Everything Nonfiction

Review of The Rape of Europa

Review of The Rape of Europa written and directed by Nicole Newham, Richard Berge, Bonnie Cohen
Rating *** 1/2

This documentary is based on a book by the same name by author Lynn Nicholas. The film and book tell the story of how the Germans, and later the Russians, stole precious artwork, sculptures, and other artifacts throughout Europe for their own personal use. It's a fascinating story.

I've heard bits and pieces of this story over the years. But this film examines it in detail using a wealth of archival footage and interviews.

One of the claims by the filmmakers, and I assume the author of the book, is that at least some of the military advances during the war were motivated by the desire of Hitler and others to steal artwork. Besides Hitler, the other person who stole art for his own benefit was the head of the German air force. This guy, whose name I can not spell, probably aided in the German's demise. While his air force was involved in critical battles, he was out viewing art galleries in France and then taking what he wanted for his private collection. Even Hitler, who was an artist himself, was obsessed with creating the largest art gallery in the world. Forget the fact that the art was stolen and that much of it came from people who were later killed in concentration camps.

Despite the interesting story, the film drags some. I think it has to do with the dry delivery of the narrator Joan Allen. She comes across as an actor reading a script instead of someone telling a story. I also think that the most dramatic part of the story, the search and discovery of the missing art, was glossed over. To me, that is the part of the story that was the most compelling. But it is presented here as an afterthought.

I didn't know anything about the "monument" soldiers whose main job was to find and identify important artwork, galleries, and monuments before and after a bombing and invasion. Our military leaders apparently didn't have the same concern, considering how they allowed the looting of Iraq's museum in the immediate days after the invasion.

Lastly, it's a shame that the Russians have decided to not return much of their stolen artwork to the rightful owners. They need to do the right thing. It might go a long way to repairing their tarnished image.

Review of For The Thrill Of It

Review of For The Thrill Of It by Simon Baatz
Rating *****

Like Clarence Darrow at the beginning of For The Thrill Of It, I always felt that crime was a result of environmental pressures: poverty, lack of education, lack of health care, single parent, etc. I have since concluded that there are people in this world who have no conscience. They live their lives with the sole purpose of self gratification with no concern for how their actions affect others. Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb were two such people.

This story takes place in Chicago in 1924. Two teenagers, both well educated and both from wealthy families, decide to commit what they believe will be the perfect crime. Their plan is to kidnap a young boy, murder him, and then ask for a ransom. They follow through with their plan, but it is not the perfect crime that they imagined. They make mistakes. They leave evidence at the scene. Eventually the police follow the leads and bring both boys in for questioning. It doesn't take long before they confess. What follows is a trial as notorious as the OJ Simpson trial.

So why even have a trial if both boys confessed? The sole purpose of the trial, in which there was no jury, was to determine sentencing. The prosecuting attorney,Robert Crowe, wanted nothing short of execution by hanging. But the parents of the two boys hoped to win a life sentence. So they hired Clarence Darrow to defend them.

Throughout the book the question of motive is brought up but never answered. The entire crime appears to have happened solely for the thrill of seeing if they could pull it off. Or so that is how it is presented in the book and also at trial. But after reading the book, I feel that there was a motive and that motive was spelled out in closing arguments by the prosecuting attorney. I'm not sure why the author didn't pursue this further or, at least, give his opinion on the matter.

There is no question that there are elements of the crime that lack any explanation of motive. They picked their victim at random. Booby Franks just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. And neither boy was in need of the $10,000 ransom. So was this simply a crime for the thrill of it? Part of the evidence presented in the book concerns a killing of another person by a gun that was later traced back to Richard Loeb. Additional evidence brought up in closing arguments was that the real motive for the crime was that Nathan Leopold was aware of this killing and three other unspecified crimes by Richard Loeb. Nathan had been using this information as blackmail against Richard by forcing him into a sexual relationship. In order to stop this blackmail, Richard devised the whole kidnap plan as a way to get Nathan off his back. If they both participated in the crime, then Nathan would no longer have anything over Richard. It's all there. It makes sense. But for whatever reason the author just skips over it without much comment other than to list the evidence as presented.

I won't spoil the story by revealing how it ends. I totally enjoyed this book and eagerly advanced through it wondering where it would lead. I will, however,take this opportunity to pass on my thoughts about capital punishment. I am against the death penalty and this book only confirms my feelings on the subject. For one, our justice system is too flawed. Prosecutors make mistakes. Police make mistakes. Judges, juries, and eyewitnesses all make mistakes. Wealthy defendants have a distinct advantage over those who are not. Non Caucasians are at a huge disadvantage. More importantly, regardless of what you might read or hear the death penalty does not act as a deterrent.

