Bush's Brain
by Joseph Mealey, Michael Shoob
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Actor: Barbara Bush, Bruce Buchanan, Cathy Bonner, Lee Atwater, Osama Bin LadenDirector: Joseph Mealey, Michael Shoob
Cinematographer: Joseph Mealey
Producer: Joseph Mealey
Producer: Michael Shoob
Producer: Elizabeth Reeder
Writer: James C. Moore
Writer: Wayne Slater
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 80 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-10-12
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Tartan Video
DVD Reviews of Bush's Brain
DVD Review: Carl Rove is Such an Evil Person, This Film Comes Off as Unfair or Biased, When Its Not
Summary: 3 Stars
Carl Rove is sarcastically referred to as "Bush's Brain", implying that Bush - by himself - is unintelligent and incapable of having his own thoughts and positions on public issues. Such a conclusion seems to be more or less supported by the facts, but this is a contentious area. The problem with this film is the fact that Carl Rove is such a vindictive, win at all costs, kick 'em while they're down, who cares who it hurts kind of guy, that this film comes off as being biased or nasty when its really not, its just factual.
This said - in my opinion, - this film tries to cover way too much in too short of a time skipping way too many important facts in the process. Regardless of which side of the fence you are on, Bush and what makes Bush the way he is, is a very complex issue that simply cannot be covered in the 80 minute run time we have here, esp. if we try to throw in the added task of explaining what makes another complicated character tick. This is a good start, but expect to watch and read more to get a complete picture.
DVD Review: Fails to deliver
Summary: 2 Stars
With the exception of a segment focusing on Fredrick Pokorney (a young Nevadan who died early in the Iraq War), Bush's Brain is relatively passionless. This is the epitome of a "talking head" documentary. A majority consists of interviews with men in chairs. Everyone is calm, collected and tending toward the monotone. For variety, some are interviewed standing up and/or in locations other than an office, and there are occasional clips of politics in action. But the raw material, plus the lifeless narration, plus a lack of pizzazz in the editing room equals a passionless film.
Many will think that's a relatively unimportant criticism. "What matters", they'll say, "Is the importance of the information, the outrageousness of the reality the film addresses". Well, that's another big problem. Bush's Brain is intended to show two main theses: (1) that former George W. Bush Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove was effectively "Co-President" with Bush, and (2) that Rove is a shady character with a lengthy history of ethically questionable actions. I think the film fails on both accounts. (And no, I'm not a Republican. I'm also not a Democrat. I'm a Libertarian. I'm no big fan of George W.)
For the first thesis, this is far too much just a historical biography of Rove (although it's informative enough as that--I definitely learned things). Now, Rove has been involved with the Bush family for 30 years in many capacities, but all politicians have speechwriters, idea persons, etc. Absolutely nothing is done to show that Rove was unusual in his political support functions in a way that would amount to him being "Co-President" with Bush. For the second thesis, about half of the things discussed do not seem unethical to me (rather it's sometimes sour grapes), and for the ethically questionable, not enough is done to present more than one side of the story, breaking the argument that the documentary is passionless in the name of a journalistic "lack of bias".
DVD Review: Rove as "Genius" and Language Distortion
Summary: 5 Stars
In these days of spin control language distortions are such a popular pastime that it is becoming increasingly impossible to separate distortion from reality, which is what the spinmeisters of propaganda and discontent are seeking to achieve.
The interesting documentary film "Bush's Brain" adapted from the book of the same name by veteran Texas political journalists James C. Moore and Wayne Slater is interestingly divided up between those who clearly see through Karl Rove, the film's subject, and those who do not wish to do so. Many in the latter category have become Rove enablers and sycophants of the most repellent variety.
After watching this revealing film I thought it advisable to look up the word genius in the dictionary to learn its actual definition. According to the Random House and American Heritage editions genius is defined as a gift for creative and intellectual activity. The psychological definition is also mentioned involving individuals who score above 140 on a standard IQ test.
Among the Rove admirers who equate his political activities with "genius" an early triumph was discussed extending back to Rove's early days in the College Republicans. When popular Illinois Democrat Alan Dixon, who would eventually serve his state in the U.S. Senate, was holding a rally at his headquarters while running for statewide office early in his career, Rove borrowed a page from the dirty tricks playbook of his political idol Richard Nixon.
In an attempt to embarrass Dixon and other local Illinois Democrats, Rove emissaries visited a downtrodden section and passed out handbills to alcoholics and derelicts, inviting them to a party replete with free food and drink. A group of the most unfortunate citizens of the community subsequently descended on Dixon headquarters and ruined the candidate's best-laid plans.
