As part of my coverage of this year's Oscars [1], I'll be posting the trailers for as many of the Best Documentary and Best Foreign Film nominees as I can find. Since it's often harder to see these films in theaters, it's nice to at least get a taste of them before Oscar night — not to mention that it might help you when you fill out your Oscar ballot. [2]
Documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney made his mark on the film world in 2005 with Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room [3], an Oscar-nominated film about the sordid rise and fall of the energy giant. A couple of years later, Gibney has returned with another film about a different kind of corruption. Taxi to the Dark Side [4] focuses on interrogation, torture, and abuse seemingly condoned by the US government as a part of the war on terror.
As with Enron, where Gibney started with a book about the scandal [5], this movie has its roots in a New York Times article about an Afghan taxi driver beaten to death while in military custody. That story — and its subsequent coverup — open a window into larger questions of power, abuse, and winning by any means necessary.
The movie is currently playing in a number of theaters around the country [6]. Have any of you checked it out? To watch the trailer, just .
Source [7]