Review of Standard Operating Procedure (2008) by Aaron R — 28 Jun 2008
In comparison with Alex Gibney's sober "Taxi to the Dark Side", which covered some of the same material, this is an exuberantly cinematic treatment of a subject which has so far proved a turn-off at the box-office.
Morris has an absolute faith in the directness and clarity of the camera - whether his own cine-camera, the prison guards' still cameras, or the pixellated mobile-phone footage of unspeakable acts - to expose and counter the flaws in a malfunctioning machinery of war.
.. The trouble is, it doesn't ever seem to have crossed Morris's mind whether exuberance might be the best tone to adopt when addressing America's misadventures in the Gulf. Style begins to swamp content, and Morris sometimes seems as guilty as the prison guards interviewed of getting carried away with the possibilities of ultimate control.
This review of Standard Operating Procedure (2008) was written by Aaron R on 28 Jun 2008.
Standard Operating Procedure has generally received positive reviews.
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