Inside Islam (2002)

If your knowledge of Islam is limited to only what you've seen on the news, you owe it to yourself, and your entire family for that matter, to see this wonderfully insightful documentary. It's unfair to let ignorance breed contempt, and I think a boxed set of A & E/History Channel documentaries on all the great religions of the world would be an outstanding idea.

Highly recommended.

Release Date: February 25, 2003
A&E Home Video

Bush's Brain (2004)

A hatchet job on Karl Rove, that unfortunately throws off mostly splinters. Rove seems like an odious guy who has done lots of icky things, but the documentary doesn't quite deliver the goods; the film interviews a lot of journalists, and we're asked to take their word for it. Whether you do or not is probably a pretty accurate reflection of who you plan to vote for in November.

Release Date: October 12, 2004
Tartan Video

Twin Towers (2003)

Joe and John Jr.'s story is so heroic, so iconic, that I can't help but think that in 50 years, when someone in Hollywood finally decides to make 9/11 their Pearl Harbor, the two will be pivotal characters. If that's the case, I just hope they're treated with the respect they deserve.

Release Date: October 12, 2004
Universal Studios Home Video

The Big One (Michael Moore DVD Collector's Set) (1997)

In many respects, Michael Moore is America's premier muckraker, and he's up to all of his usual tricks in The Big One, which hits its targets more often than it misses. Some of it is already dated (Ross Perot jokes, anyone?), and some of it is probably a little bit reckless, and it's full of stunts, but he faces some of the hard truths about who's getting squeezed in the contemporary American economy with more candor, humor and justifiable anger than just about anyone else.

Release Date: October 05, 2004
Miramax Pictures

Journeys with George (2003)

Tart up C-SPAN a little bit and you've got Journeys with George, an entertaining documentary that shows us a side of our president that's usually kept tightly under wraps, and probably confirms every worst prejudice we've all got about the media.

Release Date: February 24, 2004
HBO

DC 9/11: Time of Crisis (2003)

It is impossible to view DC 9/11: Time of Crisis without taking your own political views into consideration, which means that you'll probably know ahead of time if you want to believe what this film portrays. Timothy Bottoms is strong in his role as President Bush, but the supporting cast and filmmaking provide mixed results. The image and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound mix are good, but not extraordinary. The extras are fairly superfluous, but anybody who cares to listen to a lecture from Lionel Chetwynd will have a tremendous opportunity with this audio commentary.

Release Date: September 07, 2004
Showtime

Night and Fog (Nuit et Brouillard) (1955)

This short but seminal documentary is given a good presentation, though the limitations of the source materials prevent it from getting the highest grades. Nonetheless highly compelling documentary filmmaking and essential viewing.

Release Date: June 24, 2003
The Criterion Collection

Bush Family Fortunes (2004)

Greg Palast is unlikely to change your mind about George W. Bush and his family; he thinks that they're sinister, and if he doesn't quite have all the goods to prove it, he's done a whole lot to shed light on Republican electoral shenanigans while stoking the fires for blue staters everywhere.

Release Date: September 28, 2004
The Disinformation Company

The Day After Trinity (1980)

For better or worse, we all live with the legacy of Oppenheimer, and this documentary is a sharp look at the man and his accomplishments from some of those who knew him best. Oppie himself remains somewhat inscrutable, but this DVD gives a refreshing immediacy to the dangers and the excitement of the first days of the nuclear age.

Release Date: May 14, 2002
Image Entertainment

Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism (2004)

Rupert Murdoch's Ministry of Information gets the treatment it deserves in this documentary; and if you're like minded, the greatest service you can do is not watching this film, but passing along the DVD to the dittoheads, to those who have been Hannitized, to help bust them out of the no-spin zone. They distort. They deride.

Release Date: July 13, 2004
The Disinformation Company

The Weather Underground (2003)

You say you want a revolution? Well, you know, we all want to change to world. In a banner year for documentaries (The Fog of War, Capturing the Friedmans, My Architect), The Weather Underground is among the first tier, a pungent revisiting of one of, literally, the most explosive periods in recent American history. A strong package of extras provide still more food for thought about the legacy of the 1960s, and its resonances for us today.

Release Date: May 25, 2004
Docurama

World Trade Center: Anatomy of the Collapse (2002)

World Trade Center: Anatomy of the Collapse can be found for a low price at most retail stores and for those who are so inclined a purchase would be a safe bet. I enjoyed the disc and it stands as one of the few educational programs that will get a repeated spin in my DVD player.

Release Date: August 20, 2002
Artisan Home Entertainment

The Awful Truth: The Complete Second Season (2000)

If you can stomach Michael Moore's brand of political satire, this set is a must have. If you are a huge George W. Bush or Guiliani fan you may run screaming. His antics are obnoxious at worst and hilarious at best. The look on some of his victim's faces as they begin to realize what they have gotten themselves into is priceless, and the body surfing is worth the price of admission alone. Vote Ficus!

Release Date: January 29, 2002
Docurama

Hearts and Minds (1974)

A powerful examination of what went into the Vietnam War and what came out of it; not exactly a probe into causes so much as a look at motives and effects, it spares no one while being sympathetic to nearly all views. One of the great documentaries and highly recommended.

