Product Details

• Actors: Samir Khader, Josh Rushing, George W. Bush, Hassan Ibrahim, Deema Khatib
• Directors: Jehane Noujaim
• Writers: Jehane Noujaim, Julia Bacha
• Producers: Jehane Noujaim, Abdallah Schleifer, Alan Oxman, Andrew P. Hurwitz, Andrew Rossi
• Format: Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: Arabic, English
• Subtitles: Arabic, English, French, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Lions Gate
• DVD Release Date: October 26, 2004
• Run Time: 84 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (109 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0002X8U4I
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #106,886 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "Control Room" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Startling and powerful, Control Room is a documentary about the Arab television network Al-Jazeera's coverage of the U.S.-led Iraqi war, and conflicts that arose in managed perceptions of truth between that news media outlet and the American military. Egyptian-American filmmaker Jehane Noujaim (Startup.com) catches the frantic action at Al-Jazeera headquarters as President Bush stipulates his 48-hour, get-out-of-town warning to Saddam Hussein and sons, soon followed by the network's shocking footage of Iraqi civilians terrorized and killed by invading U.S. troops. Al-Jazeera's determination to show images and report details outside the Pentagon's carefully controlled information flow draws the wrath of American officials, who accuse it of being an al-Qaida propagandist. (The killing of an Al-Jazeera reporter in what appears to be a deliberately targeted air strike is horrifying.) Most fascinating is the way Control Room allows well-meaning, Western-educated, pro-democratic Arabs an opportunity to express views on Iraq as they see it--in an international context, and in a way most Americans never hear about. --Tom Keogh

Product Description

Control room is a rate film that is both timely and timeless: timeless because it ecplores the ancient and complex relationship between the western and Arab worlds timely because it reveals how satellite television has changed the way wars are reported- from news providers driven by the patriotism of their audiences to army information officers driven by military objectives. Control room is a seminal documentary that explores how truth is gathered presented and ultimately created by those who deliver it.System Requirements: Running Time 86 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. Rating: NR UPC: 031398169321 Manufacturer No: 16932

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

174 of 189 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fair and balanced news? Isn't that what they all say? November 27, 2004

By Linda Linguvic HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

This award winning 2003 documentary tells the story of the war in Iraq from the point of view of Al Jazeera, the television network that brings the news to 40 million people in the Arab-speaking world. Many of the challenges it faces are shared by journalists everywhere. They risk their lives to bring a story to the people. And they are all under pressure to spin the story to their employers' wishes.

The viewer meets the people who produce this news network. There's the director Samir Khader, the chain smoking and cynical head of the organization. He freely admits he'd be willing to work for Fox News if offered the job and wants to send his children to America for their educations. There's Hassan Ibrahim, a former BBC correspondent. He's a well-spoken pudgy man with a clear mind, who sees the world through a slightly different filter that I do. And a lot of what he says makes sense challenging my perceptions on a very human level. There's Deema Khatib, one of the Al Jazeera staff members, whose playful expressive large brown eyes sparkle with a great sense of humor, She's unveiled and modern and obviously well educated. Then there is Lieutenant Josh Rushing, who clearly is doing his best to explain U.S. policy. He's blue eyed and personable and very American and has a calm demeanor and a high intellect. His interchanges with Al Jazeera personnel show a depth of understanding for all sides of the question. And yet he is steadfast in his support of America.

The film begins in March 2003 as American troops invade Iraq. Al Jazeera shows pictures of the casualties. The American news media does not. Al Jazeera is fast to point out some troubling realities of American foreign policy.... And, in this documentary at least, it attempts show that its news coverage is fair and balanced. But then, again, isn't that what they all say?

This film made me think.

And what made me think even more were the special features included on the DVD which show more interviews with the subjects of the film and adds a bit of humanity to them all, including the American Lieutenant who has the hard job of trying to placate all sides.

The situation in the world today is complex. I came away with more insight into its depths. There are no real answers. Only serious questions.

