It is supposed to be the greatest democracy in the world but in which case it is difficult to fathom why I have seen more movies about injustices involving American authorities than anywhere else on the planet.
This is a country which has suffered more rarely than almost any other state from the work of terrorists and yet appears to suffer from a stultifying paranoia at the very mention of the word.
In the UK, we had to live with the threat of IRA violence for many years and yet the Americans sniffed at that (there was even fund-raising in the Us for IRA activities).
I am not making light of the World Trade Center atrocities but for how many years is the west going to be looking in shadows for extremists because of them?
Better This World gives a clear indication of just how ghastly the situation has become in America and how it only requires suspicion for the full weight of the judicial apparatus to be weighted against the individual.
It surrounds the case of two young political activists, David McKay and Bradley Crowder who have been serving jail sentences for their involvement in the protest against the Republican National Congress in 2008.
They were both convicted of creating firebombs with the intention of using them against people.
This is the straightforward story of terrorism the authorities paint.
The problem is that footage in the film by Kelly Duane De La Vega and Katie Galloway shows clearly that they didn't intend to hurt anyone.
And what is much worse is that they were inspired to be involved in direct action by a man called Brandon Darby, who just happened to be an FBI informant.
So were they genuine terrorists or were they entrapped?
That is the question explored by Better This World which has recorded conversations from jail, documentary evidence, interviews from family and the FBI and prosecution take on the case.
It also demonstrates the plea bargain's role in the American judiciary.
In other words, it is a superior documentary in many ways because it gives all sides - this helps to highlight just how sinister the final outcomes are.
So far, Better This World has had very limited release in the UK (four screenings). It deserves much wider distribution.
Laughs: none
Jumps: none
Vomit: none
Nudity: none
Overall rating: 8/10
0 Comments