No End in Sight

You cannot lavish this much skill on a project and settle for "I don't know" from the principles as the answer to all the blood and treasure. You are either lying or stupid. Three people, all with long ties to Israeli Intelligence, made all these decisions that destroyed a civilization, an empire, and the common cultural heritage of the human race, with no consulting of knowledgeable people in Iraq and you don't tell us why in your movie? It was all for nothing if the real culprits and their motivation remain anonymous. How they must laugh at our ignorance!

The film is clear and informative. And it is depressing seeing how one of the greatest foreign policy debacles in the history of this country unfolded before our deceived eyes.

This film, although kind of worth seeing for its depiction of the mess that is post invasion Iraq, puts a lot of emphasis on the 'incompetence' of the Bush camp, and all of their 'mistakes' in post invasion Iraq. It doesn't call into question the crime of going to war in the first place but seems to in some way excuse this by ignoring it and pursuing a 'What went wrong' line in analysing the post invasion. This film talks a lot of the lack of military experience of Cheney, Rumsfeld, Bush et al. The idea that many have that America would be there for the long run as long as the outcome is American domination of the oil in Iraq seems to me to be missing in this film and is crucial to any analysis of invasion and post invasion plans. (and I don't think that a quick outcome from expert military tactics but which resulted in a peaceful government which was in charge of their own oil without American domination is their objective).
Leaving unquestioned the motivations of the invasion (many would argue oil and big business, and which are of course necessary to investigate in an analysis of post invasion strategy) means that the casual uninformed American and western observer fed on westerm media would think that the supposed aims of 'freedom' and 'democracy for Iraq' have been destroyed or set back by 'incompetence'. This seems like a very small bitter pill for the administration to swallow as so many are against the war, and I'm sure they would rather be seen as 'incompetent' rather than criminal. As the US are building their massive bases there and securing domination of the oil I wonder if the media and films which are pursuing the (supposed) 'what went wrong' line are really just another smokescreen

I agree with many of the prior reviews, especially the one that said most of the information was available to anyone reading the New York Times but that it was presented in an artful and damming fashion. I used it after the AP exam in a US Government and Politics class and the kids were astounded. Perhaps even more astounded when I showed them the review saying it was all "old news."

If arrogance, ignorance and belligerence make you angry, be prepared to get really mad. I was so floored by this brilliant documentary, I had to watch it again the next day just to make sure I hadn't had a nightmare.

Focusing on the occupation and reconstruction of Iraq after the war in 2003, my jaw dropped ever lower as I listened to the catalogue of errors made by a select group of politicians and advisors at the Pentagon, headed up by Donald Rumsfeld. Their flippant attitude toward a terrorised and conquered nation laid low by sanctions is utterly sickening, their lack of preparation and naivety defies belief.

But it is the total disregard for all the best advice provided by their people on the ground that is the most shocking element of this story and nothing short of criminal.

This documentary is not liberal Bush-whacking or anti-war polemic (as some claim). It features interviews with US service men, diplomats, academics, US and Iraqi journalists, top members of the intelligence community and many other Washington insiders who were tasked with jobs in Iraq, and who went there full of vigour and hope. Their sadness, frustration and disbelief about the increasing chaos in the weeks and months after the war is painfully tangible throughout the film; despite their best efforts, they were rendered impotent by the total lack of structure, and by the blustering, bulldozing, ignorant decisions made by people who either stayed cosseted in Washington or in Baghdad's walled Green Zone.

Some reviewers here are criticising this film for not dealing with the 'reasons' (or lies) that took America into the war or for not looking at the progress being made now. This documentary is not about that.

It's about how things could have been different. It's about how the insurgency and orgy of violence now occurring might have been nipped in the bud. It's about how the efforts and sacrifices of those tasked with 'saving' and rebuilding Iraq didn't have to be worthless. It's about how Iraq's heritage - its museums, archives and libraries - could and should have been protected, not just the oil ministry (SCANDALOUS). It's about the expensive consequences of not listening to advice. It's about how the financial and human cost for America, Iraq and maybe the world could have been spared.

This film also provides a tough wake-up call on why the checks and balances of democracy must be preserved and protected to guard against abuses of power, and why it's vital that politics is transparent.

No End In Sight should be mandatory viewing in schools, not least for a lesson in how not to be a chest-beating gorilla like George W Bush (I apologise for the insult to gorillas) or a tag-along-Tina like Condoleezza Rice (it's baffling that she didn't know better). The true monsters in this tale though are Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz and Paul Bremer who have a nation's blood on their hands, and should have a culture's destruction on their conscience.

It should also be pointed out that in laying Iraq so low, the Bush administration has by default made its nemesis Iran more powerful. Nice one guys.

Buy this sobering film, watch it and then tell everyone you know about it.