The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara (2003)

“I’m not so naive or simplistic to believe we can eliminate war. We’re not going to change human nature any time soon. It isn’t that we aren’t rational. We are rational. But reason has limits. There’s a quote from T.S. Eliot that I just love: “We shall not cease from exploring, and at the end of our exploration, we will return to where we started, and know the place for the first time.” Now that’s in a sense where I’m beginning to be. ” – Robert McNamara

Number of Times Seen – 1 (7 Aug 2016)

Brief Synopsis – Oscar winning Documentary Interview with former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara who served under both Kennedy and Johnson about many of the decisions made during The Cold War Era.

My Take on it – I’ve been meaning to see this documentary for quite some time and just never had the opportunity.

Being a fan of US history, it was quite fascinating watching this discussion with Former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara who served in that post under both JFK and LBJ.

McNamara is such a captivating speaker and to hear directly from him about what really happened behind closed doors in Washington during the height of the Cold War is so much fun to watch.

This film teaches us so much about history and politics of that era and also we get to see a personalized view on how one lives with decisions made so long ago.

It really was fascinating to see which topics he was willing to discuss and which ones he wasn’t.

The fact that certain subjects were off limits for this conversation says so much about those very subjects; in some ways silence speaks much louder than words in these kind of situations.

This film really is extraordinary and I’m not in the least surprised that it was able to win an Oscar for Best Documentary feature.

It’s a great way to look back at the Cold War era and learn so much about how people thought and acted during this turbulent period of US history and policy.

Bottom Line – Captivating “conversation” with a man who was so interconnected to Washington’s top levels that we learn so much about politics, history and living with your decisions.  Interesting to be able to see what topics he was willing to discuss and which ones he wasn’t because his refusal to talk about certain subjects says so much by basically just saying nothing. Excellent historical view of US diplomacy at the height of the Cold War. Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – McNamara originally agreed to an hour-long interview for the Errol Morris PBS series, First Person (2000). The interview lasted eight hours and McNamara stayed for a second day of interviewing. He also returned months later, for two more days of interviews. Morris found himself with more than enough material for a feature-length documentary. (From IMDB)

Rating – Oscar Worthy

_______________________________________

Check out my *updated* movie stats here

To see my reviews of Oscar Winning Performances check out this link

To see my reviews of all Oscar Best Picture Winners click here (now complete)

Here is a link to my movie index A-Z