Reviewed by Stuart O'Connor
With contributions from Clare Short, Boris Johnson, Andrew GIlligan,
Tony Benn, Mark Thomas, David Bermingham and the Natwest 3,
Walter Wolfgng, Moazzam Begg
Narrated by Ashley Jensen & David Morrissey
UK certification 12A | UK RRP £19.99
DVD Region 2 | Runtime 106 minutes
Written & directed by Chris Atkins
"When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty."
— Thomas Jefferson
If what Jefferson said is true, then the British public has a hell of a lot to fear right now. If this documentary is to be believed, then the United Kingdom is now a totalitarian state the likes of which Adolf Hitler could only dream of. And the main culprit? Former prime minister Tony Blair — who, with the prodding of his moronic ally in the White House, has eroded the basic liberties that the modern British society was founded upon, and countless millions died for in several wars.
Since the attacks on New York and Washington in 2001, and the start of the so-called "war on terror", more and more liberties have been taken away — freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, the right to protest and speak out, the right to privacy, the right to be considered innocent until proven guilty, the right to a fair trial, the right not to be tortured. Director Chris Atkins, a British version of Michael Moore (though not as confrontational) shows us example after example of how the Labour government under Blair — and now under Gordon Brown — became the Big Brother that nobody wanted, using "protection from terrorists" as an excuse to make Britain a police state (and believe me, the police come off looking worse than Nazi stormtroopers throughout this film). The filmmakers speak to ordinary people who have been detained for no reason, branded terrorists, persecuted and put under house arrest. They speak to Walter Wolfgang, the 82-year-old Labour Party member who was forcibly ejected from the 2005 party conference for shouting "nonsense" at former foreign secretary Jack Straw. There is a ridiculous sight of two busloads of peaceful protesters on their way to a demonstration who were intercepted by dozens of police and escorted back to London, almost at gunpoint.
All shocking, frightening stuff that should make everyone living in the UK as angry as hell. I know it made me feel that way (not a nice way to finish a quiet Sunday afternoon). But on reflection, I realised two things. The first is that the documentary — while very well made and often quite funny — is very one-sided, which is never a good thing if you want to present an objective viewpoint. The second is that yes, it's true that some liberties have been lost; but while we live in a country where this a documentary such as this is allowed to be made and shown to the public, all is not yet lost. It's an important film that should be seen by as wide an audience as possible, if only to make them aware before things go too far.
EXTRAS There were none on the preview disc, but according to the press release that came with it, the extras should include a making-of featurette (a doco about a doco?), director's commentary, theatrical trailer, additional interviews with Boris Johnson, Joanna Lumley, Andrew GIlligan and more, and extra footage of some demonstations. Now, if you buy the disc and find these extras not present, I advise staging a peaceful protest outside your DVD store.