Customer Reviews

Horns and Halos

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This film is unlike any documentary I've ever seen before. It combines various cinematic styles-- from Albert Maysles' uncut, "direct cinema" approach, to Michael Moore's "guerilla documentary" approach.

The characters are all nuanced, complex personalities, and the filmmakers do a startingly good job at not passing judgment and allowing us to see the characters for who they really are.

Rather than being a simplistic anti-Bush doc, the film is a meditation on how media, money, and politics combine to reak havoc on the life of an already troubled man.

I highly, highly recommend this film, not only to those who are interested in the intersection of media, money, and politics, but to those who are interested in experiencing great filmmaking.

Excellent film, showing the history of the book Fortunate Son, a biography of George W. Bush, from its withdrawal from publication by St. Martin's Press through two editions with its new publisher, Soft Skull Press. The camera follows the author and the publisher as they encounter the ups and downs of a publishing and media world that is hostile to their enterprise. The movie pulls no punches about the author, who was a felon convicted of procuring an attempted murder, showing varied sides, including loving father. The movie also follows the ins and outs of the developing friendship of the author and his publisher. Overlying this is the political story of an author who picked the right candidate for biography; overcoming efforts to suppress, sidetrack, and censor; making a political statement in an environment ruled by big money; and the U.S. media circus, that follows the juicy personal scandal while ignoring the major political and economic scandals detailed in the book. The movie ends on a somber note, at the suicide of the author; but the book, and this movie, live on. I saw the movie tonight and came straight to Amazon Canada to buy it.

"Horns and Halos" is a fascinating story behind a book that became so controversial, its publisher, St Martin's Press issued a recall a few days after the publication date, and promptly burned all of the copies. The name of the book is "Fortunate Son" a biography of George W. Bush. The book's author, J.H.Hatfield had a few other star biographies under his belt (Ewan McGregor and Patrick Stewart) and also authored an unauthorized guide of X-Files when he pitched the book successfully to St. Martin's Press. "Fortunate Son" was supposed to be one of those glitzy tribute bios, but it turned into something much more, and what happened to the book, and J.H.Hatfield is the meat of this riveting documentary.

Hatfield added an afterword to the book, which he claimed was at St. Martin's insistence. The afterword included a juicy acknowledgment by three unspecified sources about Bush's alleged cocaine addiction. Hatfield insisted that he didn't want to add this info, but did so when the publisher pressed the issue. Immediately after publication, Hatfield's sordid past--which included a murder-for-hire scheme came to light, and the dirt on Hatfield--combined with the segment on Bush's alleged cocaine use led to the books' recall and destruction.

Enter Soft Skull Press, a tiny independent press who then republished the book and tried to distribute it. A great deal of the film follows the trials and tribulations of the rogue founder of Soft Skull Press, the intrepid, idealistic Sander Hicks as he and J.H.Hatfield attempt to re-launch the book. Hicks and Hatfield attended book conventions, and even appeared on 60 Minutes to try and promote the book. The two men form an unlikely sometimes-difficult bond. There's Hatfield with his glum, fatalistic realisation that he's "dead meat", and then there's Hicks, who refuses to give up. Unfortunately, the content of the book faded behind its controversy and the author's past. And even when Hatfield revealed his sources, nothing could salvage the situation.

The film "Horns and Halos" is a two-disc set. One disc is the film, and the other disc is devoted to extras including: protests at Bush's inauguration, band White Collar Crime in performance, 11 deleted scenes, director's commentary, interviews with Hatfield, protest coverage, KCET coverage of the documentary, and an interview with Sander Hicks. If you are interested in reading more of the story (the 60 minutes transcript, for example), Sander Hicks has a website (sanderhicks.com). Hicks no longer works for Soft Skull Press and is now--amongst other things--working on a bio of Karl Rove--displacedhuman

At last, here is a film that pulls no punches and delves into the little known story of Jim Hatfield and his book Fortunate Son... This is a really well made documentary that will knock your socks off and tell you all kinds of stuff you didnt know about Bush (pre-2000 election) and some of his more dubious habits. The question remains, how did this book about Bush get spiked and what really happened to its author? Buy this film and at least formulate an opinion...

This short documentary film 'Horns and Halos' features two very fascinating persons -- James Hatfield and Sander Hicks. Frankly, its subject matter about Hatfield's book 'Fortunate Son' unauthorized biography of George W. Bush looks no longer fresh and arresting as before for too many things happened since then. Still, this documentary is fascinating in its own way because of these two men's unique characters.

The most interesting part of the film is the long and winding road to re-publish this controversial book. Hatfield's book first published by St Martin's Press was withdrawn because some part of the author's biographical facts were unearthed. Then, a small publishing company Soft Skull Press, led by one young guy Sander Hicks (with a haircut like 'Travis' of 'Taxi Driver'), thinks of publishing the book again.

The film follows their efforts to promote the book, their promotions being several appearances on TV or radio shows (including '60 Minutes' though you can see only the introductory part of it). However, I believe the incongruous relations between Hicks and Hatfield is the best part of the film. These two guys are really something, I mean, if you don't know that this is a documentary film, you might think that they are the characters coming out of David Mamet dramas. See the publisher Hicks quote the e-mail from Hatfield, who obviously didn't like the way Hicks was talking to him. Reading the angry words themselve, like spit-fire, Hicks is also gradually carried away by the language, yelling before the PC in the basement floor where the publishing company is. You rarely see that kind of image on screen.

