DEMOCRACY GETTING A SHOT IN IRAQ.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic `My Country, My Country'' doesn't wear its outrage on its sleeve like this week's other Iraq-related documentary, ``The Ground Truth,'' but it's just as powerful -- more so for the dispassionate dis·pas·sion·ate adj. Devoid of or unaffected by passion, emotion, or bias. See Synonyms at fair1. dis·pas way it presents the months leading up to the Iraqi elections held in January 2005. Old news? Hardly. Laura Poitras' powerful movie shows the despair of Iraqis who want the best for their country but feel powerless to affect real change. The film delivers powerful images of a country mired mire n. 1. An area of wet, soggy, muddy ground; a bog. 2. Deep slimy soil or mud. 3. A disadvantageous or difficult condition or situation: the mire of poverty. v. in chaos, where explosions, gunfire, power outages This is a list of famous wide-scale power outages. 1965
n. Depression of spirits from loss of hope, confidence, or courage; dejection. Noun 1. despondency - feeling downcast and disheartened and hopeless despondence, disconsolateness, heartsickness that understandably fails to rise above the endemic suffering and daily death. The film's central figure is Dr. Riyadha, a genial genial /ge·ni·al/ (je-ni´al) mental (2). ge·ni·al or ge·ni·an adj. Of or relating to the chin. genial pertaining to the chin. and dignified father of six and Sunni political candidate who hates the American occupation but remains optimistic op·ti·mist n. 1. One who usually expects a favorable outcome. 2. A believer in philosophical optimism. op about the democratic process. Clear-thinking and educated, Riyadha spends his days mending his patients in his Baghdad free clinic, tending to his family and trying to convince as many Sunnis as possible to vote in the coming election. As Riyadha battles the notion of Sunni boycotts, Poitras' observant camera records Iraqi life under American occupation and the efforts of various groups -- U.N. Elections Support, Australian private security contractors, the U.S. military -- to ensure that the election comes off. Poitras withholds comment, but her film is charged nonetheless with images of a wary populace and weary American soldiers. Can a democracy take hold under such conditions? ``My Country, My Country'' -- and each day's headlines -- suggest the difficulty of the task. Glenn Whipp, (818) 713-3672. glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY - Three and one half stars (Not rated: strong images, mature themes.) Director: Laura Poitras. Running time: 1 hr. 30 min. Playing: Laemmle Music Hall in Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. . In a nutshell: Dispassionate doc examines the months leading up to Iraq's 2005 election and why encouraging democracy under gunpoint is a difficult task. Powerful. |
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