Uncovered: The Whole Truth About the Iraq War (2004) User Reviews

Right or Left, you should see this before you vote in '04

[esoder · 8/10 · 11 December 2003]

I was invited to a viewing of this film at a neighbor's house up the street. I thought it was a neighborhood get together, but it turned out to be a simultaneous nationwide viewing sponsored by moveon.org. So my guard was up as I was surrounded by a lot of Bush hating liberals, but the movie had just started as I arrived and I was quickly seated in the back. So I decided to stick it out and watch. I'm glad I did.

All along, I felt that the story we've been told about why we are in Iraq has changed over time. I remember that we were sure that there were weapons ready to be unleashed on us or given to Al-Queda terrorists who would smuggle them in to our country and cause more damage than the World Trade Center attack. Then it was not so much the weapons as the weapons programs. And there were those "mobile weapons labs". And then it was simply to liberate the Iraqi people. It's all jumbled in my mind and I can't remember exactly when and how the official reason change, I just know that it did somehow.

The best thing about this film is that it documents the subtle changes over time by showing our leaders speaking at various times before and after our invasion of Iraq. There is no "liberal bias" like you get from the news sometimes, it was simply factual presentation of what our leaders told us and when.

It also presents documentary evidence of things we were mislead about. The "yellow cake" in Niger, the "uranium enrichment tubes" that were actually not suitable for that purpose, the "mobile weapons labs", the satellite evidence and so on.

After seeing this movie, I am left with two possibilities. We were either lied to deliberately or our leaders were grossly negligent and incompetent. Whatever your political views, this movie should make you angry about how we have been mislead. It pulls together a lot of information that is jumbled in the public mind and makes it clear.

If you can stand hearing the views of the people that gravitate to this sort of thing, I encourage you to watch it at a local group presentation. Or buy a copy from the website and watch it with friends. It brings up a lot for discussion and thought.

Even Better Than 'Fahrewnheit 9-11'

[peterbwdn_pers · 9/10 · 15 January 2005]

Extremely well done...In the form that it was, after the event as it were...Quite startling.

Many names 'in the know', which added much credence.

I was particularly struck by David Kay's comments: Obviously a man of high principle-Presumably choosing David was one of White House's unexpected blunders...I cannot imagine Bush choosing a man of integrity by design! I sincerely hope David has not been singles out for his honesty.

I wholeheartedly recommend this documentary to those who wish to know the truth about this abhorrent war & the true reasons for it.

Blistering

[DennisLittrell · 10/10 · 21 March 2006]

Watching the talking heads in archival news clips from TV in this documentary one is just amazed at how obvious it is that the Bush administration lied about its reasons for invading Iraq. Of course we have the benefit of hindsight and know for a fact that the weapons of mass destruction were not there. But the really striking thing is that all these so-called leaders of our country--Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, and yes, Colin Powell--KNEW they were lying.

As Al Franken so succinctly said, "It's one thing for a President to lie about his sex life. It's another to lie about why we are sending our young men and women into battle."

What this documentary does through interviews with leading experts in government, the military, and the intelligence communities, juxtaposed before, between and following the many dire pronouncements from the administration, is demonstrate beyond a shadow of a doubt that what they said was propaganda, disinformation--the Big Lie--dished out to the Congress,the Press and the American people.

The real question is why? What were the real reasons for Bush's invasion of Iraq? Before I attempt to answer that question, two things, One, this documentary is utterly convincing in its indictment of the Bush administration and will be almost impossible to watch by those who supported the war and continue to support the war. The evidence for the massive mendacity is so vividly expressed by knowledgeable and experienced people within and without the government--people like former Ambassador Joe Wilson, former Director of the CIA Stansfield Turner, anti-terrorism expert Rand Beers, former Assistant Secretary of Defense Philip Coyle, retird Col Patrick Lang, and at least a dozen more--that only the most hardened neocons and faith-based True Believers could doubt the subterfuge. Incidentally, it was Wilson's wife, an undercover agent for the CIA, who was deliberately exposed by leaks from the Bush administration in order to punish Wilson for his expression of the truth about WMD.