Release Date: June 25, 2002
The Criterion Collection

Crisis (1963)

As with Primary, this is another worthy document both of the early days of cinema verite and of the working methods of President Kennedy and his men. Politics these days can seem so often like so much marginalia; this is a reminder that it wasn't that long ago that great men fought principled battles for what's right and best about this country.

Release Date: November 11, 2003
Docurama

Unprecedented: The 2000 Presidential Election (2004)

A piece of muckraking journalism in the best tradition, Unprecedented shows us an electoral circus that would be nothing but farcical if the stakes weren't so high. They are counting on our apathy; if we let this happen again, we'll only be living up to all of their expectations.

Release Date: July 06, 2004
Shout Factory

Ronald Reagan: A Legacy Remembered (2002)

Ronald Reagan: A Legacy Remembered is a nice enough biography piece, but it's a bit glossy and surface, and the skirting of controversial events will annoy both history buffs and those hoping for a critical look at one of the most divisive political careers of the modern age.

Release Date: March 25, 2003
A&E Home Video

Horns and Halos (2002)

Aficionados of publishing, media, politics and journalism films must have Horns and Halos on their shelf, no matter their politics. It is an essential documentary DVD for what it portrays about the devils and angels of our information society.

Release Date: October 05, 2004
Go Kart Films

Horns and Halos (2002)

Aficionados of publishing, media, politics and journalism films must have Horns and Halos on their shelf, no matter their politics. It is an essential documentary DVD for what it portrays about the devils and angels of our information society.

Release Date: October 05, 2004
Go Kart Films

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

One of the essential political documentaries of this election year, Fahrenheit 9/11 is heavyweight propaganda that takes aim at the presidency of George W. Bush and his handling of the "war on terror." Don't see it because you have to, see it because you still can.

Release Date: October 05, 2004
Columbia TriStar Home Video

Ronald Reagan: His Life and Legacy (2004)

Ronald Reagan: His Life and Legacy will not please either the supporters or dissenters of President Reagan. This DVD does not feature a stellar transfer or sound mix, but this is a result of the source material. Surprisingly the extras are actually more interesting than the feature presentation, which makes this DVD worth purchasing for the most die-hard of Reagan followers.

Release Date: July 20, 2004
Universal Studios Home Video

Israel: A Nation is Born (1992, 1997)

Abba Eban's Israel: A Nation is Born in another elegant and important presentation from Home Vision. As is true with the earlier series, Heritage: Civilization and the Jews, this program is a deeply informative and educational study, this time focused more directly on the history of the ongoing tensions in the region. Highly recommended.

Release Date: June 24, 2003
Home Vision Entertainment

The War Room (1993)

Everything from Joe Klein's Primary Colors to Alexandra Pelosi's Journeys with George owes a huge debt to The War Room, one of the great documents of Presidential politics in the last years of the 20th century. George Stephanopoulos and James Carville have become little more than talking heads and cartoon figures these days, but here they are as full-blooded, fully rounded characters, with dreams, hopes, foibles and failures—it's about as human a look at the political process as you'll ever see. Its re-release on DVD a month before the general election may or may not bring good karma to the Kerry campaign, but it's certainly worth a look at the inner workings of a campaign of a Democratic challenger looking to unseat an incumbent named Bush who chose as the basis of his re-election campaign the prosecution of a war against Saddam Hussein.

Release Date: October 05, 2004
Universal Studios Home Video

The Fog of War (2003)

Our current presidential campaign is a reminder that Vietnam remains, in many respects, the great unhealed American wound; and an understanding of Robert McNamara as a man and a warrior is vital to a broader comprehension of the U.S. years in Southeast Asia. Errol Morris's documentary is a virtuoso piece of filmmaking, a poignant character study, and a profound meditation on our politics; and it shouldn't take American soldiers coming back from Iraq in body bags to remind us that war is hell.

Release Date: May 11, 2004
Columbia TriStar Home Video

Frontline: Muslims (2002)

It never hurts to expand your mind a little, and Frontline: Muslims will likely do just that if you allow it. Instead of a dry historical recap of the history of Islam, this program globe-hops and reveals, through individual stories, the religion's expansive reach, as well as some of the truths and misunderstandings surrounding it.

Recommended.

Release Date: April 15, 2003
Wellspring

Crusades (1995)

While the subject matter may not appeal to everyone, this 2-disc set is an ideal introduction to The Crusades, and narrator Terry Jones appears genuinely interested in the material.

Dark, grim and often funny. That's how I like my history. Recommended.

Release Date: January 02, 2002
A&E Home Video

Bowling for Columbine (2002)

Michael Moore is in many ways more a polemicist than either a journalist or an entertainer, and if you don't share his political outlook (and maybe even if you do), he may not necessarily seem like the best messenger. But Bowling for Columbine is powerful, frequently persuasive, and consistently thought-provoking filmmaking, likely to start an intense discussion about the American national character even among the like-minded.

Release Date: August 19, 2003
MGM Studios DVD

WTC: The First 24 Hours (2002)

I experienced two feelings while viewing WTC: The First 24 Hours. Initially, I felt an occasional sense of awe from the breathtaking visuals, followed by a reaction of indifference. I feel as if I should have experienced more emotions while watching a film documenting this terrible tragedy. Majestic and insipid, honorable and insolent, WTC is a stunning art project created from the wrong source material.

Release Date: June 25, 2002
Docurama