Saddam's Egg
A very problematic film.
My problem was not with Morris' thesis per se, nor with the core material-- the interviews. But I do have a great deal of difficulty with the form the film takes. Recently, Mr. Morris became defensive in Berlin when asked about his use of re-enactments. I don't believe the issue of re-enactments is the issue here, but rather the unneccesary visual flourishes that confuse the central issues put forth. If Mr. Morris is concerned with how photography is an unreliable vehicle to provide the stamp of authority on historical events, leading in this case to the scapegoating of a motley group of unsupervised "minors" let loose in a high-risk situation, then why does he undermine his case by ladling a "heavy sauce" of hyper-glossy, Hollywood-like visuals onto what isan already compelling narrative? After dealing with the inherent artifice of the photographic medium vis-a-vis framing and staging, then why engage in equally mis-leading artifice such as fetishistic details of blood dropping and shower heads opening up. Re-enactments are one thing, as the brilliant staging of the milkshake toss in The Thin Blue Line proves that they are crucial in an investigative pursuit. But the details in S.O.P. are not re-enactments, and come across as mere visual tropes to heighten the emotional tenor in a less-than-honest way. A prime example of this, is "Saddam's egg." At a certain point in the film, much seems to be made of a single egg cooked by Saddam. The camera lingers on the egg as it is cracked. Purpose? Perhaps it is some obscure metaphor? However, it comes across as simply pointless in the scheme of things. Likewise, Danny Elfman's score-- although one of his better composition's of late (along with his stirring "Serenada Schizophrana") is put to very poor use. On the whole, I do not have a problem with employing music in a documentary, but to have such charged music almost constantly chugging away beneath most of the interviews in the film, is too much. It serves only to distract. The score falls prey to that classic mode of poor scoring, in which the emotion of the scene must be sonically spelled out on the wall, rather than allowing the the thing to speak for itself. These interviews are compelling enough on their own, and do not require an ever-present score beneath them. Errol Morris is a very intelligent filmmaker, but someone should have advised him during the editing of this project to let the voices found within, to speak for themselves a bit more. Another annoying feature during the interviews, involves the identification of each of the subjects, which comes in the form of a sound-effect enhanced pop-up "card." This technique smacks of the production techniques of your local "action news" pieces, and to see Morris using it, is disheartening.
Long gone is the minimalist mastery of "Gates of Heaven" and "Vernon, Florida," in which Mr. Morris created compelling, contemplative spaces to inhabit.
Where S.O.P. does succeed, is with the meat of the interviews themselves. What becomes painfully clear in the film, is that those involved at the lower levels were very young, very immature individuals who were morally, emotionally and intellectually unprepared for the situation they were placed into. They were trained not to think, and they they were punished for not thinking. In the end, what is worse, the absence of morality in those who have not lived long enough in these kinds of situations to know what is acceptable, or the "higher ups" in the chain of command who are absent of any firm moral voice or conviction? It should not have been the responsibility of these "children" to make the decisions that were made. But without "parents," what could one expect. It is also pointed out that the real torturers, the interrogators who were NOT in the photographs and were members of various government agencies, got away, quite literally, with murder. S.O.P. at its heart, puts into doubt the identity of who we think is the culprit/villain.
Perhaps, in the future, Errol Morris can return to his brilliant roots, and allow the material to speak with a clearer voice.