“An investigation of the 9/11 events by a Russian-American journalist implicates the US government in the attacks.
Alex Prokop (Jarek Kupsc), a successful journalist, receives a rare 9/11 videotape revealing new information about the day of the attacks. The footage was sent by Paul Cooper (Joseph Culp), a driven researcher whose daughter died on 9/11. Sensing a good story, Prokop travels with Cooper to New York and Washington, D. C., where they uncover suppressed information about the attacks and their aftermath. As Cooper introduces Prokop to key eye-witnesses, the façade of the “official story” begins to crumble.”
Bonanno: You said in your interview with Jonathan Mark of FlyBy News that you would like to see “The Reflecting Pool” become another “All The President’s Men”.
Also, I’m going to ask the obvious. Alan Pakula, who directed “All The President’s Men”, seemed to have a much easier time getting that movie into mainstream theaters than you seem to be having with “The Reflecting Pool”
Could you contrast and compare the two situations and maybe even the two movies?
Kupsc: That’s a fair question. I actually never said that I’d like it to become another “All The President’s Men”. I have no illusions as far as the quality of our film verses the quality of the big Hollywood multi-million dollar production starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman. There’s no comparison in terms of pure artistic and technical accomplishment. Obviously their movie is a very well made movie with backing by Hollywood.
If I had the same amount of money as Alan Pakula had there would be something to discuss. But ours is a very low budget film.
However, having said that, I would suggest that the same forces that were behind Watergate, behind wire tapping and all the stuff that happened back in the ‘70s, these forces not only succeeded in continuing their nefarious activities, as well as their influence on government, but are still in power today and are stronger than ever. America is, indeed, on the precipice of becoming a fascist state. If you look at all the powers Bush has granted himself through presidential directives and other laws that went into affect, you can see, and it’s all documented at the whitehouse.gov web site, the dictatorial power that Bush wields at this point, or any future president will wield. The powers they have are larger than those that Oliver Cromwell had back during the British Empire days.
Cromwell was a dictator but still did not have as many powers as President Bush does today. In terms of Anglo-American history, no other president or leader or king has ever wielded more dictatorial powers than President Bush does today.
You have to ask yourself is this the democracy with which I grew up? Is it really working for me as a citizen? People seem to be so oblivious to the fact that they work more hours today than ever. They work 60 hour weeks. They make less money than ever.
47 million Americans have no health insurance. 30% of the high school kids cannot graduate because they’re illiterate. 40% of kids in Harlem are diabetic because of the fast food industry who is completely dominating the airways with their commercials during The Olympics. They’re basically selling poison to the children.
We have Donald Rumsfeld in the ‘70s who was a lobbyist for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. He pushed for Aspartame to be used in every single gum that’s being produced in America.
Aspartame has been banned around the world as virtually a carcinogenic poison. Yet, you can’t find a chewing gum without Aspartame, even if you try.
All these issues are important.
Bonanno: People don’t realize that, as you say, Bush is setting a precedent for future presidents.
Kupsc: It’s just not him because he’s a man of limited intellectual capabilities, as former Press Secretary Scott McClellan testified in his recent book. Nobody has any illusions that Bush is very competent as an individual. However, admittedly, he’s not a fact checker. He signs his name to papers that other people bring to him. He’s a puppet, a figurehead. This has been done by other presidents before him and will be done by presidents after him.
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