So what do I say about someone who is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and whose crime is so terrible that we as a society cannot allow it to happen again? I can think of no stronger punishment than losing my freedom.

I highly recommend this book. It is an engaging, compelling story from start to finish.

Review of Bigger, Stronger, Faster

Review of Bigger, Stronger, Faster directed by Christopher Bell
Rating ****

This film is a well balanced look at steroid use. The writers frame the film around writer/director Chris Bell's own family. Two of his brothers use steroids. One who hopes to make it in professional wrestling and the other who competes in weight lifting competitions. The film looks at all sides of the issue from those who use steroids as a performance enhancement to those who use it for medical benefits.

I was surprised to learn how much my perception of steroid use has been shaped by overblown media coverage. I've always thought that steroids were a major health risk that could also lead to depression and mood swings such as "'roid rage." But when the filmmakers put up a series of statistics comparing steroid use with other societal problems such as alcohol and tobacco, steroids don't compare.

Still, there are problems associated with steroid use. There are side effects as with any drug. They are illegal without a prescription. And they do give an unfair advantage in competitions with athletes who do not use steroids.

The film uses a mixture of interviews, graphics, animation, and archival footage to weave an interesting story. The archival footage is especially put to good use. There are clips from movies by Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, both admitted steroid users. There are clips and interviews with professional athletes like Ben Johnson and Carl Lewis. The film covers the use of steroids in professional sports as well as the Olympics. But they also compare steroid use with other forms of performance enhancement. They use Tiger woods as an example. Tiger had laser eye surgery that improved his eyesight to 20/15. Does that give him an unfair advantage? The filmmakers interview professional musicians who use beta blockers to help control anxiety before a performance. They talk to accused steroid user Floyd Landis who denies using steroids but admits to sleeping in an altitude chamber, which changes his blood chemistry giving him better oxygen control. Is that cheating or is it just someone trying anything they can to improve their performance? The film also points out that taking steroids alone will not make someone a super athlete. It still takes training and skill to succeed.

One of the more interesting segments in the film was when Chris decided to go into the supplement business. He hired a couple of illegal immigrants off the street and, using off the shelf ingredients, made his own performance enhancement supplement. The pills he made cost him about $1.60 a bottle to make and could be sold for as much as $60 a bottle. And because they were supplements they were not subject to testing by the FDA. That's a whole other subject. To promote his new supplement, he hired models to pose for pictures that would be put on the label. The male model he hired happened to be a model used for other supplements. But when interviewed he admitted that his physic was mostly the result of steroid use and not the supplements he was touting.

The bottom line is that steroids should definitely be banned from professional sports. But the casual user should not be made to feel like a criminal any more than someone who has a few drinks after work. Everyone has their vices.

The DVD has a behind the scenes short but no audio commentary.

Review of Nanking

Review of Nanking directed by Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman
Rating **** 1/2

Nanking is the true story of what happened in 1937 when the Japanese invaded China. If anyone ever questioned the need for a strong military, they only need to watch this film.

This is a story about what happens when a group of people, in this case unsupervised Japanese soldiers, are given absolute power over a less fortunate group of people. The end result is mass murder, rape, and uncontrolled looting. You would have thought that this kind of thing was relegated to the seventeenth century and earlier. But we've seen it time and again in places like Rwanda, Darfur, and Yugoslavia. Though I'm not sure that even those examples can compare to what happened in Nanking, mostly because of the swiftness with which it happened. In a time span of just two weeks the Japanese murdered an estimated 250,000 people and committed an estimated 20,000 rapes.

Nanking was the capital city of China in 1937. The city was first subjected to weeks of relentless bombings. Those who had the resources fled to the countryside. Those left behind would face a living hell. As the Japanese ground soldiers advanced on the city with little or no resistance, they murdered indiscriminately. After reaching Nanking they settled in and really got serious with the killings and rapes.

The story is told from various viewpoints including some of the actual Japanese soldiers who participated in the atrocities. More on that later. The primary story involves a group of westerners who tried to create a safety zone for refugees. Their efforts were only partially successful. While they saved countless lives, the Japanese soldiers showed little respect for the safety zone and repeatedly entered the zone to snatch suspected Chinese soldiers. Since they couldn't determine who were soldiers and who wasn't, they basically gathered up everyone who was male and the right age. They them summarily executed them.

