Den Hemmelige Krig (2006, TV documentary) - Guldbrandsen sheds light on a dirty war

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More than half of this poster for Christoffer Guldbrandsen's Den Hemmelige Krig is left in the dark, and in the bottom a quote from Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen is in all caps; "We must fight terrorism without compromise, and that fight against evil is not one that the US should face alone"

When Denmark joined America's 'coalition of the willing' in the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan, obvious lies from the highest authority, Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, were repeated again and again, when it became clear that the Bush administration did not intend to uphold the Geneva convention concerning prisoners of war.

 

Den Hemmelige Krig is written by Nils Giversen (De Bortførte Børn (2002, TV documentary)) and co-writer/director Christoffer Guldbrandsen (Made in Denmark (2000, documentary series)). The title translates to, 'the secret war'.

The escape from liability and the abuses committed by allies on the prisoners of war are the film's scoop, and they make it highly relevant. It over-uses one quote from Fogh Rasmussen, and the stylistic and score choices to highlight 'mystery' elements regrettably work against the impact of the otherwise fine documentary.

 

 

The chief of the Danish Defense claims to never have heard of prisoner abuse by the Americans in this clip from the film

 

Cost: Unknown

Box office: None - TV documentary

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[Den Hemmelige Krig was shown on Danish TV (DR) on 6 December and runs 58 minutes. The film was heavily debated and attacked by the Danish prime minister Fogh Rasmussen, defense minister Søren Gade and others. A commission was funded to analyze the film and its statements, and in 2007 the commission largely green-stamped the film as fair and relevant. Guldbrandsen returned with Dagbog fra Midten (2009, TV documentary). 52 IMDb users have given Den Hemmelige Krig a 7.2/10 average rating.]

 

What do you think of Den Hemmelige Krig? 

Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart (1998, documentary) - A fine portrait of one of rock's greatest masters

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Rock and roll icon Lou Reed looks at us with a curious intelligence in B/W on this poster for Timothy Greenfield-Sanders' Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart

The wild New-Yorker with the deep lyrics, the characteristic voice, the unforgettable melodies and the searing personality burns through in this mostly talking heads portrait documentary.

 

Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart is directed by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders (Thinking XXX (2004, TV documentary)) as part of the American Masters (1985-) TV documentary series. 

The focus is partly on the 'Factory period' of Reed's evolution as an artist, and it works terrifically as a treasure-opener for new devotees. For those already old fans of Reed it may not give so much new insight, besides confirming that he was one of the greatest rock artists ever, along with eloquent observations about him from a series of friends and collaborators as well as from Reed himself.

Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart is missing some more full live performances and deeper discerning of several topics, and it ends with unnatural laughs from several of the interviewed. But Lou Reed is here, and that is a gift.

 

Watch 18 minutes of outtakes of David Bowie's interview for the film here

 

Cost: Unknown

Box office: None - TV documentary

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[Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart premiered in January (Sundance Film Festival) and runs 73 minutes. It won a Grammy. Greenfield-Sanders returned with Thinking XXX (2004, TV documentary). 309 IMDb users have given Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart a 7.4/10 average rating.]

 

What do you think of Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart?

Dario Argento: An Eye For Horror (2000, TV documentary) - Great bio-doc of master filmmaker Dario Argento

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A DVD case front for Leon Ferguson's Dario Argento: An Eye For Horror that features 8 pictures of its fascinating filmmaker subject

An Eye For Horror is a mostly talking heads biography of Italian master (mainly horror) director, Dario Argento (Deep Red/Profondo Rosso (1975)), the man behind great movies such as The Bird with the Crystal Plumage/L'uccello dalle Piume di Cristallo (1970), Suspiria (1977), Inferno (1980), Tenebrae (1982), Phenomena (1985) and The Stendhal Syndrome/La Sindrome di Stendhal (1996).

This portrait is wholly fine with many relevant people, including Argento himself, talking about the works, their making and what makes them stand out. Argento's story and his stories are so incredible that he sells the documentary in his own right here. He has done amazing things in his movies, and surely stands as one of the most inspiring and ingenious filmmakers of all time. (Nevermind that his output has undeniably gone substantially down in quality since Stendhal.)
Dario Argento: An Eye For Horror is written by Charles Preece (Bra Wars: Boom or Bust (2005, documentary)) and directed by Leon Ferguson (The Second Bakery Attack (2010, short, production assistant).

Related posts:

Doc. subject Dario Argento: Demons/Dèmoni (1985) or, Cinema of Death! (producer/co-writer)
Dawn of the Dead (1978) or, Mall of Death! (music/financing/distribution)
The Cat O'Nine Tails/Il Gatto a Nove Code (1971) - Solid genetics-themed giallo murder puzzle
The Bird With the Crystal Plumage/L'uccello Dalle Piume di Cristallo (1970) - The great debut giallo of Dario Argento

An Eye For Horror is available on Youtube. Here is a medley of some of the nightmarish and spectacular horror in Argento's films

Cost: Unknown
Box office: None - TV movie documentary
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[Details about the documentary's production and initial release are hard to come by. It runs 57 minutes. Ferguson has not returned as a director with anything since. 1,604 Rotten Tomatoes users have given Dario Argento. An Eye for Horror a 3.5/5 average rating.]

What film director bio-docs would you recommend?
What do you think of Dario Argento: An Eye For Horror?