I don't know to what extent the comments they make before the camera is realiable. Still, I know, and you will know too, that Hatfield's life is, as he confesses, falling apart. It's sad to see the last five minutes of the film, which shows us what happened to James Hatfield after the Book Expo. where the film starts, and aptly ends.

Unlike Micheal Moore's '911' film, this is no attack on George W. Bush. As a result, the film's theme sometimes looks unfocused when it tries to include the Bush footages during the campagin (from archives), because the film is after all about the writer who wrote about the president, not the US president himself. So, see for these two central figures, who are so fascinating that they will remain in your mind long after watching it.

I just watched the DVD of "Horns and Halos". While I was expecting a sort of B version of Michael Moore, and in some senses it is, I found it a lot more moving that Moore, and so real, interesting and sad (it made me cry) that it made me want to get on the Internet to find out more, and write a review recommending it.

This documentary is about a guy who writes a book about George W. Bush, and his relationship with his second publisher. We hear that publishing the book was a nightmare (at the beginning) and of his fears that sometime soon he may never see his daughter again (near the end).

Why did I like it? First of all it seemed very real, fair, and complete. It is clear that this film is taken by a few people with Handycams, but they are talking their Handycams to all the right places, even to interview people that pan the book.

I liked the people in this documentary. Mr. Hicks, the publisher is weird and amusing. He should be on TV or something. Mr. Hatfield seems genuine and really lovable, despite his past. He really seems like a nice guy (sort of Billy Bob Thornton-ish). Apparently some who read his book ("Fortunate Son") say that he was not even that hard on Bush. The interviews with him come across as being shockingly honest, and he as repentant, caring, family man.

In 1988 Mr. Hatfield conspired, and failed to kill a woman, his boss, that it is claimed, was blackmailing someone else. He went to prison for five years. Mr. Hatfield got out of prison, gets married, and makes a living writing books about The X files, and science fiction heroes.

Then, in about 1997, Mr. Hatfield (*why him?!*) was given the job of writing a bio of Bush, with a considerable amount of money up-front. He does a pretty good job. But, *at the insistence of his publisher* (*why?*) Mr. Hatfield includes an afterword where he claims that informants close to Bush told him (*Did they? If so why!?*) that Bush was arrested for his use of cocaine.

The most intriguing part of the film comes in Mr. Hatfield's allegation that he thought that, in retrospect, he was fed the information, because someone knew about his (Mr. Hatfield's) past, with the intention of giving 'the cocaine scoop' (if true) the spin that it did in fact receive. I.e. something along the lines of 'Would-be-Woman-Murderer, Ex-Convict, Science Fiction Writer Claims...".

If this allegation is true, then it is ambitious, malevolent genius at work. How better to spin the cocaine 'scoop' (if true)? And utterly tragic for Mr. Hatfield. But in this documentatry, the real Mr. Hatfield blames himself.

For all I know, the real malevolent genuises may be the democrats (?) that made this documentary, and Mr. Hatfield may have been a slandering "Bush-Basher", but either way, there is genuis at work. Mr. Hatfield comes accross as being an honest, brave, lovable, tragic man.

My sincere condolences to Mr. Hatfield's wife and daughter.

This documentary actually turns out to be quite a lot more than a political polemic, and it's all the better for it. Naturally, extreme lovers of Bush will be put off immediately, but no surprise there. And, people looking for straight Bush bashing may be disappointed as well. This is not an expose into the darker side of the Retard King, and it purposely goes easy on the conspiratorial tone. There is a significant, though not entirely fleshed out, subtext about media control and the consequences of that, but mostly this is a story about some fascinating, driven, rather demented people and their travails amongst the big fish. In other words, it's most entertaining and enlightening on a human level, not a political one.

I will say that the `revelation' at the end is so extreme that it changes the perception of the entire narrative, and it's something which the movie itself never entirely comes to grips with. The way it's structured does give the momentum of the drama a naturalistic feel, but I wonder if there wasn't a better, more upfront way to rework it and maintain the impact.

However, the sense of howling into the wind is subtle and well played, and the real human drama of people striving to be more than they actually are (even by duplicitous means) opens up a whole range of connections between GWB, the author and the publisher. The idea that the publisher and the author are to some extent frauds, or at the very least unabashed showmen, would call into question the validity of the whole documentary if the approach didn't feel genuinely vérité, which is why it works much better as a depiction of flawed humanity than as an investigation into the (also interesting) issues with the book, media, etc.

I have seen the film for the second time and was impressed even more by not only its informative content, but by its terrific dramatic impact. Needless to mention the film's continued relevance during this highly sensitive pre-election time. Even as just a film viewing experience is really packs a wallop.

If you're a republican consider watching "Horns and Halos" you just might realize your commander and chief is not what you thought. Thanks to director Suki Hawley, for having the guts to make this film.

This is the best movie I have ever seen. It is Chilling and so true.