As Philip Glass can attest, Errol Morris has his proven motifs, whether thematically by his gaze on the subjective nature of facts or cinematically, with his signature interviewing style, but the “Thin Blue Line” filmmaker’s next project find him actually repeating a government position as subject — U.S. Secretary of State. 2003’s “The Fog Of War” examined history through the eyes of Robert S. McNamara, who walked Pentagon halls during the Vietnam War; now Morris turns to Donald Rumsfeld for his account of his time in office, and we’ve got a first glimpse of the result.
Set to play the trifecta of Venice, Telluride and TIFF, “The Unknown Known” takes its title from Rumsfeld’s comments regarding Operation Iraqi Freedom, and will surely feature Morris’ pursuit of answers on the topic, in addition to covering the politician’s stint in Congress during the ’60s onward. In a new sneak peek of the documentary, Morris asks Rumsfeld of his “obsession with Iraq and Saddam [Hussein],” to which he replies, “I’m not [an obsessive person]. I’m cool, I’m measured,” before explaining exactly why.
The full doc reportedly sees Rumsfeld parsing through and explaining his “snowflakes,” the gargantuan memo archive written by him during his career, and if the brief snippet seen thus far is any indication, Morris has a fascinating subject on his hands with whom to chat. Check out the clip below, and look for the film to be released theatrically by Radium-TWC this year. [Vice]
He's every bit as detestable and revolting as Nazi war criminals.
"i'm not passionate…i have a lizzard brain, that's all!"