Live from Baghdad (2002)

CNN producer Robert Wiener, his colleague and their crew venture to the Iraqi capital to cover the Gulf War.

Director:

Mick Jackson

Writers:

Robert Wiener (book), Robert Wiener (teleplay)

Stars:

Michael Keaton, Helena Bonham Carter, Joshua Leonard

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 8 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Keaton	...	Robert Wiener
Helena Bonham Carter	...	Ingrid Formanek
Joshua Leonard	...	Mark Biello
Lili Taylor	...	Judy Parker
David Suchet	...	Naji Al-Hadithi
Bruce McGill	...	Peter Arnett
Michael Murphy	...	Tom Johnson
Paul Guilfoyle	...	Ed Turner
Hamish Linklater	...	Richard Roth
Michael Cudlitz	...	Tom Murphy
Robert Wisdom	...	Bernard Shaw
Pamela Sinha	...	Fatima (as Pamela Sinna)
Clark Gregg	...	Eason Jordan
Matt Keeslar	...	Nic Robertson
Kurt Fuller	...	Inky

Storyline

Dramatized version of the story of CNN's Gulf War coverage featuring "The Boys from Baghdad": the battle over access, the fight to keep the technology up and running.. and the decision whether to risk their lives behind enemy lines once the bombing starts, in order to get the story of a lifetime.

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Plot Keywords:

cnn | gulf war | iraq | reporter | reference to pepsi | 

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Taglines:

Breaking News - Making History

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Official Sites:

HBO - link to trailer, chatroom, etc.

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 December 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

En direct de Bagdad

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films,Industry Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

On some of the posters in the critics blurb it states "Two thumbs up" - Siskel and Roeper instead of Ebert and Roeper.

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Goofs

In the scene when Ingrid and Robert are sitting at the bar, the current angle shows Ingrid's fingers by her mouth. In the next shot, they are on her neck. In the next shot, her fingers are back by her mouth.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[First lines spoken as characters in the film, preceded by title cards, archival movie dialog, and news announcements]
Robert Wiener: Baghdad is me.
Eason Jordan: You're supposed to be in Berlin.
Robert Wiener: Fuck Berlin. The wall's down. Baghdad is me, Eason.
Eason Jordan: You've never even been to Baghdad.
Robert Wiener: Close enough. Jerusalem.
Eason Jordan: I wouldn't bring up Jerusalem if I were you. It's not a point in your favor.

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Connections

Referenced in Tricks of the Trade: Making 'Matchstick Men' (2004)

User Reviews

The Return Of The Keaton

Live From Baghdad marks the triumphant return of one of the most harsh individuals in show business today: Michael Keaton. He is extremely hard boiled in this role and the supporting cast of Helena Bonham-Carter, Lili Taylor, David Suchet and Bruce McGill are a force to be reckoned with. The end when the war begins is one of the most realistic war scenes I've seen in some time, it really looks like you're in the room watching the battle unfold with them. I hope this will be a kick start for Keaton to get back into making new movies because he has not lost a step in his acting ability. But you all should see for yourself, if any of you get HBO I suggest you watch this the next time its on.