MisterWhiplash Maybe Why We Fight isn't entirely successful, as it sets out to cover about sixty years of American history (albeit mostly in the past several years with Iraq, which of course then stretches back into the 80s), and once in a while looses its footing in cramming so much into 99 minutes. Why We Fight has the potential for one of those immaculately conceived documentary mini-series on PBS (Ken Burns's The War doesn't count), but as a film it thankfully suffices just enough. The only other drawback is if you're already very well-informed about all of the horrors and nightmares that the Bush administration has brought on with its war policy- which also stretches out to its corporate allies like KBR and Halliburton- there's only little tidbits of possibly 'new' information, particularly if it's on DVD in 2008 vs seeing it in the theater in 2006.But aside from these liabilities, Why We Fight is a look at the mentality and history and fulfillment of the quasi-prophecy by then exiting president Eisenhower on the military industrial complex. The director, Eugene Jarecki, chooses his targets wisely and with a well-rounded focus. He features interviews with the likes of John McCain, Gore Vidal, Richard Pearle, former members of the military (two of whom say combat the first day of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 03), and also with just a kid setting off to join the army and a saddened father of a 9/11 casualty who despite being a veteran of Vietnam supported Bush for Iraq all the way... until he realized he lied, of course. While it is more than probable that Jarecki is out to make a criticism on the Bush administration, it doesn't really stop just there. Indeed, Bush and Rumsfeld, according to Why We Fight, are the logical (though utterly maddening) conclusion of Eisenhower's words of caution to look out against the US war machine growing too far beyond control.But Jarecki doesn't forget that Bush is just one component, however huge, in the cog of war that has been rolling along as part of the US being the dominating world power. When we don't like what a country is doing, we go in and 'help' overthrow the government and install someone else who may or may not (usually may) screw things up as a dictatorship in the country. That's one part of it. Another huge part is the Cold war and nuclear proliferation. And, finally, though not least of which, the rise of the corporations that do more (and get paid more) than the US military officers in Iraq. These and more pieces, not least of which an indictment of parts of government and think tanks and the Pentagon, are part of the answer to the "Why" question in Jarecki's film, and for the most part it's all compulsively watchable. It might be a little over-packed into such a relatively short time allowance, but there are moments of inspiration (what comes closest to a 'Michael Moore' moment, if there could be one, is Jarecki including a bit at the end of a McCain statement about Halliburton being dangerous, and then getting a call right after from Cheney cutting off the interview), and some great little clips from Frank Capra's original Why We Fight short films.

karen-buckley It angered me, because it exposed a lot about our government that I was unaware of. I always knew that 9-11 and the Iraqi war weren't entirely related, but I think I never actually thought of it as much until this movie. As an American I think I hold that opinion that most citizens of any nation hold and that is to support your country no matter what. After seeing this, I will still support my troops simply because they are not all are enlisted as a financial gain for college, etc. What got me the most was the father that lost his son, talking about the bomb dropped in his son's name that had nothing to do with 9-11. That also enraged me to know that our government pulled another Gulf of Tonkin excuse again, and pretty much tried to trick us....again. It's exhausting thinking about how dishonest our government has been over the past 60 years with all the wars we have been in. Sometimes I wish they would just say that they want more land or oil, or whatever it is they are fighting for. Instead they recruit more troops to fight under false pretenses. It's not fair, because sometimes it seems like we are treated like children or we are under some type of dictator government. If we don't support the government we are considered treasonous, but if we do then other countries see us as stupid American's because we have no idea what the government is really doing. This movie really brought that all to light, and I recommend to it to our nation, our allies, and our enemies.

virek213 Just three days before his time as President was to end, Dwight D. Eisenhower gave his farewell address to the nation; and in it, he warned us all of a potentially grave threat within the very bowels of the United States government: "In the councils of government, we must guard against unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military/industrial complex."It is those words of the great five-star general who had helped lead America to victory over Nazism in World War II that are at the heart of writer/director Eugene Jarecki's compelling documentary WHY WE FIGHT. The film takes its title from the seven-part series of films made by director Frank Capra in the 1940s to boost troop morale during World War II. But unlike Capra, Jarecki gives us a penetrating look at the dangers to our democracy and our freedom that can become a reality en if the alliance between the two unholy pillars of defense and industry are allowed to swamp our nation. Jarecki interviews members of Eisenhower's own family, as well as political heavyweights like Arizona senator John McCain, right-wing pundit Bill Kristol, and former CIA official Chalmers Johnson, and what we are witness to is the way the military/industrial complex, combined with right-wing think tanks, has come to shape American foreign policy, and in more than a few ways the thinking of the American people themselves, in ways that over the last sixty years have had catastrophic consequences for our nation. As an example, we look at the CIA's covert involvement in the overthrow of Iranian president Mohammed Mosadegh in favor of the Shah, which gave birth to the rise of the Islamic extremist movement; and we also see our involvement with both Osama Bin-Laden and Saddam Hussein during the 1980s, which led us to the quagmire of present-day Iraq and the horror that erupted on September 11, 2001. The 9/11 aspect is detailed in an interview with a former New York cop who lost his son in the World Trade Center, and then lost his confidence in the government when the connection between Saddam and 9/11 was found out to be false.The staggering power of the military/industrial complex, as detailed by Jarecki, reaches all the way into the halls of Congress and, in more than a few cases, right to the front doors of the American people as well. It is a frightening thing to know--and it is inevitably something that right-wing pundits will certainly attack Jarecki for in WHY WE FIGHT. But a lot of the ammunition Jarecki uses for his arguments comes from exactly some of those same neo-conservatives themselves in the film. Even more, Jarecki shows how, after the debacle of Vietnam, the government sought to control what the media could show about America's war efforts (no soldiers in coffins or body bags) in order to keep support for American military activities high among the public at a calamitous cost to the nation.WHY WE FIGHT is a terribly sober and complex film that offers no easy answers, because none exist. And yet, as it comes to its end by returning to Eisenhower's famous farewell address, it reminds us that while a strong military may be needed, its influence in America at large needs to be kept in check in the future, lest we fall into the same militant attitude that destroyed past superpowers, many in our own lifetime.

lastliberal President Dwight Eisenhower warned us that we must be vigilant against the military-industrial complex taking over our country. Why We Fight, a film that won the 2005 Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, shows the price we are now paying for failing to watch over our leaders.Eisenhower warned that we would suffer disastrous consequences if a non-military man became President. We not only have that, but we also have a contractor in the Vice-President's office.The military -industrial complex has corrupted Congress to the point that they are willing accomplices. In addition, Think Tanks are now setting policy for the government. The American people were carefully mislead into a war that serves no purpose other than filling the coffers of American business and we will suffer for years because of it.It is not only the wasted money and wasted lives, but also the loss of our status as a Great Nation. We are heading down the path of Rome and, like Britain, France, and the Soviet Union before us, we will fall.I hope it is not to late to repair the damage, but I fear it is.