Two, the real blame beyond the Bush administration lies with the Press and with the Congress. If medals were given for cowardice, members of the Press and the Congress would have chests ablaze with bronze, silver and gold. The Press simply abdicated its Fourth Estate responsibility through fear of reprisals from the Bush administration, while the Congress dared not go against the Bush propaganda machine for fear that it would be labeled anti-American. In fact their cowardly and irresponsible behavior was deeply anti-American while it was solidly pro-Bush. They both kept the American people in ignorance about the real reasons for the war.

Okay what were those reasons? Oil? Of course this was a factor. Notice that other horrendous dictators elsewhere in the world are not removed from power by an American invading force.

To right the wrong that the first president Bush did when he kept Saddam Hussein in power after the Gulf War? Yes, but here is the beginning of the stupidity. The senior Bush pulled up short of deposing Saddam Hussein because keeping him in power was considered in the best interests of the United States. We had good control over him and he served as buffer to Iranian theocratic ambitions.

To demonstrate to the world the awesome might of the US military (the "shock and awe" that had Rumsfeld practically drooling) and show our willingness to use force if necessary? Yes. This is probably the most important psychological and geopolitical reason for invading Iraq. That it was immoral and likely to further alienate our allies and turn the vast majority of Muslims throughout the world into enemies didn't seem to occur to Bush and the neocons. Notice that another effect has been to convince Iran that it needs to acquire nuclear weapons, since it is obvious that the Bush administration isn't about to invade a country that has them (e.g., North Korea, Pakistan).

To mollify the American people, so many of whom naturally felt a great need after 9/11 to see some kind of action taken, any action to Show Strength, like a bull whirling around, swinging its horns at anything near.

To smoke-screen our failure to get Osama bin Laden and the general failure in Afghanistan? Absolutely. Blowing up great mounds of dirt in Afghanistan was NOT satisfactory, and going into nuked-up Pakistan to get bin Laden was not palatable.

To provide business for Halliburton and other corporations close to Bush and members of his administration? Well, that was one of the effects of the war.

To subconsciously get into the minds of soccer moms and make them feel safer by making US soldiers (who get paid for this sort of thing) the target for terrorists in Iraq instead of civilians at home? Possibly. Again, that was part of the effect of the war.

To help Bush win in 2004? Without doubt. Being a "war time" president would give Bush a big advantage over any Democrat. A quick "victory" over Iraq (celebrated aboard an aircraft carrier with Bush in pilot's gear strutting around with a helmet tucked under his arm shaking hands) would allow him to go one up on his father who foolishly abdicated such a possible advantage and lost the next election. BTW, film of the Bush strut is shown in the documentary more fully and more embarrassingly than the nightly news dared show it at the time. You have to see it to believe it.

I think this last reason is the most compelling reason that Bush went to war, whether he realizes it or not: he wanted to win, not so much the war on terror, but the next election.

(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!)

Eye-opening. Don't even think about Iraq before you watch this.

[kysparkysloan · 10/10 · 10 December 2003]

Former CIA, Ambassadors, Senators, and other Washington DC insiders sum up what they know about the "Iraq war;" Iraq's supposed ties with 9-11 and Al-Qaeda, and the lies and mis-information the Bush administration has fed the public to justify this outrage known as "Operation Enduring Freedom."

This is a must-see.

The bare facts

[=G= · 6/10 · 8 December 2004]

"Uncovered: The Truth Behind the War in Iraq" uses the same pundits who have appeared in the national media to make the argument that the Bush administration skewed intel, distorted facts, and rushed America into a war unrelated to WMD or terrorism with unrealistic expectations of outcome. In counterpoise are news snippets of administration officials seen making the case for war and subsequently recanting. Although there is a montage of still pics and video clips sprinkled throughout with some show & tell graphics, the bulk of the film is nonstop talk-to-the-camera dialogue and file footage which serves to compresses post 9/11 events into a digest and overview of the Iraq war issues. This film is long on information and short in entertainment and should be worth a look by anyone who never got a full accounting of why Americans are now fighting and dying in Iraq. (B-)

Excellent analysis and commentary on the many untruths used to justify the invasion of Iraq

[docbob1 · 10/10 · 22 December 2003]

This is an extremely well done film using combinations of clips of statements made by Bush, Cheney, Powell, et.al justifying the invasion of Iraq, along with commentary by many highly reputable CIA analysts, ambassadors, and other government officials explaining the false basis of these justifications. The film demonstrates what many people have known intuitively--that the invasion was totally unjustified. The film is made with precision and integrity.

Deception by whom and for what purpose?

