DVD Review

Title: Love, Hate & Propaganda: The Cold War

Distributor: eOne

Host: George Strombolopolous

Length: 360 Minutes

Rating: PG

Release Date: January 31^st 2012

Reviewed By Kindah Mardam Bey

Not much has been explored in the way of creating a new style for documentary filmmaking since its inception. In fact, although the subject matter has become more investigative and analytically, we typically fall back on old standards in how we tell the story. The CBC seems to be at the forefront of change in this field as the documentary Love, Hate & Propoganda: The Cold War not only tells of the cold war in a diverse and compelling fashion but also visually relates the world in which fear and terror were daily appeals to an immediacy the audience can find very relatable and be drawn into.

Fear-mongering and one-upmanship seems to have been harbingers of the Cold War but Love, Hate and Propaganda: The Cold War really takes a piercing look at how much of the semantics of the Cold War was executed on an international scale. The Cold War was known for being a political freeze between America and Russia but as we see in this documentary the shackles of irony were to extend far beyond those borders and bleed into social ideals that manifested, such as the infamous Berlin Wall, the Civil Rights Movement in America, The Cuban Missile Crisis, Korea, China and the divide amongst innumerable countries that seems to widen with every turn of the wheel. Episode Four highlights three men instrumental in the end of the Cold War – Ronald Regan, Pope John Paul II and Mikhail Gorbachev, who would receive a Nobel Peace Prize.

Aside from the more seedier aspects of the Cold War, the war with spies and espionage always seemed to render itself to the most petty and infantile levels where winning a Hockey game, chess game, kitchen debates, or a race to send men (and women) to the moon, were the earmarks of a war fought via scathing media campaigns. I suppose it is better to feel pride as a nation at winning a chess match then winning a war. Interesting facts like Jazz being considered a threat to communism were both poignant and added perspective to how every aspect of life was either fighting a war for, or against, something.

Part of a trilogy, The Cold War is preceded by the documentary The Second World War and the upcoming The War on Terrorism. The Cold War is divided up into four episodes: "In The Shadow of Fear," "Turning Up The Heat," "Cracks In The Wall," and "War of Words." The documentary shows old footage, as per usual, but their seems to be an added visceral level as you will often see a wall or monument adorned with old video images. The way in which this documentary was told had a particular impact that kept me both glued to the set and constantly googling for additional information on subject matter.

George Strombolopolous narrates and manages to capsulize complex matters into understandable content that will reach both audiences who lived through the Cold War, and those too young to understand its ramifications.

Two complimenting aspects of the documentary are the special features and the website which is full of additional information, timeline and much more: http://www.cbc.ca/doczone/lovehatepropagandacoldwar/index.html I particularly loved the old CBC segments on the Diefenbunkers, and bunkers in general, not to mention the kids reactions to Apollo 11 landing on the moon and the campy propaganda video “Why The Kremlin Hates Bananas.”

Love, Hate & Propaganda: The Cold War is a visceral and articulate discourse into the decades that would lay down the groundwork for media becoming the dominant force of both good and evil. Now put that into the perspective of the boundary-less world of the internet and packaged propaganda today and I guarantee this documentary will give you an ample about to think about.

Special Effects: Bomb Shelters: CBC The Journal (Jan 1990), Opening Up Diefenbaker : CBC News (Jan 1994), Kids On The Moon – Apollo 11 Landing, CBC News (July 1969), Why The Kremlin Hates Bananas/United Fruit Company/CIA (1950s), Fall Out Shelter (The McCallum Family) & Emergency Measures Organization (11 Steps to Survival), Duck and Cover: US Civil Defense Film (1951)

Written by :

Kindah