Guest review by Dan Berman
I'm proud to have seen one of the finest pieces of documentary filmmaking by the extraordinary Errol Morris. Morris, known for many of his other outstanding selections of films including: The Thin Blue Line; Cheap, Fast, & Out of Control; and Brief History of Time has again assembled another strong message. With Fog of War, he takes us back to the Vietnam War.

Robert S. McNamara was United States Defense Secretary from 1961 to early 1968. He served under Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and John F. Kennedy. During his seven-year tenure, under a constant eye of good and bad press, McNamara always did what he felt was right. The Fog of War beautifully translates McNamara's thoughts onto film as he runs down his own eleven lessons of war. Even though some of his lessons did not seem encouraging from his ?Rationality will not save us" to the saddest and probably one of the most disturbing "You can't change human nature".

The documentary is fascinating in its entirety with wonderful editing that takes you back and fourth from discussions with McNamara as he talks with Johnson and Kennedy on tape. Morris gives a grand tour of war with maps, recorded footage, and one of the most controversial one-on-one discussions with McNamara. There is one portion of the film where McNamara goes on to say: "America needs to be thinking about killing" he also asks the question "How much evil do we need to do before we do good?"

McNamara makes the confession that he himself made some serious mistakes during his time as United States Secretary of Defense. Even during some of the interview questions, he seems to deflect from answering outright and instead veers off the topic.

Mr. McNamara, who left the Defense Department in 1968, continues his silence about the war. In a 1995 memoir In Retrospect he repeats what the film tells us including the 11 lessons of war. He also, published a book in 2001 called Wilson's Ghost.

The Fog of War goes even deeper than just Vietnam. During his days in World War II, Robert McNamara was Commander under the arch-hawk Gen. Curtis Le May. He can be seen in some of the photos and film footage captured of this dreaded warmonger. Mr. McNamara was part of a team with a mission to firebomb 67 Japanese cities. More than 100,000 people were left for dead that very night in 1945.

The Fog of War is extremely frightening to think about. It has no equal, nor does any film compare with regards to its depth of insight into war. Mr. McNamara speaks with emotion but offers up no apologies. It's a film that people and critics alike will remember for years to come and will be used as a true uninterrupted look back on an era filled with chaos. The Fog of War earned an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at this year's Academy Awards ceremony.

Dan Berman