[headhunter46 · 6/10 · 21 November 2005]

This DVD went to great lengths to convince viewers there was deception from many sources to convince the American congress and public of the need to invade Iraq.

Numerous, believable persons who held office in places to give them credibility gave testimony that indicated a deception or distortion on the truth had occurred.

And yet, no motive for the deception was ever hinted at. I find it notable that VP Cheney is depicted as the person who insisted it was important to send Joseph Wilson to Nigeria. There, he was to investigate the possibility of Iraq attempting to purchase yellow cake uranium. When Joseph Wilson came back and reported he did not find any credible evidence regarding the suspected sale he was verbally attacked and his wife was exposed as a CIA operative. This suggests that Mr. Cheney or someone he answers to wanted the report to verify the attempted purchase. It has been suggested by sources other than this movie that VP Cheney exerted much pressure on President Bush to invade Iraq. These two bits of info reflect suspiciously on him.

Again, the DVD offered speculation the deception was deliberate, but never served up a motive nor a hint at who would benefit from all this wizardry. It comes across as more a bit of anti-Bush rhetoric than as a fact finding mission, and on that point it falls short of my expectations based on the title.

I was totally opposed to the US going into Iraq without UN backing but now that our men and women are there, it is important we give THEM our support and find a sensible way to get them home without leaving a situation worse than what existed before we invaded.

This DVD could be very demoralizing to the troops presently serving in the military. I hope none of them see it.

The New Leadership

[teewood · 10/10 · 24 December 2003]

What members of the Bush administration said. Why it was all false.

Lots of words about weapons of mass destruction, nuclear weapons, biological weapons, chemical weapons, grave threats, and Al-Qaeda. Nothing about concern or freedom for the Iraqi people, something that came stage center only after the other reasons for the war were exposed as bald-faced lies.

Oscars to Mr. Bush and Mr. Powell for superior acting (lying in a most convincing fashion) and to Mr. Rumsfeld for a chameleonic performance (changing as the story changed).

This is a film every American and Briton should watch.

Important But It Repeats Itself

[dbborroughs · 6/10 · 29 July 2004]

Running only 56 minutes, its too long for what it is.

Understand, I'm against the war and do think we were lied to, but I don't think that we need to see Bush and his administration shifting and shifting and shifting their stories for an hour. Its the same thing over and over, and after half an hour of this the point was made.

Granted the entire film is not just the shifting stories, there are interviews with experts, and they are the high points of the film. Why the more of these weren't put into the film is beyond me. Granted they are on the DVD as an extra, but as of right now I'm too unhappy with the film to continue onward.

6 out of 10, yes it makes the point but it goes on a bit too long.

Not much here...

[turing77 · 5/10 · 9 July 2005]

This review regards the 55-minute version. It is not a good documentary. It has more substance and gravitas than Fahrenheit 9/11--which was pointless propaganda--but it is very amateurish-looking, poorly edited, and you can tell, as director Greenwald himself attests, that it was a rush job. After the run-through of all the interviewees at the beginning, some get only one line (Stansfield Turner, Clare Short), and some are forgotten altogether (Thomas White). There were only about five or six individuals that got the bulk of face-time, and you get the impression that Greenwald overreached a bit in trying to assemble an impressive number of credible people to support the anti-war position. From a political standpoint, whether you think that the Bush administration used WMD as a pretext to invade, or whether the President sincerely thought that the weapons existed is moot: with an all-volunteer army, the anti-war forces were never going to get traction. Had the draft been in place in 2003, Kerry would be President right now. But even if most Americans polled think Iraq wasn't worth it, they still support this administration. Without coercion to fight, the anti-war left is barking in the wind.

Propaganda, not informative

[exnihilow · 3/10 · 10 October 2007]

First of all, I believe 9/11 was exploited as an excuse to invade Iraq and that the case for wmd's in Iraq was made after the decision to invade had been made. This film, however, doesn't make much of a case to that effect. It's basically a collage of 10 second sound-bites of disjointed facts, hearsay, and opinion from a couple dozen experts and insiders. It assumes it has a friendly and uncritical audience. If you already subscribe to its conclusions, then its satisfying pornography, but it doesn't even attempt to make a persuasive case or impart any substantial background or analysis. Much the same as Fahrenheit 9/11 but without any of the entertainment value. For true-believers only. Dismally short of being "The Whole Truth".