Much of the story is told by actors who read letters written by people who were there. I've never seen this done before, but it works exceptionally well. A mix of archival footage, images, interviews, and reenactments balance out the rest of the film.

There is no excuse that the Japanese can give to explain what happened in Nanking. The sad part about it is when the filmmakers interviewed some of the soldiers who participated in the killings and rapes, they didn't seem the least bit bothered by what they had done. They displayed the same lack of compassion and morals that led to the killings. If it's any consolation, none of them looked like they were living a life of luxury.

The Japanese people today bare no responsibility for what happened anymore than the German people today bare responsibility for what the Nazis did in the concentration camps. But we all need to watch films like this in order to not let it happen again.

This was an HBO film. The DVD had no extras.

Review of Taxi to the Dark Side

Review of Taxi to the Dark Side directed by Alex Gibney
Rating *****

This film won the Oscar for best documentary. It's another great film about the abuses of power in the Bush presidency. This film's merit comes mostly from the message of the story. In summary, that message is that any nation that undertakes torture and inhumane treatment of prisoners undermines the integrity of that nation and puts its people and military under the threat of retaliation.

While the theme of the movie is about our government's use of torture as a matter of policy, the storyline that is used to illustrate this policy concerns an Afghan taxi driver by the name of Dilawar. Dilawar was turned over to the U.S military by an Afghan warlord who claimed that Dilawar and three of his passengers were responsible for a rocket attack against a U.S. military base. Three days later, after beatings and other mistreatment by interrogators, he died. His death was ruled a homicide. The worst part about it is that he was innocent. The warlord who turned him in was the person responsible for the rocket attacks.

This film touches on many of the same themes as other books and films that I have covered on this blog: No End in Sight, Frontline's Bush's War, Ghosts of Abu Ghraib, and Enemy Combatant by Moazzam Begg, who appears in this film. They all tell a similar story.

Here are a few facts that the film brings out: There have been over a hundred deaths of prisoners while in the custody of U.S. forces. Ninety-three per cent of the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay Cuba were handed over to the U.S. forces by Afghan and Pakistan citizens (for a reward) and not captured by the U.S. military. Those people being held in Guantanamo are being held without charge, without a timetable for their case to be reviewed, without the ability to see the evidence against them, and for the most part without any opportunity to put up a meaningful defense. Fortunately, there are some reasonable lawyers who have volunteered their time to help them despite the President's attempts to circumvent the law. Sure, there are a few bad people being held at Guantanamo. But the evidence points to there being more innocent people being held than guilty people. Just look at how many people have been brought to trial in the past seven years. The answer: one (I'll have more on that case in a later review.)

Intelligence derived through torture has no merit. One of the reasons given to justify the war in Iraq was information derived through torture that Saddam's forces received training in chemical and biological weapons. That information was later proved to be false.

The DVD has a couple of interviews with the director as well as an insightful audio commentary.

Review of Joe Louis: American Hero...Betrayed

Review of Joe Louis: American Hero...Betrayed written by Ouisie Shapiro
Rating ****

This is an HBO film about heavyweight champion Joe Louis. This film is similar in content to the Ken Burn's film Unforgivable Blackness, which was about the first black heavyweight boxing champion - Jack Johnson. Joe Louis's story takes place nineteen years later.

Both men overcame poverty and racial prejudices to reach the pinnacle of their sport. Both men achieved great fame and wealth. And both men were ultimately destroyed by those who could not see past their skin color. For Jack Johnson, his downfall began after he married a white woman. For Joe Louis, his troubles grew along with his earnings. At his peak, Jou Louis was earning $400,000 a year at a time when the average wage earner made only a couple thousand dollars a year. Some poor financial advice led him into trouble with the IRS. The penalties and interest grew to such an amount that he was unable to overcome it, despite every effort to remedy the situation. A good tax lawyer probably could have had the whole thing settled for a few thousand dollars. In this case, however, Joe Louis was driven to do anything he could to earn money to pay his debts including fighting past his prime and selling his name to anyone who would offer to pay him.

The film uses a mix of archival footage of Joe Louis along with interviews with various people including his son. This is a story that seems almost universal to anyone who has ever held a heavyweight title. Mohammad Ali, who makes a brief appearance in this film, has a similar tale. I've heard recently that Joe Frasier has even talked about fighting again.

Ken Burns' film gets the edge here mainly because it is longer and able to go a little more in depth.

October View From the Cockpit

I'm calling this picture Water, Sun, & Clouds. To get a high resolution copy, click on the image then right click and select save.