Death of a President was an independently made British film that first aired at a Canadian film festival earlier this year. The movie is done in a documentary style, taking place in October of 2007 following the events that take place before, during, and after the assassination of President Bush. The movie uses actual footage of the president to create his appearances throughout the film and during his assassination. It does look quite believable; however, the actual assassination and removal of the president occurs very rapidly, as it would in reality. The feelings one gets when seeing such an event, even in an artificial setting such as this, seem eerily similar to that of which those who witnessed the Kennedy assassination must have felt.
The movie doesn't focus so much on the actual assassination of the president, as the media purports, but more so on the events taking place before and after his death. The movie begins with a focus on a large number of protest groups who follow the president on his journey through Chicago for his speech on the economy and the current stance against North Korea. The shooting occurs proceeding this speech and following thereafter, the authorities began rounding up large groups of citizens who were in the area at the time of the shooting. Conspiracy theories were spread, and allegations of terrorists acts with an initial focus on Syria began. Cheney's claiming of the presidency leads to "Patriot 3," the revival of the Patriot Act, which gives the term "terrorist" a much broader definition. The movie begins tackling the issues of privacy and civil liberty as the film progresses.
All in all, this is a great movie. It is definitely a film worth the watch.
