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“Hello to Jason
Isaacs”
(James, 2016)
James Stephenson
Political Columnist
(normally)
Here is a great joy I find in sinking my teeth into a
good documentary, something which broadens the
mind and tells a story that needs to be heard.
The best stories are always the ones which seem
unreal but in fact, are. So with a Wassup and a hello
to Jason Isaacs, here are a few of my top picks:
James’
Documentary
Picks
The Power of Nightmares
Adam Curtis (2003) ‘Hypernormalisation’ joined ‘Bitter Lake’ this year as the second iPlayer
only documentary made by seminal director Adam Curtis but his earlier work is not only better
but it becomes more poignant by the day. My recommendation is an at times bewildering
look into the ideas and narratives surrounding the war on terror. ‘The Power of Nightmares’
(2003) follows both sides of the war on terror from their very root up to the then present day.
Curtis makes some poignant arguments, showing how the American Neo-Liberals and radical
Islamists both cause and reinforce each other. How one group used the ideas of the other to
further their own personal ideas and ambitions in order to control their various populaces.
Its labyrinthine argument takes three, hour long episodes but the time is well spent and
it’s amazing how much of what he says still makes sense today and it goes a long way to
explaining how we have ended up with ISIS and President Trump.
The Armstrong Lie
It was a toss-up here between this, ‘Going Clear - Scientology.....’ and ‘Mea Maxima Culpa
- Silence in the House of God’ all of which are directed by Alex Gibney. I would recommend
watching all three but this takes it for its sheer uniqueness and my personal interest in the subject.
Gibney was originally asked to make a documentary charting Armstrong’s return to Cycling in
2010 and was given unprecedented access to Armstrong’s bid to win his ei