The NSA's illegal surveillance techniques are leaked to the public by one of the agency's employees, Edward Snowden, in the form of thousands of classified documents distributed to the press.
Director:
Oliver Stone
Stars:
Joseph Gordon-Levitt,
Shailene Woodley,
Melissa Leo
A documentary which challenges former Indonesian death-squad leaders to reenact their mass-killings in whichever cinematic genres they wish, including classic Hollywood crime scenarios and lavish musical numbers.
Using state-of-the-art equipment, a group of activists, led by renowned dolphin trainer Ric O'Barry, infiltrate a cove near Taijii, Japan to expose both a shocking instance of animal abuse and a serious threat to human health.
Director:
Louie Psihoyos
Stars:
Richard O'Barry,
Louie Psihoyos,
Hardy Jones
The story of how an eccentric French shop-keeper and amateur film-maker attempted to locate and befriend Banksy, only to have the artist turn the camera back on its owner. The film contains... See full summary »
In January 2013, Laura Poitras started receiving anonymous encrypted e-mails from "CITIZENFOUR," who claimed to have evidence of illegal covert surveillance programs run by the NSA in collaboration with other intelligence agencies worldwide. Five months later, she and reporters Glenn Greenwald and Ewen MacAskill flew to Hong Kong for the first of many meetings with the man who turned out to be Edward Snowden. She brought her camera with her. The resulting film is history unfolding before our eyes.Written by
Anonymous
Edward Snowden decided to contact with Laura Poitras after seeing a short film that Poitras had done for The New York Times about William Binney, an NSA whistle-blower. See more »
Goofs
In the second CNN item (friday, 53'), the Hebrew characters on the mobile phone in the background aren't censored in the first two shots. Afterwards the background has changed to only leave Latin characters on the dial pad. See more »
Quotes
[TITLE CARDS]:
[TITLE CARD]
William Binney is a legendary NSA cryto-mathematician. During the Cold War, he analyzed nuclear threats. In the 90's he shifted his focus to the internet and developed methods of mass data analysis.
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This documentary has it all. The narrative is compelling, but honest to the reality it portrays. The work on the documentary began before the Snowden files started leaking, and it gives you an unprecedented look into how it all came about. It gives you an understanding of who Edward Snowden is and why he did what he did. He was not just some guy who stumbled over something he realized that someone else might find useful. He knew exactly what he had, and what to do about it.
And not only this: The documentary manages to convey the significance of the leak. What power the information held, and just how bad the NSA is.
The only negative thing I can say about it is that it opens a bit slow, and the technical aspects of it might scare of some viewers.
It's amazing that this is the world we live in. Snowden is a hero.
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This documentary has it all. The narrative is compelling, but honest to the reality it portrays. The work on the documentary began before the Snowden files started leaking, and it gives you an unprecedented look into how it all came about. It gives you an understanding of who Edward Snowden is and why he did what he did. He was not just some guy who stumbled over something he realized that someone else might find useful. He knew exactly what he had, and what to do about it.
And not only this: The documentary manages to convey the significance of the leak. What power the information held, and just how bad the NSA is.
The only negative thing I can say about it is that it opens a bit slow, and the technical aspects of it might scare of some viewers.
It's amazing that this is the world we live in. Snowden is a hero.