Part of The American Cinema Under George W. Bush
Directed by Laura Poitras (2006)
With Peter Towndrow, Scott Farren-Price, Riyadh al-Adhadh
Working alone in Iraq over eight months, filmmaker Laura Poitras (Citizenfour, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed) creates an extraordinarily intimate portrait of Iraqis living under US occupation. Her principal focus is Dr. Riyadh, an Iraqi medical doctor, father of six and Sunni political candidate. An outspoken critic of the occupation, he is equally passionate about the need to establish democracy in Iraq, arguing that Sunni participation in the January 2005 elections is essential. Yet all around him, Dr. Riyadh sees only chaos, as his waiting room fills each day with patients suffering the physical and mental effects of ever-increasing violence. Nominated for an Academy Award, My Country, My Country is a powerful mosaic of daily life in Iraq.