Robert McNamara admits he "behaved like a war criminal". The documentary follows his involvement in some of the most devastating military campaigns of the 20th century from the firebombing of Japan to the Vietnam War. McNamara stops short of full accountability but gives unsettling clarity into the logic and rationalisation of his decisions.
Rather than offer a confession McNamara seems instead to justify whether we could have done any better in his position. He presents war as a tangled web of uncertainty and cold hard pragmatism, giving us 11 lessons he has learnt such as "Maximise efficiency." and "In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil"...
Still, I came away unconvinced by McNamara's narrative. His insight is certainly valuable but it's what is left unsaid during the clips of war or by the questions he refuses to answer that speaks loudest of all.
Robert McNamara admits he "behaved like a war criminal". The documentary follows his involvement in some of the most devastating military campaigns of the 20th century from the firebombing of Japan to the Vietnam War. McNamara stops short of full accountability but gives unsettling clarity into the logic and rationalisation of his decisions.
Rather than offer a confession McNamara seems instead to justify whether we could have done any better in his position. He presents war as a tangled web of uncertainty and cold hard pragmatism, giving us 11 lessons he has learnt such as "Maximise efficiency." and "In order to do good, you may have to engage in evil"...
Still, I came away unconvinced by McNamara's narrative. His insight is certainly valuable but it's what is left unsaid during the clips of war or by the questions he refuses to answer that speaks loudest of all.
