FILM REVIEWS

Sundance Film Fest 2007 (U.S. Documentary Competition)–Veteran filmmaker Rory Kennedys “Ghosts of Abu Ghraib” is a shocking essay that examines and contextualizes the abuses that occurred in the fall of 2003 at that notorious Iraqi prison. Documenting various abuses in photographs that remain etched in our collective consciousness, the feature raises the question of what do those events still say about America, our government, our military, and our human nature

The film is built on the direct, personal narratives of the perpetrators, witnesses, and victims of the abuse, probing the psychology of how typical American men and women can reach the point of committing such atrocious acts.

On a parallel track, the docu explores the chronology of recent policy decisions that have eroded our alliance with the Geneva conventions that contributed to making these abuses reality. If news claim to be the first draft of history, then nonfiction cinema is that compelling, carefully constructed argument that, as each new revelation falls into place, could claim to most truthfully get at the story of the how and why behind our most extraordinary events.

The docu will air on HBO on Thursday, February 22, one month after its world premiere at Park City.