael B. Jordan) decided to establish the Equal Justice Initiative in Monroe County, Alabama, in 1989. Mistreated as an African American while growing up in Delaware, he accepted an invitation from local advocate Eva Ansley (Brie Larson) to utilize