American Experience - Reagan

Rating:
Summary: Not perfect, but good
Review: For anyone who is interested in a detailed account of Reagan's life and presidency, this video is suggested. The creators, in my mind, did a good job of portraying Reagan's presidency and his life. There is ample opportunity for both lovers and haters of Reagan to scream at the television. Liberals are sure to assert that this video gives Reagan too much credit for the prosperous economy and the end of the Cold War; while conservatives are sure to rail that the video sometimes went out of its way to portray Reagan as an senile dope. If there was a ideological slant, it was undoubedly to the left. The condesending commentary of Anthony Lewis added absolutely nothing; and strings of amateur psychoanalysis of Reagan by Lou Cannon, Sam Donaldson, and Edmund Morris should have been cut. Of course, the creators tried to balance critics by including the observations of George Will, Ed Meese, and Mike Deaver (and others) among their docier of Reagan experts. All in all, it did a good job at giving Reagan credit where due, and condemnation where deserved. If you're looking for a 4 hour disquisition on how wonderful or terrible Reagan was - this video is not for you. If you want a lengthy account of the 1980-88 presidency as it really was, then buy and watch it. It's not perfect. But it's probably about as perfect a video on Ronald Reagan that can be found.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating
Review: I was not a Reagan fan before I watched this video. After watching it, though, I have a great appreciation for Reagan and the job he did as president. The Cold War needed to end, and it would not have ended but for his presidency. I am intrigued by the things that make Reagan who he is. He is a religious man; indeed, his presidency was one long sermon against communism. His growth (particularly after the assasination attempt) is shown well in the video, climaxing at the end of his presidency when he conceded that the Soviet Union was not an evil empire (this moment was especially touching since you were able to see the emotion in Reagan's eyes). This video also deals well with the big weakness in Reagan's leadership style (e.g., delegating way too much--which led directly to the Iran-Contra scandal). It's scary how much he could be disconnected with reality, but this facet of his character is presented as only one part of this complex man. Two thumbs up for the video!

Rating:
Summary: Pretty good documentary that will not please partisans
Review: Partisans on either side will not be happy with the portrayal of Ronald Reagan. Those on the left will feel that Reagan continues to be held up as some sort of demigod, while those on the right will bristle at any criticism of Reagan's "disengaged" style of presidential leadership. I definitely do not fall into the category of a Reagan supporter & I believe the man is sometimes given more credit than he is due for world events that were unfolding long before he assumed the presidency. Nonetheless, I think that this documentary gives credit where credit is due in regards to Reagan's accomplishments.

In the wake of Reagan's death and the attendent eulogizing, it is important to remember that Reagan's presidency had both its high points & low points, and also that his political record long precedes his occupancy of the White House.

Two main themes run through the documentary: Reagan's unflagging belief in the greatness of the American nation (and by extension, his belief in his own capacity to restore the US to what he saw as its former greatness), and his dogged opposition to the threat of Communism as he perceived it. Again and again, the producers return to these themes, sometimes for the better & sometimes for the worse.

On the negative side (for me at least), this tends to reduce Reagan's foreign policy to a rather one-dimensional approach. Obviously, in this limited format it is impossible to chronicle Reagan's foreign policy day-by-day, but some significant omissions need to be discussed. Not the least of these would be the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut, Reagan's response to it, and the subsequent invasion of Grenada (which many people believe was an effort to distract the public from Beirut). Additionally, the bombing of Tripoli should have been examined to show that Reagan responded to the threat of terrorism in a variety of ways. One can also point to the overthrow of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines to demonstrate that Reagan was not uniformly an interventionist. One would have thought that Marcos, a staunch ally of the US in the Pacific Rim and an opponent of communism, could have successfully appealed to Reagan for military intervention. Yet, the Reagan administration (to its credit, I believe) did not intervene and let events unfold on their own.

Some critics of this documentary complain that it gives Reagan too little credit for causing the collapse of the Soviet Union. All I can say to that is that they need to look at the bigger picture, going back to Truman, and realize that the Soviet collapse was a long long time in the making. Actually, very little discussion is devoted to the USSR collapse, which is probably a good thing. It has been less than 13 years since the collapse, and the last card has yet to be played in this game. It needs to be pointed out that the Communist Party in Russia is alive and well --- the legislature is filled with party members, and the Prime Minister is a former member of the KGB. It is hard to argue that Russian communism has done anything other than change its stripes a bit. The Cold War may be over (although with China still firmly communist, how can anyone definitively say that?), but it is still too early to tell. Just remember, the Bourbons in France were out of power from 1791 to 1815 --- 24 years, folks. It is best to wait another generation before making a true assessment of Reagan's legacy regarding this paricular topic.

