Shock and Awe Movie Review

"There is no more important struggle for American democracy than ensuring a diverse, independent, and free media." - Bill Moyers

Left to Right: Jonathan Landay, John Walcott, Walter Strobel, and Joe Galloway

Following the true story of Knight Ridder journalists Jonathan Landay and Walter Strobel, Joey Hartstone and Rob Reiner's Shock and Awe tackles the rationale of the Bush Administration's invasion of Iraq. 

"If every other news organization wants to be stenographers for the Bush administration, let them. We don't write for people who send other people's kids to war. We write for people whose kids get sent to war." - Rob Reiner as John Walcott

The movie opens with Adam Green, who joined the United States Army to serve after 9/11, where President George W. Bush shifted his focus to Al-Qaeda, claiming that Saddam Hussein supposedly had weapons of mass destruction (WMD's). Green had lost his leg shortly after being deployed in Iraq, to which he asks: "How the hell did this happen?"

John Walcott, the bureau chief of Knight Ridder, assigned Strobel and Landay to investigate the validity of these claims. As they dig deeper, they encounter various sources and uncover multiple secrets that other newspapers had not been investigating. 

The film portrays the tension between the journalists and the prevailing narrative in the media. While many outlets were either complicit or passive in accepting the government’s claims, the Knight-Ridder team is determined to dig deeper. They conduct interviews, gather evidence, and piece together a story that contradicts the administration's assertions.

They discovered that the Bush administration was cherry-picking intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq.

Rather than operating as an extension of the government, these journalists chose to continue their adversarial role as watchdogs, constantly asking whether or not what the government was telling them was true.

A pivotal moment is when General Colin Powell presented the administration's case for war to the United Nations, using dubious intelligence that Knight Ridder had already debunked.

The final scenes juxtapose the fictional narrative with real footage of the journalists and the aftermath of the Iraq War, emphasizing the tragic outcomes of the decisions made based on misinformation.

The film concludes with a stark reminder of the consequences of the war, highlighting the human cost and the long-term implications of the invasion. It also reflects on the role of the media in shaping public perception and the importance of journalistic integrity in holding the government accountable.

"When news is a profit center, access becomes currency." - Rob Reiner as John Walcott 

Knight Ridder was the only organization that looked past what The New York Times and The Washington Post would publish about the supposed WMDs, trying to shed light to the American public that they were being misled into the invasion of Iraq. 

For me, the movie lacked some emotion, as all the scenes felt quite fast. It felt like there was outrage and fear, but there was no passion in it. (Although, there is only so much you can do with the hour and a half they were given). It didn't allow the viewer to really feel the emotions of the soldiers, families, and country; rather, it focused on the stress of the journalists. 

And that is what the movie should be judged on. 

Shock and Awe focused on journalistic malpractice and acted as a civics lesson to all viewers. It gave audiences an inside look at how journalism actually works, including collecting sources, the use of information, and digging deep. It is an authentic work of not only the expectations of a journalist, but also their duty.