Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden [DVD] [2008] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

If Morgan Spurlock has learned anything from over 30 years of movie-going, it's that if the world needs saving, it's best done by a loner willing to face danger head-on, and take it down, action-hero style. So, after undergoing a crash course in military experience, knowledge and expertise, he then sets off to do what the CIA, FBI and countless bounty hunters have failed to do: find the world's most wanted man.

Why take on such a seemingly impossible mission? Simple - he wants to make the world safe for his soon to be born child, and he's got 19 weeks to complete the mission so he can get home in time for the birth. En route to his attempt to find Osama bin Laden, he first needs to learn where `BL' came from, what makes him tick, and most importantly, what exactly `created' him to begin with.

This is a DVD that seems to have come out with very little fanfare - strange considering that we're at the anniversary of 9/11 once more, and after all "BL" is the reason why America is fighting undeclared wars all over the place, and worldwide we are seeing an erosion of civil liberties as a consequence that has George Orwell muttering from beyond the grave: "I told you so".

Spurlock is the guy who discredited fast food so gloriously in "Super Size Me", and has taken on a very thorny subject with this documentary. That said he has discharged himself admirably in his own inimitable style. We are taken on a Wicker's-World-esque global journey to various `trouble spots' (Iraq excluded, on his wife's orders!) to see if the trail of the most wanted man on the planet can be followed.

Peppered throughout with hilarious animation (it has to be said, one set-piece near the start of the film will mean you'll never be able to hear MC Hammer's "Can't Touch This" without a smile on your face ever again), this is a movie that humanises the inhabitants of various countries; those who we are supposed to believe support terrorists who wish to bring Western democracy to its knees.

What we find is that the silent majority in these countries aren't slapping their heads and firing rifles into the air en masse. They, like all of us sane folk on this side of the fence, just want the madness to stop and for peace to break out. These likable individuals try to impress on the audience for this documentary that the nutters don't represent the general population of these regions.

It manages to do this via a thoroughly entertaining jaunt, laced with humour whilst having a serious message well-told. The most annoying aspect of the movie is actually the fact that those with a non-American accent - who speak in English - are SUBTITLED, so that those who can't get past dialect can follow what's being said. I assume this is a necessity for a U.S. audience - which perhaps is more telling as to what the problem actually is with middle-America than anything else.

For those who caught the movie at the cinema, the DVD is still well worth a purchase, simply because of the extras, and in particular a host of deleted scenes. These are as follows:

Three Girls Saudi - Young women of Saudi Arabia reveal their take on the perceived Western misconceptions about Islam. It's interesting how their definition of `freedom' differs to our way of seeing it.

Watergate - a spoof of an underground car park scene from "All The President's Men", where the actual head of a CIA division tasked with tracking Bin Laden reveals very little.

Shimon Peres - the ninth President of Israel tries to explain his take on the situation with Palestine, in the context of what is and is not terrorism.

Afghan Animation - A history of Afghanistan, done as a cartoon featuring various spoofs of movie posters - the best being "1998 - A Cave Odyssey" which, naturally, is a parody of "2001".

Martin McGuiness - An attempt to define the difference between a freedom fighter and a terrorist, in the context of the IRA.

Saad Ibrahim - A short interview with the Cairo-based civil rights activist, who says his aims are to make Egypt and the Arab world more democratic, believing in `the politics of engagement, not the politics of exclusion'.

Western Showdown - the alternative ending, which is actually far more satisfying than the one they eventually used. This CGI animation is video-game style, where the OK Corral becomes the scene for a head-to-head between Spurlock and `BL', who changes from a nine foot tall bionic ninja to roadrunner during the course of proceedings. Worth the purchase price on its own.

Other extras include the Theatrical Trailer, and a 26 minute UK Exclusive interview with Morgan Spurlock. Here, he talks about being recognised in the UK, the genesis of this documentary, and how his wife's pregnancy changed the original planned direction of the movie. He employed local journalists that assisted in getting some of the various exclusives throughout the film, although these didn't help when the found themselves in an Orthodox Jewish quarter of Israel. His methodology with his work is to let a documentary grow in whatever direction it takes you, rather than force it on a planned course.

