Jehane Noujaim, working with the discipline and detachment of the finest vérité documentary-makers, traveled to the Middle East just as the United States was preparing to invade Iraq last year. Her focus is on the journalists working for the Al Jazeera satellite network, but her scope is much wider, as she explores the differences between Arab and Western journalists and the mix of tension and camaraderie between the journalists and the United States military officers trying to manage the flow of information. Through the deceptively simple practice of watching, listening and editing, Jehane Noujaim captures the complexity of reporting, and has a great deal to say about truth, democracy and the ambiguous status of the free press in the modern world. The current relevance of the film is obvious, but the skill of the filmmaker gives it a resonance beyond its topicality. — A. O. Scott, The New York Times
