68
Metascore
32 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanEntertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanJarecki is no glib ideologue thumbing his nose at power.
- 90VarietyRobert KoehlerVarietyRobert KoehlerPicture sets the gold standard for political documentaries.
- 75The A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThe A.V. ClubKeith PhippsUltimately, Why We Fight reveals itself as yet another leftie doc with an anti-war agenda. But the mere fact that it takes time to ask questions and listen to opposing viewpoints sets it apart from the pack.
- 75Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerChristian Science MonitorPeter RainerIn addition to the usual pontificators like Gore Vidal, whose world weariness has assumed Olympian proportions, the director provides interviews with such right-wing counterparts as Richard Perle and William Kristol. Nobody is allowed much time to develop an argument.
- 70Village VoiceJ. HobermanVillage VoiceJ. HobermanJarecki's film forcefully argues that the much abused word FREEDOM cannot paper over the conflicts between capitalism and democracy.
- 70Los Angeles TimesKevin CrustLos Angeles TimesKevin CrustThe long line of recent muckraking documentaries that has preceded Why We Fight does nothing to diminish its force.
- 60NewsweekDavid AnsenNewsweekDavid AnsenThis scary, eye-opening documentary looks back from a post-9/11 vantage point to see how Ike’s prophecy has come horribly true.
- 50The New YorkerDavid DenbyThe New YorkerDavid DenbyUnconvincing and ineffective; the many patches of ideological montage, growing like kudzu throughout the film, weaken the impact of its best moments.
- 50The New York TimesManohla DargisThe New York TimesManohla DargisMr. Jarecki forcefully, if not with wholesale persuasiveness, argues that our business is specifically war.
- 30Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternWall Street JournalJoe MorgensternMr. Jarecki undercuts his own case -- not just undercuts but carpet-bombs it -- by using the same propaganda techniques he professes to abhor.