Prosecutor

The International Criminal Court, created in 2002 to address cases involving crimes against humanity, and its first chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, are the subjects of Barry Stevens' documentary, which outlines the rationale behind the ICC's establishment, tying the project directly to the principles that underlay the Nuremberg Trials of Nazis accused of war crimes following World War II. But the film also emphasizes the refusal of powerful nations—including the United States—to join the Court for fear of losing sovereignty if their own citizens are indicted. That fact, along with the reality that the tools at Moreno-Ocampo's disposal are those of persuasion rather than compulsion, limits the ability of the prosecutor's office even to bring formal charges, let alone achieve convictions. Yet the Argentine lawyer—who was elected to a nine-year term in 2003 after he prosecuted military officers accused of abuses in his own country—has built a committed staff and dexterously worked to gain favorable international opinion in order to launch investigations and secure indictments. Viewers witness the process largely through behind-the-scenes filming following Moreno-Ocampo across eight countries, mostly focusing on two cases: the trial of Congolese militia leader Thomas Lubanga, and Moreno-Ocampo's controversial decision to indict a sitting head of state—Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir—on a charge of genocide. Featuring both the full-length version and a 52-minute abridged cut, Prosecutor succeeds both as an introduction to the ICC and as a profile of the energetic, principled man who oversaw its early efforts. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)