Review: I was truly excited about Jonathan Demme’s portrait of Jimmy Carter and his battle to spread the word on what he believes is the Palestinian struggle. I for one have looked into the conflict and seen some surprisingly borderline ignorance of International Law. Of course, I don’t know a whole lot about the subject and believe that a true debate needs to occur. My hope was that a director with Demme’s experience and talent could help stir discussion (After all, the guy directed Silence of the Lambs!), but alas Jimmy Carter: Man from Plains just failed to produce anything of note. The main problem is its lack of focus. Demme clearly wavers between developing a portrait of Jimmy Carter and revealing the message Carter is trying to express. I believe the two ideas could possibly be molded together, but in this case it fails miserably and leaving viewers with a cross between a sappy man-crush and a factless rant. Maybe I am being too harsh on Demme, but in many ways I feel great directors deserve harsher criticism because audiences have come to expect a certain level from them and anything short of that is more heart wrenching then witnessing a new director fuddle a project. Demme’s cause isn’t helped by the sheer polarizing issues his story covers. Documentaries on divisive issues like this can’t just rely on the usual arguments and sentiments, but must stretch themselves further in order to prove their case. Jimmy Carter: Man from Plains just doesn’t do this. This is not a documentary devoid of any positives though. The graphics alone are brilliant and should definitely inspire future filmmakers’ creativity. There are also a few brief but powerful images of Palestinian lands being bulldozed for the sake of Israel’s protective wall that will certainly tug at the hearts of viewers. Unfortunately, these minor successes only accentuate the other weaknesses throughout the film. In the end, despite what it advertises to be, this is not a film to use to persuade others, nor is it truly informative. Instead, it’s a film for Jimmy Carter lovers who want to be affirmed that their crusader is still out there working tirelessly to promote his cause and present his case to the world. For me, and the majority of viewers, I feel this just isn’t quite enough. Review by Matthew Abshire Informative: 2- Lacks focus, sometimes it’s about Jimmy Carter the man and sometimes its about the Palestinian struggle Entertainment: 2- lack of a climax and focus will cause you to start looking at your watch Technical: 3- very subtle but amazing graphics only accentuate shaky camera work Overall: 2- Unfortunately, this is a forgettable work about a man and debate that is anything but forgettable
 
Format: Theater Year: 2007 Running Time: 125 Min Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics Producer: Neda Armian Director: Jonathan Demme Date Reviewed: 11-9-2007 Story: Prolific Hollywood director Jonathan Demme tackles the documentary form in this intimate portrait of Jimmy Carter that explicates the former president's view of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by shadowing him on his national book tour. During this publicity junket, Carter is accused of being a liar, bigot and anti-Semite. But it's his candid responses to the controversy and criticism that reveal the Nobel Peace Prize winner's true character (NetFlix).