Cinema Cycle - The Unknown Known

CINEMA CYCLE

(Cardio Workout And Reviewing Movies At The Same Time)

DATE VIEWED: 04/03/2015

TITLE: The Unknown Known

FORMAT: Streaming (Google Play)

TIME RIDDEN / FILM LENGTH: 1 hour 42 minutes

DISTANCE RIDDEN WHILE VIEWING: 23.8 miles

TOTAL CINEMA MILES LOGGED: 1424 miles

SYNOPSIS: The recollections of Donald Rumsfeld and his experiences serving in the White House and as Secretary of Defense.

CONCEPT IN RELATION TO THE VIEWER: The ‘click’ of those in power is exclusive and the average citizen has no clue about how government really operates.

PROS AND CONS: A good documentary, more so because of what Rumsfeld actually reveals and discusses rather than what the filmmaker discovers in the course of the film.  

The director of this film is an Oscar winning documentarian and it shows in this film.  This is investigative journalism for those that have grown up with cinema special effects and PowerPoint.  The presentation, graphics, music and interviews i this film are very slick and keep the viewer interested.

The two things that stand out after watching this film is that those in power have a different view of the world and how it works than Joe Blow with his 6-pack of beer and his 5 year old Chevy.  The powerbrokers of society see the world in terms of how they act upon it and not in terms of whether what they are doing is right or wrong. In that sense, they make no mistakes or bad decisions.  They are at the pinnacle of power and everything they do is justifiable in their own minds.  

The second insight is how ruthless and ‘club-like’ the upper echelons of government are.  There is infighting, back stabbing and arguments about ideology throughout their tenure.  It is not a well oiled ‘team’ running the country, but instead a bunch of bickering elitists that are far removed from the lives of the average citizen.

To read an overview of this project, check out the initial post for this series.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) entry for this film. 

This film was viewed while exercising on my recumbent cycle.  A summary of my time spent working out on my journey through movie-land can be found on Strava.com.