This is fine and troubling film that challenges all our perceptions. Highly recommended. Read more ›

33 of 37 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars So much more than bargined for... October 5, 2004

By Amber N. King

Format:DVD

This documentary is spell binding and without spin.... It was an instant-replay to the start of the war all over again from an unfiltered lens, most refreshing. Michael Moore had all the fireworks and media blitz but this little gem had all the details. This is truely a movie to celebrate the free speech and to gain an understanding of others. America it's time to take off the blinders and re-evaluate our country and what it means to all of us. Cheers to Jehane and her crew for making such an important piece of film.

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Out-"Foxed" by Al-Jazeera...Media Spin is Multilingual October 23, 2004

By Ed Uyeshima HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

Having just seen Robert Greenwald's "Outfoxed" about the media manipulation we are subjected to by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, specifically the Fox Network, this eye-opening documentary is a fascinating counterpoint from the perspective of the famous and sometimes infamous Middle East news agency, Al-Jazeera. I cannot think of two more diametrically opposite news agencies reporting on the events in Iraq, but the key difference between them is that Al-Jazeera appears to admit to their biases rather than claim to be "fair and balanced". What is more startling is how much more similar they are in operation than they are different in their presentation of political opinion disguised as facts. Obviously filmmaker Jehane Noujaim takes a more sympathetic portrait of Al-Jazeera and does supply clear evidence where Al-Jazeera is right and the American government is wrong on certain Iraqi events. As an overview of the first independent and now most popular news channel in the Middle East, the film takes a hard look at the key milestones from Bush's threat of invasion through the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

One would think Michael Moore funded this documentary from the damning evidence presented, but Noujaim is nothing but thorough in illustrating the Bush administration's changing rationales for invading Iraq, the use of fear in the media to manipulate public opinion, the martyrdom of Jessica Lynch, the card deck identifying the most wanted men in Hussein's regime, and the suspiciously coincidental bombing deaths of three different Arab journalists on the same day by American planes. Al-Jazeera's perspective is unsurprisingly countered by Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld, who accuses the news agency of faking pictures of civilian deaths.... But Noujaim cuts to indisputable pictures of real victims from the American bombing. One of the most revealing moments in the film is the Al-Jazeera team's shocked disbelief witnessing the fall of Hussein's Iraq as they try to make their emotional response correspond to what they must rationally have expected all along. Noujaim spotlights several of Al-Jazeera's personalities, and each provides a unique opinion on both their news coverage as well as that of their American counterparts. Their begrudging respect for the Fox Network, for example, is an intriguing revelation among many presented here. Ultimately though, their disgust over American imperialism is clear, as reporter Hassan Ibrahim, as bitter an idealist as you'll ever see, decries, "Eventually you'll have to find a solution that doesn't involve bombing someone into submission... democratize or I will shoot you." Another eye-opener is how Al-Jazeera does not hesitate to invite Americans to give their point-of-view on the network, which is something the Fox Network purports to do but does so miserably due to the bullying tactics of their own personalities, Sean Hannity and of course, Bill O'Reilly. Those who have grown tired of the spin coming from the Bush administration will find this documentary valuable viewing. Highly recommended. Read more ›

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Who Saw What and Why. The Role of Media in Modern Warfare. October 29, 2004

By mirasreviews HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

"Control Room" is a revealing look behind the scenes of Al-Jazeera Satellite Channels' coverage of the war in Iraq, from the American buildup to invasion in March 2003 until shortly after Baghdad was captured. Al-Jazeera was founded in 1996 as the first independent television news network in the Arab world. It's Western style coverage quickly made the Al-Jazeera persona non grata is several Arab nations for covering viewpoints critical of government policies. Al-Jazeera takes the view that objectivity is impossible to achieve in news coverage, and it is dangerously naive to think otherwise. At least in theory, the network attempts to give voice to all sides of the issue, encompassing all biases. If everybody hates them, Al-Jazeera believes it's doing it's job. If only one side hates them, their coverage must be inexcusably biased. I should mention that this is a typical Arab perspective on the news media. And it's certainly how things worked out with the United States. President Bush has accused Al-Jazeera of being "the mouthpiece of Osama Bin Laden", while Iraq banned Al-Jazeera for broadcasting "American propaganda".

