Product Description

Donald Sutherland, Alec Baldwin, Michael Gambon As the successor to a martyred president, Lyndon B. Johnson sought to transform America into a "Great Society" of equal opportunity. Instead, he became the symbol for the most unpopular war in U.S. history. Michael Gambon, Donald Sutherland and Alec Baldwin star in a compelling drama of soaring ambition and shattered dreams. set inside the LBJ White House in the volatile years leading up to and during Vietnam.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23599 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-07-28
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 82 minutes

Special Features
English
Region 2

Synopsis
PATH TO WAR, directed by John Frankenheimer, focuses on the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson (Michael Gambon), the successor to assassinated American president John F. Kennedy. President Johnson felt that Communism was the greatest global threat during his term in the Oval Office, and was thus confronted with an agonizing decision when the conflict in Vietnam seemed unable to win. This TV-movie depicts Johnson's process and the influence by such figures as Defense Secretary Robert McNamara and special advisor Clark Clifford. Directed by veteran John Frankenheimer (THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE), a filmmaker very accustomed to the realm of politics. Michael Gambon (THE SINGING DETECTIVE) received a Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of Lyndon Johnson.

From the Back Cover
As the successor to a martyred president, Lyndon B Johnson sought to transform America into a "Great Society" of equal opportunity. Instead, he became the symbol for the most unpopular war in US history. Michael Gambon, Donald Sutherland and Alec Baldwin star in a compelling drama of soaring ambition and shattered dreams, set inside the LBJ white house in the volatile years leading up to and during Vietnam.

Customer Reviews

another historical presidential document
Like Anthony Hopkins' Nixon, this is hard work and not really entertaining (why english actors for such obviously big american roles?) but very interesting: others have given a far more erudite synopsis than I. Suffice it for me to add that there was a certain humility and honesty about this (thoroughly unglamorous) man of which I was unaware and his descent into the mayhem of South East Asia appeared to be a result of circumstance and the force of the paranoid political climate of the time (McNamara should be ashamed of himself as should many of the key players of the time with their myopic focus on anti communist dogma); it just didn't seem to be ALL his fault really.

I'm glad his successful pursuit of civil rights was given descent airtime.

Alec Baldwin deserves special mention for his forceful portrayal of McNamara. I think Baldwin has rarely ever made the best of his opportunities so this joins his appearance in Glengarry Glen Ross as a significant highlight in his undeservedly ephemeral career.

A great film for fans of The West Wing, 13 days....
About 58'000 Americans and approximately 2'000'000 Vietnamese died during Vietnam. If you ever wondered how and why America and the Johnson Administration got itself into such a mess, this film is for you.

Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) will always be associated with - and vilified for - Vietnam. However, during the early years of his Presidency, he spent the political capital from winning a Presidential election with the largest majority in history on creating `The Great Society' in his country. A skilled, veteran politician, LBJ passed hundreds of bills that tackled poverty and racial injustice. Under Johnson, for example, the right to vote became law for all African Americans. In light of the Vietnam body count, this achievement is often glossed over. Nevertheless, as we see in the film, without his stirring address to Congress and his manipulation of the racist Alabama Governor (great Cameo from Gary Sinise) in the Oval Office, this may not have happened for another five or so years.

Indeed, in this film, you get a sense of how LBJ could have truly been one of the great American Presidents if it wasn't for a small country in South-East Asia. In this sense, the film is almost a tragedy. The person who gets the blame for this tragedy is Secretary of Defence Robert McNamara (Alec Baldwin). After helping to avert World War III in the Cuban missile crisis, McNamara's counsel to the President carried a lot of weight. In one pivotal scene in the movie (and in the build up to the war), LBJ invites McNamara and a lifelong friend (Donald Sutherland) to Camp David before making his final decision to commit a vast number of troops to Vietnam. Like an angel and a devil on LBJ shoulders, the two take turns to present their case for and against the war. The audience knows the outcome of the Vietnam War and scream for Johnson to listen to his old friend. Of course, LBJ doesn't have the audiences' powers of retrospection and he listens to the man from the Pentagon (to be fair, though, the seeds of Vietnam were planted during the Kennedy Administration).

As you watch the film and follow the `Path to War', you may put yourself in LBJ's shoes and wonder if you would have done things differently. It took a long time for Johnson to respond the aggression against America by the Viet Cong and, when he did retaliate, it was measured and considered. He certainly didn't rush into war, all guns blazing. As LBJ, the English actor Michael Gambon deserves a special mention in his portrayal as the no-nonsense Texan who agonises over the decision/consequences of Vietnam.

All in all, an excellent film showing how the horror of Vietnam ever came about.

Well structured and impressively performed
This is an excellent summary of the slow but entirely avoidable slide into war in Vietnam. The writing is crisp, the atmosphere maintained very well, and the performances splendid - Baldwin, Sutherland and Gambon all completely convincing. The production also keeps the sense of time well enough, through judicious use of news and Tv broadcasts, allied to the dress and social customs of the sixties.

A splendid work altogether which, like all good drama, captures the true meaning, if not always the literal exactitudes, of the time.