While the mistreatment of prisoners during the Bush administration's so-called War on Terror has received significant media attention, this Oscar-winning documentary by Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) draws viewers in with its personal perspective. The point of departure here is the fate of Dilawar, an innocent taxi driver in Afghanistan taken into custody in 2002 by American forces (in connection with a rocket attack) and brought to local Bagram Air Base, where he later died in military custody. This central story leads to a broader exploration of how U.S. interrogation policies were developed by politically-driven operatives in Washington and then carried out by largely untrained personnel, allegations that are underscored by interviews with officials, journalists, ex-prisoners, and soldiers who served as interrogators (and were tried for their actions, as opposed to the higher-ups who escaped punishment). But the film keeps returning to Dilawar, whose sobering, infuriating, and tragic case (the footage of his family is wrenching) quietly but compellingly illustrates the utter ineffectiveness (and criminal negligence) of the War on Terror's harsh interrogation methods. Taxi to the Dark Side is eloquently capped by footage of Gibney's late father, a World War II naval interrogator so furious over what he saw as the perversion of his former profession that he urged his son to make this powerful film. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by director Alex Gibney, 22 minutes of outtakes, a PBS interview with Gibney (18 min.), an interview with Gibney's father Frank (16 min.), a 14-minute interview with Gibney by journalist Robert Scheer, and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for this Oscar-winning doc.] (F. Swietek)
Taxi to the Dark Side
THINKFilm, 106 min., R, DVD: $27.99, Sept. 30 Volume 23, Issue 5
Taxi to the Dark Side
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