2014 was a big year for important documentaries that define where we are as a modern society. A little while ago I reviewed The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz, a film that dealt with the freedom of information and the power of the internet and media to universally share that information. Citizenfour serves as a great companion film. It details the Edward Snowden controversy that went down last summer when Snowden, a server administrator for the National Security Agency, left the country with thousands upon thousands of files exposing the NSA's tracking and logging of information about the American public shadily gained through phone and internet monitoring. The film begins before the events take place, as Snowden actually contacted the director about documenting this major information leak he was about to facilitate. Citizenfour unfolds in real time, sitting with Snowden in his Hong Kong hotel room as he dumps his information onto two journalists, who in turn expose the information to the masses. Real life drama unfolds right there on the screen as a drama that rivals most fictional political thrillers.
Unless you were living in a doomsday prepper underground bunker last June, you probably heard all about the Edward Snowden fiasco that completely shook up the state of our national security. In this time a lot of information was released, a lot of it getting muddled and skewed as new developments transpired every day for about a week. The media obviously had a difficult time handling so massive an information leak and the story behind it all that dealt with Mr. Snowden. Citizenfour fills any holes from the original story as it happened. These exact events unfold in real time and the gravity of the information and its effect on the American people, their government, and Snowden is all on display. It paints a clear as day picture of what exactly happened, but also serves as a harsh reminder of how quickly we all forgot about something so major, and how we continue to choose to forget about the countless ways in which our privacy is compromised by our own government. And that right there is what makes Citizenfour so important. It details events that everyone needs to know about, no one should forget about, and everyone should be very concerned about.
It's imperative that everybody knows the full Edward Snowden story, and this is what gives Citizenfour its significance. But beyond that it is also just an incredibly gripping film that turns these events into riveting political drama that bares the weight of a sledgehammer due to its importance to our modern political system. But what I love most about this film is that it is as much about the NSA and the information leak as it is about Snowden himself. Citizenfour is the alias that Snowden used while covertly corresponding with the film's director, and when you see this film that is an intimately introspective look into this courageous hero disguised as an American traitor you see the significance of calling the film Citizenfour. We get a look into the mind and attitude of a man who knows a terrifying amount of what goes on behind the closed doors of the NSA. His genuine paranoia says everything that needs to be said about the significance of what is going on with the NSA. Seeing how much concern and paranoia a hotel fire alarm test puts on Snowden should tell you exactly how serious this whole issue is.
I'm positive that there can't be a more visceral and hard-hitting documentary about the issue of government spying than Citizenfour. It of course has the advantage of Snowden in the flesh to make it as impactful as it is, but this is what sets it apart from any third- hand editorial on the topic. Citizenfour is a real time documentation of an event that should have so much more attention put on it than it actually has had. This is a documentary that needs to be seen by as many people as possible, as it is one of the few things that could raise awareness about something free Americans should be more than a little concerned about. It reminds us why we can't just accept that this spying takes place and then move on with our day. It emphasizes how much something needs to be done, and uses Snowden as a prime example of actions that should be taken. Citizenfour is as frustrating as it is compelling, and you're doing a disservice to you and your country if you don't watch it.
Unless you were living in a doomsday prepper underground bunker last June, you probably heard all about the Edward Snowden fiasco that completely shook up the state of our national security. In this time a lot of information was released, a lot of it getting muddled and skewed as new developments transpired every day for about a week. The media obviously had a difficult time handling so massive an information leak and the story behind it all that dealt with Mr. Snowden. Citizenfour fills any holes from the original story as it happened. These exact events unfold in real time and the gravity of the information and its effect on the American people, their government, and Snowden is all on display. It paints a clear as day picture of what exactly happened, but also serves as a harsh reminder of how quickly we all forgot about something so major, and how we continue to choose to forget about the countless ways in which our privacy is compromised by our own government. And that right there is what makes Citizenfour so important. It details events that everyone needs to know about, no one should forget about, and everyone should be very concerned about.
It's imperative that everybody knows the full Edward Snowden story, and this is what gives Citizenfour its significance. But beyond that it is also just an incredibly gripping film that turns these events into riveting political drama that bares the weight of a sledgehammer due to its importance to our modern political system. But what I love most about this film is that it is as much about the NSA and the information leak as it is about Snowden himself. Citizenfour is the alias that Snowden used while covertly corresponding with the film's director, and when you see this film that is an intimately introspective look into this courageous hero disguised as an American traitor you see the significance of calling the film Citizenfour. We get a look into the mind and attitude of a man who knows a terrifying amount of what goes on behind the closed doors of the NSA. His genuine paranoia says everything that needs to be said about the significance of what is going on with the NSA. Seeing how much concern and paranoia a hotel fire alarm test puts on Snowden should tell you exactly how serious this whole issue is.
I'm positive that there can't be a more visceral and hard-hitting documentary about the issue of government spying than Citizenfour. It of course has the advantage of Snowden in the flesh to make it as impactful as it is, but this is what sets it apart from any third- hand editorial on the topic. Citizenfour is a real time documentation of an event that should have so much more attention put on it than it actually has had. This is a documentary that needs to be seen by as many people as possible, as it is one of the few things that could raise awareness about something free Americans should be more than a little concerned about. It reminds us why we can't just accept that this spying takes place and then move on with our day. It emphasizes how much something needs to be done, and uses Snowden as a prime example of actions that should be taken. Citizenfour is as frustrating as it is compelling, and you're doing a disservice to you and your country if you don't watch it.