Analysis of Taxi to the Dark Side Documentary by Alex Gibney - Movie Review Example

1 2. 3. 4. Taxi to the Dark Side – Conflict ‘Taxi to the Dark Side’(2007) is a heartrending documentary by Alex Gibney, who deftly narrates the horrifying story of Dilawar, an Afghan man, who struggled hard and saved just enough money to purchase a taxi. However, he was not to enjoy his life or be peaceful after buying the taxi because misfortune soon caught up with him in the guise of an informant who was told that the taxi driver was a terrorist in disguise and was connected to a rocket attack. The taxi driver was nabbed and sent to an American prison in Bagram in Afghanistan. The torture he experiences within the walls of the jail was so hideous and violent that sadly he dies after five days. The background history of torture dates back to the 20th century, post World War II period during the development and progress of the CIA’s investigative techniques where the CIA agents were taught how to use sensory deprivation techniques to help 2 them break down the human psyche in order to make the prisoners feel fear, dread, confusion and increase their dependency. The history of this 20th century torture tactic was especially traced back to democracies such as the United States, U.K and Israel where it was regularly carried out. The British were known to use what they called ‘five techniques, which included – 1) Hooding, 2) Sleep deprivation, 3) Forced standing, 4) Noise bombardment and 5) Starvations and thirst against the IRA. However, such horrendous practices and techniques were discarded by legislation levied against it both in the UK and Israel, but sadly it is still carried on in the United States. It is quite difficult for most people to understand this kind of torture because such torture does not leave any visible marks on the prisoner. This kind of torture is of a particular kind because the techniques involve “Stress positions” such as standing for long hours or being shackled from the ceiling which is something that goes beyond human endurance. This kind of torture also includes deprivation of sleep and sensory organs. For the shackling of prisoners, the ceiling is covered with wire mesh and chains are hung from them to hold up the arms of the prisoners for long hours without sleep. In fact, a chart is hung on the prison wall to indicate how many hours a prisoner should sleep and how many hours he had to stand shackled. The guards followed this regimental schedule rigidly to succeed in breaking the individual’s spirit. Describing the impact of this tactic used on the prisoners Pfc. Damian Corsetti, MI, states -"If youve ever seen someone sleep-depped, past two days they just begin to be mumbling idiots; three days sleep deprivation, theyre just worthless." 3 In 1956, two researchers from Cornel Medical Center were commissioned by the CIA to investigate and study the techniques of interrogation used by the Soviets. In their report they say how prisoners were made to stand for 18 to 24 hours that resulted in excruciating pain in the ankles which get terribly swollen and the skin which becomes taut is very painful and in some cases blisters are formed and crack open and a watery liquid oozes out. Sometimes the kidneys of the victims shut down and heart rates accelerate while delusion sets in. In some cases the arms that are held overhead by the chains in the ceiling gets dislocated causing them unbearable pain. Alex Gibney’s ‘Taxi to the Dark Side’ comprises of the whole torture scenario that is shrouded in the homicide of an innocent rural man Dilawar who had saved money to buy a taxi of his own. His happiness was cut short when he encounters the actual criminal who poses as an investigator of sorts. Being wrongly blamed for a crime he did not commit, the innocent Dilawar is imprisoned in Bagram jail and tortured mindlessly. Gibney makes use of the technique of cause and effect throughout the movie, all the time analyzing torture and the effect it created when dealing with different prisoners. Gibney has taken great caution with the script of the story by interviewing Military personnel and Military interrogators who had worked in 2002 at the Bagram jail. New York Times Reporters Tim Golden and Carlotta Gall were also interviewed and they disclosed the gory details of Dilawar’s death. They told the director that his death was caused by severe beating to his legs, especially just above the knee area which led to severe clotting in the 4 legs. The blood clots are believed to have traveled to his heart causing death by a heart attack heart causing death by a heart attack. Military police are said to make use of such a technique to subdue their prisoners and a specific nerve center in the leg is their target and this type of blow is what is termed as ‘peroneal strike’ by those undergoing military training. One of the prime scenes in the movie ‘Taxi to the Dark Side’ is the torture of Dilawar which is so painful and ghastly. One would wonder how a human being could be treated this way by other human beings. I had chosen this scene because it seemed to be the very core of the movie, around which all else revolves. The scene comprised of a very dimly lit isolation cell where Dilawar is shown hanging with his hands tied to chains on the ceiling. He was terrified of the merciless beatings he was going through. There were four officers who were assigned to carry out their horrendous duties. The cell was small and desolate and only resounded with the screams and moans of the prisoner who was made to wear a hood over his head. They kept repeatedly beating him above his knees and in the area where his kidneys were located as he screamed in unbearable pain. He kept shouting out and crying for help to his mother and father and calling out to “Allah” to save him. The officers who were beating him became angry each time he cried out and this made them beat him even more till he finally collapsed with a heart attack from clots that had traveled to his heart. The report that was issued on Dilawar’s death stated that his legs looked as if they were run over by a bus because it was thoroughly smashed and his body that was covered in blood was limp from all the beating he had 5 experienced. In fact, if Dilawar had lived, his legs were so badly gone that they would have had to amputate them. ‘Conflict’ is the underlying theme in Alex Gibney’s ‘Taxi to the Dark Side’ and the main inspiration for his film was drawn from the article written by Tim Golden, a New York Times Reporter. Other material that went to back up the film were interviews with interrogators and reporters, important video material, ghastly photographs of prisoners and textual material from relevant documents, and military manuals about the torture techniques used to break down the prisoners. Conflict, which is the central theme on which the movie is based, is seen through the eyes of a prisoner when he cries out for help or when he is forced to do things he does not want to do. We see conflict in the Military personnel when they have to be harsh and cruel during the torture sessions of different prisoners because carrying out such harsh duties goes against human nature because of the damage they are causing to another human being. We also see conflict among the other prisoners who await their turn of torture while listening to the pitiable cries coming from a cell next to theirs. In Dilawar’s case, we find conflict present from the very beginning when he is caught and taken to the Bagram prison because he has no idea why they captured him and what they would do to him. When the military personnel use torture tactics on him, he is in conflict crying out for his mother, father or ‘Allah’ to save him. Even after the dramatic events of his death comes to an end there is conflict in making the story public. It is no wonder that Gibney’s ‘Taxi to the Dark Side’ had bagged an Academy Award in 2008 for being one of the best documentaries to be filmed. 6 ‘Bleeding from the Whip’ is a film also based on torture in Africa but in close connection with human rights. The film depicts torture to simple civilians who are exposed to grievous torture for small crimes such as stealing. The police officers are shown taking the law into their own hands even though torture is unconstitutional and cause fierce harm to people. The central themes on which this film rests is torture as against human rights. Even though Government personnel say that they have put torture behind them, torture is very much present and carried out undercover and behind closed doors. Both these films show that even though we have come a long way where being civilized is concerned, yet, human rights is still a big question mark. Torture carried out on human beings by human beings themselves is inhuman to say the least and needs our immediate attention. References Bleeding from the Whip: A Film on Torture by Influence Africa. Web. Retrieved on 11th April 2014. www.YouTube.com Roger Ebert. Taxi to the Dark Side. (2008) Movie Review. Web. Retrieved on 10th April 2014. http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/taxi-to-the-dark-side-2008 Taxi to the Dark Side – Trailer. YouTube. Web. Retrieved on 11th April 2014 http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DWX0MPcN08Zc Torture Documentaries p-2 – Jump Out http://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/jc51.2009/TortureDocumentaries/2.html Read More