‘Road to Guantanamo’ Mixes Documentary, Drama to Chronicle ‘Tipton Three’
by Ky N. Nguyen
In Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Man Who Knew Too Much,” Jimmy Stewart—perhaps the quintessential icon of the American everyday man—goes on vacation. All of a sudden, he’s being chased by man-hunters who think he’s someone else. His protests of ignorance get him nowhere. Nobody believes him. He’s in the wrong place at the wrong time, and there’s no easy way out.
In “The Road to Guantanamo,” British filmmakers Michael Winter-bottom (“24 Hour Party People,” “Tristram Shandy,” “Welcome to Sarajevo,” “Code 46”) and Mat Whitecross tell the real-life story of four British citizens of Pakistani descent who in October 2001, shortly after the U.S.-led bombing in Afghanistan begins, are swept up by the Northern Alliance as suspected al Qaeda terrorists. To no avail, Shafiq, Ruhel and Asif (the fourth, Monir, mysteriously disappeared) claim to be answering an imam’s call to conduct humanitarian work for the Afghan people.
The friends are locked up in Afghanistan and then Guantanamo Bay. With belated assistance from the British government, they’re released in March 2004 without any charges ever filed. Dubbed the “Tipton Three” (referring to their British place of residence), they make public allegations of torture and abuse, including violations of their Muslim faith. The U.S. government insists the admittedly harsh interrogation techniques are necessary for security and not legally prohibited by the Geneva Convention and international law.
“The Road to Guantanamo” manages to further blur the line between documentary and drama, a hybrid blend that is much in vogue. It closed out the 2006 Silverdocs documentary film festival, although naysayers might say it’s not a bona fide documentary. Actors depict the Tipton Three’s experiences before and during their lockup, and the extensive re-enactments are interspersed with old news clips and subject interviews.
The mix is mind blowing—impressive enough to win the Silver Bear at Berlin. But the experiment (relatively restrained for Winterbottom) is not fully successful by conventional cinematic standards. Let’s take the choice to show the gentle-seeming subjects speaking for themselves. The adjacent real-life interviews clearly remind us that actors are playing parts in the re-enactments, jarring the feeling of verisimilitude. On top of that, the real men have more charisma than the actors playing them (two of the three are nonprofessionals). The audience’s loyalty is confused, making it harder to emotionally invest in the actors being abused.
Maybe that’s a conscious decision by the filmmakers to insulate the audience a bit from the trauma of reality (versus the visceral punishment of “The Passion of The Christ”). The prisoners—and the viewers—take plenty of brutality, but far more details could have been portrayed. (Winterbottom is no stranger to pushing the edge of what he shows to audiences, which was recently represented by the explicit sexuality in “9 Songs.”) No doubt plenty of horror does make it onto the screen, unforgettably visualizing the claims of the Tipton Three and other prisoners.
Their credibility has been bolstered by the circulation of scandalous photographs documenting prisoner abuse at the hands of U.S. military personnel at Abu Ghraib in Iraq, employing techniques reportedly transferred from Guantanamo. Blocked by standards of acceptable publishing, the U.S. mainstream press has declined to show the worst of the evidence (which has fueled outrage in many other parts of the world).
Likewise, “The Road to Guantanamo” also pulls its punches a bit, although it’s still rather difficult and messy to take. Perhaps that’s intended to evoke the feelings of despair and chaos endured by the Tipton Three. In both the United Kingdom and the United States, the film has already sparked outrage and controversy, from both its supporters and its opponents. Critics charge that the film is not objective, and its point of view is unabashedly one-sided.
The trio doesn’t have a fully convincing explanation for how their travels to Pakistan for Asif’s wedding led them to Afghanistan, returning to Pakistan, and finally back to Afghanistan again—all during the U.S.-led invasion. The convoluted routing is just glossed over and accepted by the filmmakers. They may be saying the question is moot whether the Tipton Three are guilty or innocent. The personal saga of three detainees is just one little piece used to illuminate a bigger, more universal story: how the jailers treat all of their prisoners.
The Road to Guantanamo
(English and Arabic with subtitles; 95 min.)
