Causing a furore in the US, this doco poses important questions about terrorism and the Bush administration, using the fictional scenario of George W. Bush's assassination in October 2007.
"A masterly piece of documentary chicanery that kills George W. Bush without once pandering to his legions of ill-wishers." — Globe and Mail
Screened as part of NZIFF 2007
Death of a President 2006
How would America respond to the assassination of George W. Bush? What would Government agencies do? What would President Cheney do? These are the dark questions posed here by writer/director Gabriel Range. The film, based around that watershed moment in October 2007, is, of course, pure fiction. Yet such is Range’s skill in compiling this eyewitness account, you’d be forgiven for confusing it with reality as he ‘interviews’ key players and cuts them with news footage. Death of a President extrapolates contemporary affairs to build a case for terrorism, then tears it apart by removing the pillars of paranoia. Shocking governmental neglect is spun on its head as Range reveals the abuse already occurring across the world. Although his film lacks the sensationalism that made Michael Moore a celebrity, it still caused a furore in the U.S.
“Death of a President succeeds in posing important questions about the Bush administration – and equally about the media and its role in the reshaping of society in our time.” — B. Ruby Rich, The Guardian