"My Country My Country"

My Country My Country is a documentary film directed by Laura Poitras in 2006. The film takes place in Iraq during the 2005 elections. For Americans, it is hard to know what is going on with the war in Iraq unless you have a loved one or in the service. Poitras helps by putting faces with the issues in Iraq. Audiences at the end of the film walk away knowing more and having a personal connection with a topic that is affecting so many people's lives.

This documentary has great editing and storyline. The film follows a Sunni Ara doctor, his family, and their community around during the war and preparations for the elections. The film does a great job with using a time frame by not only using dates but also intervals, such as 6 months till the elections. The music was very powerful and helps make the culture appeal to our senses. The editing is straightforward but lets the people of Iraq, US troops, police, special security services, & UN representatives etc speak for themselves. The ending ties all of the films' elements into one cohesive topic. The music at the end and the doctor praying was very effective. Some great effects were them having camera shots in the car showing the streets and the doctor driving and the different news broadcasting whether on the TV or radio.

I thought this a great film. It answered some of my questions that I had to what all was occurring over there. Also, made me more intrigued in wanting to know more. I did think it was basis towards the doctor and the Iraqi people. The US troops were shown in a negative light most of the time throughout out the film. This led me to wonder whether how the troops were really acting over there or if it is hard to trust Iraqi citizens whether they are children or adults. There is still more to be discovered and learned with this topic but the film is a great tool that can and should be used as a starting point.