Indeed, Spurlock can see clearly why America's image has changed worldwide to being that of an aggressor, and that the `Cult of Osama' is everywhere - although he is nowhere to be seen. It's as if a monster has been created to take over from previous Cold War bogeymen - although, as we have seen recently, the Russian Bear is back in focus again, so perhaps this week's poll which showed half the people worldwide don't believe Bin Laden was responsible for the events of 9/11 has led to a change in chief villain?

"Where In The World Is Osama Bin Laden" is a thought-provoking film for those who believe the mass media's view of the history of the 21st Century so far. However, for those of us who are not so sure, perhaps the new Jason Bermas documentary "Fabled Enemies" will be more of an eye-opener.

This is Morgan Spurlock's `difficult' second movie - in which he, as the title suggests, goes in search of Osama Bin Laden.

Given the gonzo nature of Supersize Me, in which Spurlock really put himself out by existing off McDonalds for a month, I was expecting some sort of epic odyssey in the badlands of the Pakistani-Afghan border. Spurlock does visit this area, but really it's just part of a grand tour of the Middle East.

Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Afghanistan all get visited - but not Pakistan, where Bin Laden purportedly hides - in what is less odyssey to find the world's most wanted man than to offer an insight into why America is so hated. In doing so he hopes to uncover why al-Qa'eda are sustained - but really he doesn't come close. In fact the whole film is a bit of a con: Spurlock gets to about 200 miles away from where Bin Laden is meant to be, freaks out a bit, and then goes home.

Indeed this film is less about Bin Laden than it is about Spurlock. The somewhat spurious premise is that he's about to become a father and wants to find out.... actually, I'm not sure what he wants to find out... he says he wants to find Bin Laden (but doesn't really), but I can't actually remember what that's got to do with impending fatherhood.

Anyway, it's a good excuse to offer a personal touch for all those dullards whose attention spans would otherwise wane at a 90 minute documentary about the Middle East. For that is what this movie is: Middle East-lite; an uneven attempt to unravel the dramas of the past seven years. Spurlock doesn't actually come near to addressing the scandal of US policy in Afghanistan and elsewhere, and when it is revealed that military incompetence led to Bin Laden escaping Tora Bora in November 2001, he fails to probe deeper.

This is pretty lame stuff, but there are some interesting snippets- notably in the section filmed in Saudi Arabia, a notoriously difficult place to get access. He even interviews two hijab-less women in a Jeddah shopping mall, which I found the most extraordinary thing in the film (but which aroused no comment).

The other interesting aspect, which surely merited comment (but invariably didn't), was the hospitality and decency which he met throughout the Muslim world. At the start Spurlock is shown getting conflict training and throughout wearing bullet proof jackets - but he met good cheer and friendliness everywhere he went. Everywhere, that is, except by Hassidic Jews in Israel - his country's main ally in the Middle East.

Overall this is bland and rather perfunctory, if not occasionally entertaining. It lacks the anger that drives Michael Moore's films and their wit and intelligence. Spurlock's attempts to personalise his quest are lame and really, there's little new or interesting for any informed viewer to derive from watching what is ultimately a half-baked effort.

Hmm... This film's not really about finding OBL, its more about coming to see that scary dark-skinned people with big beards are - surprise surprise - just like us and not scary or dangerous. They even laugh and play with their children!

The part of the dvd that I found most gripping was the interview with Martin McGuinness but it has been confined to the extras. (At a guess this was to avoid upsetting USA promoters of the cinema release; M.McGuiness is from the 'old-country' but is pro-palestine, pro-talking to terrorists/freedom fighters, and says that the US policy is doomed to failure).

This really seems to be targeted to the sector of the US population who think that the way to peace and justice is to shoot people until there are no terrorists left.

Pleasant and watchable, and Morgan Spurlock is a good guy, but it makes Fahrenheit 9/11 seem high-brow.

If you want something much better, try Control Room.