Death of a President [merged]

[David Mosley]

This will set the cat among some pigeons.

Bush 'assassinated' in TV drama

A TV drama is to show US President George Bush becoming the victim of a fictional assassination.

Death of a President uses CGI effects and archive footage to portray the president being shot dead during an anti-war rally in Chicago in 2007.

The documentary-style 90-minute film uses the event to explore the effects of the War on Terror on the US.

It will get its world premiere at next month's Toronto Film Festival before a screening on UK digital channel More4.

In the drama, Mr Bush is assassinated by a sniper after delivering a speech to business leaders.

He is confronted by a demonstration against the Iraq war when he arrives in the city and is shot as he leaves the venue.

The ensuing investigation focuses on a Syrian-born man.

Peter Dale, head of More4, who made the drama, described it as a "thought-provoking critique" of contemporary US society.

He said: "It's an extraordinarily gripping and powerful piece of work, a drama constructed like a documentary that looks back at the assassination of George Bush as the starting point for a very gripping detective story.

"It's a pointed political examination of what the War on Terror did to the American body politic.

"I'm sure that there will be people who will be upset by it but when you watch it you realise what a sophisticated piece of work it is.

"It's not sensationalist or simplistic but a very thought-provoking, powerful drama. I hope people will see that the intention behind it is good."

Saddam drama

Producers of the film, which is directed by Gabriel Range, hope to sell the broadcast rights to the US.

Death of a President will be shown on More4 on 9 October.

Other forthcoming More4 highlights include The Trial of Tony Blair, starring Robert Lindsay as the UK Prime Minister, and Ghosts, a drama inspired by the deaths of the Chinese cockle-pickers in Morecambe Bay in 2004.

British politicians Charles Kennedy and Michael Howard will join forces to present The 30 Greatest Political Comedies, while the drama Saddam's Tribe tells the story of the former Iraqi dictator's regime.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/5302598.stm

More4 is part of the Channel 4 group (along with Film4 and E4) in the UK. Wonder if any US stations will pick Death of a President up for airing.

[Talisant]

Sounds reminiscent of a couple of Ballard's pieces in New Worlds featuring a past Prez and 1st lady.

[David Mosley]

Unsurprisingly the pressure group MediaWatch (formerly Mary Whitehouse's National Viewers & Listeners Association) have decided they haven't had any decent publicity in recent weeks:

Row over Bush TV 'assassination'

A British television channel has been criticised as "irresponsible" for making a drama in which US President George W Bush is assassinated...

...John Beyer, of TV watchdog MediaWatch, said it was irresponsible. He said it could even trigger a real assassination attempt and told the Daily Mirror: "There's a lot of feeling against President Bush and this may well put ideas into people's heads."

A White House spokesman said of the programme: "We are not going to comment because it does not dignify a response."...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/5302598.stm

[Talisant]

Forget the Prez, if reality is following art these days, then someone, please, run the film where the old hippy finds a bag of money, with no negative repercussions.

[Kamelion]

Death of a President

Just started watching the premiere of this on More4 (UK channel). Pretty interesting. Bush has just been shot (surprise!) - I guess that things are about to hot up. Will be worth seeing how the film is seen by his supporters, detractors, observers and whoever.

[David Mosley]

Ah, I meant to watch that, but I've been playing in the RPG forum all evening, so forgot. No matter it will be repeated soon enough.

As for reactions to the film, it's already been 'banned' by two cinema chains in the US:

Two US cinema chains say they will not screen a controversial British film portraying the fictional assassination of President George W Bush.

So much for 'Free Speech', eh?

[Kamelion]

Funny - I wonder if they've even seen it. Oh well, as my girlfriend just pointed out, it'll be online for download sooner or later so folks in the USA will still be able to see it if they want to.

It's being repeated next week Channel 4, so you can catch it then.

I'll keep any spoilers out of it, but I found it to be a remarkably sensible and restrained piece of work. I am sure that there is going to be a big hoo-ha about it being anti-Bush, but it really isn't. It comments on perceptions of muslims in the USA, on the use of evidence in court, and on domestic criticism of the Bush administration in the USA. Those are the main thrusts of the film, none of which are especially new or shocking. Its strengths, imho, come from its accurate (and actually rather reserved) portrayal of things that we already know, and the melding of those elements into an interesting and compelling drama. It's lack of far-out ideas and reliance on recognisable elements makes it all the more believable. I was impressed. Not sensationalistic at all, but really very level-headed.

[Kamelion]

Death of a President is being shown again tonight on Channel 4 at 10pm.