Did this Rove maneuver embody genius? There can be no reasonable doubt that an Einstein creating a theory of relativity or a Beethoven writing a Ninth Symphony embodies genius.
Does it require genius to engage in what would by the gentlest definition constitute tasteless mischief? Is rounding up the most tragic and downtrodden of a citizenry and using them cruelly as pawns, motivating them to descend on a political meeting in the expectation of free food and drink, in any way reflective of creative genius?
Other incidents abound in this revealing documentary about the checkered past of Rove. When he sought to destroy the momentum of Mark White in his race for governor of Texas against Rove's candidate, Rove called the media to report an incident of a bugging of his office. The only person with any motive to do so, according to Rove, was the White campaign. The bug only carried a short distance and needed periodic battery restoration. Savvy reporters like Glenn Smith were convinced that Rove, who had seemingly the only motivation to do so to alter the race's dynamics, had supervised the planting of the bug.
Rove has succeeded because he has had big bucks behind him and too many with the insight to expose him have remained silent.
DVD Review: Scary!
Summary: 5 Stars
If you want to rent a true horror movie, watch Bush's Brain, based on the book by two Texan reporters. Their assertion that Karl Rove is running the White House is frightening because apparently he's a brilliant but ruthless man that no one elected.
This DVD was released in 2004. Much of the information is outdated. Only brief allusions were made to the fact that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq whereas much attention was paid to the background of Karl Rove -- if even 1/10 of that is true, he is a man without a soul or a conscience and he's directing our domestic and foreign policy.
The big surprise is not so much how Bush and Rove pulled this scam off; the true surprise to me is how the electorate put these men in for a second term! The first term was quite "iffy." It could be argued that Bush was appointed by the Supreme Court because that race was so damn close, but all that really says is that the country was divided right down the middle in terms of partisan politics.
When we knew perfectly well that Bush revealed himself as a war president, why, oh why elect him for a second term? Thankfully, he'll be ousted in 2008 but that's not soon enough for the dept that he's run up, the programs that he's destroyed, the American troops that he's sent needlessly to die or be maimed, and the horrific damage that he inflicted on the country and the people of Iraq. And this is only January. He's got lots of time to expand his reign.
Sigrid Macdonald
Ottawa, Ontario (formerly from New Jersey)
DVD Review: Straighten out these comments please
Summary: 3 Stars
Giving this film a neutral star rating so its rating isn't unduly altered. I've seen this film; like any political documentary, there's a degree of Kool-Aide drinking that has to occur before everything goes down unopposed. I personally enjoyed it very much, but you have to maintain a healthy bit of suspicion when you view something as politically charged as "Bush's Brain".
Which is why reading the reviews here is so distrubing. I should be able to find one- and two-star ratings with enlightened Bush-friendly commentary as to why this film is bogus, right? In the service of keeping an open mind?
So here's my request. If you're going to give this film a one- or two-star rating that derides it, or that explicitly supports Bush, or that personally attacks the film's producers or the book's authors, would you please:
1. Gather some facts
2. Form an idea that you can establish in writing
3. Make sure you've actually seen the film
K? Thanks.
Description of Bush's Brain
Karl Rove is President George W. Bush's closest advisor. He is a man who has almost single-handedly shaped the policies of our nation. Feared and admired by Republicans and Democrats allike, Rove has raised a new and disturbing question for Americans: who really runs the country? This DVD explores Rove's remarkable political journey and the extraordinary role he has played in Bush's rise to the top. DVD features include chapter selection, theatrical trailer, bonus interviews, and previously unseen documentary footage.A late bloomer among the rich harvest of political documentaries released in 2004, Bush's Brain is potently revealing yet maddeningly pedestrian in its attack on Karl Rove, the powerful presidential advisor nicknamed "Bush's Brain" for serving in effect as co-president in the George W. Bush administration. Slapped together for the sake of an expedient pre-election release, the film makes a convincing case (while offering no tangible proof) that Rove conducts ruthlessly effective Republican campaigns on the belief that "the ends justify the means." Based on the book by James C. Moore and James Slater (both featured prominently in abundant talking-head interviews), the film lacks the coherent structure that would've made it truly effective, assumes considerable foreknowledge on the part of the viewer, and regrettably includes a tear-jerking, non sequitur digression about the grieving family of a beloved Marine who was killed in Iraq. But the film's shattering allegations and heartbreaking testimonies suggest, in no uncertain terms, that Rove is pulling the Presidential strings, remaining virtually untouchable while winning elections by any means necessary. As a fascinating study of alleged corruption and unchecked ambition, Bush's Brain is anything but balanced, but it's an important film that invites viewers to draw their own conclusions. --Jeff Shannon
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