Apparently he won the Cold War
all by himself! Not to mention World War II, Korea, and, I think, the Franco-Prussian War. Somewhat less than glowing Variety review here:
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/variety/20041011/va_fi_re/in_the_face_of_evil__reagan_s_war_in_1IN THE FACE OF EVIL: REAGAN'S WAR IN WORD AND DEED
Mon Oct 11, 3:57 PM ET
ROBERT KOEHLER
The filmic equivalent of carving Ronald Reagan (news - web sites)'s face into Mt. Rushmore, "In the Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word and Deed" places the 40th President in the guise of anti-Soviet Cold Warrior, leaving aside other issues and perspectives. With partisan p.o.v. being the end-all in current American docu filmmaking, pic fits into the trend as a hardline right-wing view of U.S. and world politics in the 20th century, with Reagan seen as the primary --- almost sole --- cause for the USSR's collapse. Early October rollout in Texas markets precedes a regional campaign, but vid's the place to grab the faithful.
Director and co-writer Stephen K. Bannon (with Julia Jones) has adapted Peter Schweizer's defense of Reagan, "Reagan's War," to make pic an illustrated companion to the tome, including Schweizer as an onscreen participant. Angle is less strictly biographical than ideological-historical, told in a stentorian rhetoric (as forcefully narrated by Irene Zeigler) that will recall for some viewers the uncompromising prose of Ayn Rand. Thus, what will turn off the uncommitted or opponents will excite true believers, with little ground for nuanced historical debate.
Pic launches with democracies defending themselves against what is repeatedly termed "The Beast": Bolshevism, Fascism, Communism, and Nazism. Bad guys are clearly listed as Lenin, Mussolini, Hitler, Tojo and Stalin, although it's notable Lenin and Stalin are described and referred to far more frequently than the WWII fascist dictators.
...
Many Democrats and Republicans will be deeply upset by pic's dismissal and diminishment of a string of presidents --- starting with JFK on through Jimmy Carter, and including Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. (Oddly, the only glimpse of Dwight D. Eisenhower, a genuine Cold Warrior by any measure, is his famous warning about "the Military-Industrial Complex.") Kennedy's moves during the Cuban Missile Crisis are depicted as pure appeasement, while Nixon's, Ford's and Carter's efforts at detente are viewed as virtual surrender.
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You know, I really, really hated the old nutbag, but I think even Reagan would have been embarrassed by this bilge. But it's ok-- it's from "Non-Fiction Films" (snarf!)