The Avalon Theatre
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
4 out of 5 stars
‘The War Tapes’: A Soldier’s Story
Now here’s a movie that leverages the unique advantages of the digital video revolution: affordability, usability and portability—do it yourself and do it anywhere. Director Deborah Scranton, credentialed as an embedded journalist in Iraq, had the bright idea to have the soldiers take the digital video cameras instead.
In March 2004, three New Hampshire National Guard troops in Charlie Company deploy to Iraq. Attached to their helmets are cameras that capture moments no embedded journalist can get. The guardsmen tell their own stories that are funny, fearful and poignant. Scranton culls a complex story from their footage, weaving the multiple perspectives into “The War Tapes,” a recent Silverdocs selection.
It beat out “The Road To Guantanamo” for Best Documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival. Both films focus on very personal stories involving regular people under great duress in a time of war. In contrast, however, “The War Tapes” tries to avoid advocating any viewpoint—just the facts, ma’am. Scranton leaves it up to the audience to think for itself after absorbing minute details of the soldiers’ everyday lives.
What’s fascinating? The three guardsmen serve for very different motivations. Specialist Mike Moriarty is the company’s old man. A 35-year-old mechanic who’s married with children, he signed up to seek revenge for 9/11. Sgt. Steve Pink, a 24-year-old carpenter, shares with the camera his literary aspirations from his diary. He believes the war is about securing oil, which he fully supports.
Perhaps most complex is Sgt. Zack Bazzi, a well-traveled 24-year-old student who uses his fluent Arabic to translate for the company. A reader of “The Nation,” he decries the cultural ignorance of his peers, which hurts their duties when interacting with the locals. A veteran of Kosovo and Bosnia, he finds fault with this war’s purpose but admits loving battle. That’s an absurd concept to his mother, who fled Lebanon’s civil war to find safe refuge for her family from conflict in the Middle East. Sgt. Bazzi will become a citizen after returning home.
What’s disturbing? The Iraqi people are deeply depersonalized, which bothers Bazzi. The soldiers detach themselves from death as just another part of daily existence. In this booby-trapped landscape, they’re not so much fighting the enemy—they just want to make it through Dante’s Inferno. Returning home, Moriarty still believes in the war’s mission, but he personally wouldn’t come back to Iraq for $500,000.
The War Tapes
(English and Arabic; 97 min.)
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
4 out of 5 stars
‘Who Killed the Electric Car?’: Conspiracy in California
Writer-director Chris Paine’s debut feature documentary asks why electric cars aren’t used when they are more efficient and quieter than gasoline engines. A century ago, electric cars were as prevalent as gas-powered autos before being overtaken by changes in manufacturing, engineering and cheap oil.
In the 1990s, General Motors leased the EV1, a response to a California mandate requiring a zero-emissions vehicle. The law was repealed before the EV1 lasted a decade. GM reclaimed its leased fleet, junking the bodies and leaving abandoned charging stations in the landscape. Why? Paine points to a number of culprits, although the trigger man is slippery. Blame is shared among lobbying from oil companies and automakers, shortsighted policymakers from the state and federal governments, and ultimately the consumers—who voted with their wallets for SUVs when oil was cheap.
But there’s some hope. Now gas prices have tripled, and the gas guzzling business models of GM and Ford (plus pension voodoo economics) have left them financially at risk. Hybrids are hot, but they can’t touch the electric car in its efficiency and emissions, the lowering of which is now fashionable for business. Paine closes with former CIA director James Woolsey advocating energy alternatives to oil as a means of strengthening U.S. interests in geopolitical security.
Who Killed the Electric Car?
(English; 92 min.)
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Opens Fri., July 21
3 out of 5 stars
Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.
Repertory Notes
Please see Cinema Listings for detailed listings available as of press time.