Thankfully, this documentary avoids doing that. However, it is hard to look at this documentary as being particularly definitive for that very reason. Enough time has not yet passed for us truly to be able to assess Reagan's true legacy. We should accept this documentary as the best that can be produced until another one comes along --- and I suspect that it will be more than a few years before that happens.

Rating:
Summary: A restrained "ok"
Review: This is a good documentary about an outstanding President. It could have been better, given the subject matter. It betrays some bias, and has some glaring omissions. But until the great Reagan documentary is made, this is the best of what I've seen so far. It does an informative job on Reagan's youth, his Hollywood years through the governorship and finally the White House. The primary focus is Reagan's fight against communism. It has fascinating interviews with major players in the US/Soviet negotations from both sides.

There are several omissions, such as the highly controversial bombing of Tripoli, which history now shows was successful in halting terrorism from Libya - but no mention. No mention of the invasion of Grenada. References to Reagan's faith are sometimes done with at least some mild contempt and derision, by "experts" who smirk very subtley in reference to Reagan's Christian faith.

Most of the family is included: Nancy, daughters Maureen and Patti, and son Ron. A glaring omission: second child Michael Reagan was a conservative talk radio host when this film was made, and had become the best spokesperson for his father's conservative ideals of all the children. But he's excluded entirely.

Remarkably, many of the actual participants in world history are included. James Baker, Margaret Thatcher, Sec of State George Schultz, Mikhail Gorbachev and other Soviet leaders, Natl Security Advisor Robert McFarlane, Michael Deaver, Lyn Nofziger, Donald Regan, Howard Baker, even astrologer Joan Quigley. Many, many more.

Some criticisms of Reagan are major leaps in logic. For example, Reagan's advocacy of the Strategic Defense Initiative, which was key in the final Cold War negotiations, is presented as a fanciful idea, and Reagan is presented as somehow confusing reality with an old movie role he once played that featured a secret space 'ray gun' weapon. The narrator makes the comment that "It was sometimes difficult for Ronald Reagan to distinguish fantasy from reality." On the other hand, James Baker and others who were actually there explain their position that Reagan was actually a clever negotiator.

The documentary misses a great opportunity to present the "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall" speech with the great drama and emotion it deserves. In the midst of the speech - arguably one of the most powerful of the 20th century - the narrator interrupts to say "Ronald Reagan had almost no experience in foreign policy, little knowledge of history, and a capacity to be disengaged that grew worse as he grew older. But he never lost his sense of America's mission." Totally destroys a powerful moment.

Still, there are some powerful and dramatic moments that shine through. It's a selective biography with the fingerprints of a left-wing team that was reluctant to be tasked with this job. It has several great moments - any story of Reagan has to - yet fails to fully present the powerful story of a President who is arguably one of the greatest in American history. If you're interested in Reagan, get it. But don't let it be your only source of knowledge of this great president, and this critical time in American history.

Rating:
Summary: Here's some more info from the box
Review: This is a VHS documentary of Reagan's presidency. It's the "official White House Authorized Video" and covers "American hostages released - Assassination attempt - Bombing of Libya - Grenada - Summits - KAL 007 massacre - 40th Anniversary of D-Day - Challenger disaster - Statue of Liberty Celebration - Reaganomics - America is Back - Humorous one-liners - Convention euphoria - Tribute to Nancy - U.S.S. Stark - 'Win One for the Gipper' - Boyhood Days - Hollywood - Olympic hockey victory - Star Wars - Behind-the-scenes private moments - and much much more." It features "Nancy Reagan, James Baker II, Barry Goldwater, Mikhail Gorbachev, Harry Caray, Ollie North, Margaret Thatcher, John Towerr, Caspar Weinberger, Yasuhiro Nakasone, Irving Berlin, Grenada Students, and others", including Ronald Reagan himself of course. Approx running time 1 hour, color, 1989.