"Control Room"'s director Jehane Noujaim, whose last documentary was "Startup.com", is half American and half Egyptian. The film's producer and cinematographer, Hani Safama, is half Bosnian and half Egyptian. "Control Room" not only shows the other side of coin, the what and why of Iraq war coverage by an Arab network, but the film contemplates the role of the media in modern warfare. Jehane Noujaim obtained daily access to two Al-Jazeera employees, whom we get to know well over the course of the film. Samir Khader is a world-weary, stressed-out Senior Producer at the network.... Hassan Ibrahim is a Sudanese-born journalist, formerly of the BBC, who grew up in Saudi Arabia, attended college in the United States, and has covered 10 wars in the course of his career. Both of these men are perceptive and articulate in their views of the machinations of the press and politicians alike. (They speak English.) Ibrahim is an affable idealist who adores the US Constitution and hates this nation's politics. Khader is more pragmatic by nature, and his astute observations give the film weight. Khader's attitudes are very typical of educated Arabs, whom we don't often hear from in the American press. Other Al-Jazeera staff whom we meet include Producer Deema Khatib, Manager Joanne Tucker, and one of the network's simultaneous translators. These people are all very idealistic about the power for positive change that an independent network such as Al-Jazeera can bring to the Arab world by bringing uncensored political and social discourse into the homes of 40 million Arabs.

"Control Room"'s crew spent 5 weeks at the US Central Command, called CentCom, that had been moved from Tampa, Florida to Doha, Qatar for the invasion of Iraq. It is here that the world press gathered to broadcast announcements and ask questions of the US military. Press Officer Lt. Josh Rushing, of the Marine Corps, also gave the filmmaker's a lot of his time. It was his job to represent the American military operation to the world press. He assisted journalists however he could, all the time trying to make the US look good. The US Military couldn't have chosen a better representative. Lt. Rushing is generous with his time, friendly, fair, idealistic, remarkably patient, and always eager to understand all points of view. We also meet CNN correspondent Tom Mintier and MSNBC correspondent David Shuster at CentCom. CentCom, itself, is an interesting phenomenon. The war is being conducted from this isolated place in the middle of nowhere in Qatar. Journalists and military Press Officers alike are cut off from direct contact with the war and rely entirely on long distance communication in and out of CentCom.

"Control Room" is truly a fascinating film about the media's role in modern warfare. Seeing what Arabs saw and why is ironically revealing of what Americans saw and why. Populated with interesting characters and pointed insights, "Control Room" is a must-see. In English and Arabic with English subtitles.

The DVD: Bonus features include 31 deleted scenes, 3 audio commentaries, and a theatrical trailer. I didn't watch all of the deleted scenes, but I found they contain a few interesting tidbits, but nothing essential. The scenes are mostly interviews with Hassan Ibrahim, Samir Khader, David Shuster, Deema Khatib, Tom Mintier, Lt. Josh Rushing, and Moafak Tawfik. There are also some Al-Jazeera promo spots and 2 additional pieces about the day that 3 journalists were killed by American fire. The deleted scenes are organized according to whom they feature, so it's easy to find what you may be interested in.

The first audio commentary is by director Jehane Noujaim and producer/cinematographer Hani Safama. They talk about the history of Al-Jazeera that compelled them to understand the people behind the network and how they convinced Hassan Ibrahim, with whom they lived during filming, among others, to give them access. The commentary includes some interesting observations about the Al-Jazeera journalists and the American Press Officers. The second audio commentary is by Capt. Josh Rushing (Lieutenant in the film). He talks about his experiences at CentCom, the characters featured in the film, and the role of media in warfare. The third audio commentary is by Hassan Ibrahim and Samir Khader. They talk about each other, how they became involved with the film, their feelings about events depicted in the film, and decisions that they made in covering the war in Iraq. Samir is more pointedly critical of the Bush Administration in the commentary than in the film, as he gives his analysis of the aftermath of the war in Iraq. All three of the commentaries are worthwhile. Subtitles for the film are available in English, Arabic, French, and Spanish. Read more ›