Hong Kong at the Freer
The 11th Annual Made in Hong Kong Film Festival returns July 7 to Aug. 27. It kicks off with Wong Kar-Wai’s latest, the long-awaited “2046” on July 7 and 9. Wong’s “Happy Together” screens July 28 and 30. “Infernal D” from Andrew Lau and Alan Mak (“Infernal Affairs”) returns July 14 to 16 after its D.C. premiere at the Asian-Pacific Association Film Festival. Stephen Chow (“Kung Fu Hustle”) stars in Johnny To’s “Justice, My Foot!”
(202) 357-2700, www.asia.si.edu/events/films.asp
The National Gallery of Art
After the “Luchino Visconti” biopic (July 21 to 22), “Luchino Visconti and Suso Cecchi d’Amico” showcases the Italian director and screenwriter’s longtime partnership, including “The Innocent” (July 23) and “The Leopard” (July 29 and Aug. 2). “From Vault to Screen: New Preservation from European Collections” features restored archival prints of silent films: “Cabiria” (July 22), “Vintage Views: British Rail” (July 29) and “Underground” (July 30).
(202) 842-6799, www.nga.gov/programs/film.shtm
Helmut Käutner at Goethe-Institut
From July 3 to Aug. 28, catch “Spotlight on Helmut Käutner”—headlined on July 17 by “The Last Bridge,” 1954’s International Jury Prize winner at Cannes.
(202) 289-1200, www.goethe.de/washington
AFI Silver Theatre
“Heroic Grace, the Chinese Martial Arts Film, Part 2” kicks off July 7, headlined by Bruce Lee in “The Way of the Dragon” (July 14 and 15) and “Fist of Fury” (July 15 and 17). “Muppets, Masks, and Mazes: The Jim Henson Film Legacy” starts July 8. “Our Fair Lady: The Films of Audrey Hepburn” features the English-Dutch actress, beginning July 7. “Best Foot Forward: The Films of Stanley Donen” showcases the American director’s musicals, starting July 7. “The Films of David Lynch” opens July 15.
(301) 495-6700, www.afi.com/Silver
Silverdocs 2006 Roundup
On Thursday, June 15, full audiences in the AFI Silver’s art deco theater received household names with standing ovations. Former Vice President Al Gore, the chairman of Current TV, spoke about the technology, distribution and idea changes he expects in “The Future of Real.” Afterward, he chatted with an intimate audience of filmmakers in Current TV’s “Silver Session.”
Perhaps a bigger ticket was Thursday night’s Guggenheim
Symposium, introduced by the late Charles Guggenheim’s daughter Grace—herself a filmmaker. Clips highlighting Guggenheim Award honoree Martin Scorsese’s documentary work preceded a far too short question-and-answer session with the famed director. With his droll delivery, indie director Jim Jarmusch queried Scorsese, whose witty retorts drew laughter from the audience. Afterward, Jarmusch held court for hours with delighted fans, filmmakers and staff at Discovery and the Quarry House.
Premiering at Silverdocs
“The Road at Guantanamo” (the Avalon Theatre, Landmark’s E Street Cinema) and “The War Tapes” (E Street) are now in commercial release. “Once in a Lifetime” (E Street) opens July 14.
Silverdocs Award Winners
Sterling Award Feature: “Jesus Camp”
by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady
Special Jury Mention: “Chairman George”
by Daniel Cross and Mila Aung-Thwin
Sterling Award Short: “Seeds”
by Wojciech Kasperski
Honorable Mention: “McLaren’s Negatives”
by Marie-Josée Saint-Pierre;
“The Aluminum Fowl”
by James S. Clauer
Special Jury Mention for Student Short: “A Girl Like Me”
by Kiri Davis
Music Documentary Award: “Rolling Like a Stone”
by Stefan Berg and Magnus Gertten
DOCS Rx Global Health Documentary Award: “The Blood of Yingzou District”
by Ruby Yang
Special Jury Mention: “Before Flying Back to Earth”
by Arunas Matelis
Feature Audience Award: “Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore?”
by Frank Popper
Short Audience Award: “The Sheriff of Gay Washington”
by John W. Poole;
“A Girl Like Me”
by Kiri Davis
ACE Grant: “Cougars on the Edge”
by Janice Jensen
— Ky N. Nguyen and Mia Faith Cohen
