Bhutto is a properly-paced telling of the life and times of the Bhutto family, in a fashion that is not completely dissimilar to coverings of a political regime like the Bush, Clinton, or even Kennedy family. While this is ultimately a documentary about the titular leader, the story easily rivals fictional accounts – Bhutto’s story is tremendously interesting and hard to believe at points. In order to properly educate viewers, the film goes linearly through the different events, rather than picking and choosing the bits and pieces that are ultimately covered.
While the film would do spectacularly in a political science course, there is no learning curve that viewers have to overcome. Rather, through the inclusion of a variety of different media sources and only the lightest touch of directorial urging, viewers of all educational levels and interests will be able to find something to sink their teeth into. The infusion of first-hand media into this documentary acts as further momentum for the title.
Where grainy photographs or other archival data tends to be boring, there is special care taken in including those materials (or finding solid enough sources) to keep things flowing at a brisk clip. While I was not immediately familiar with the work of Duane Baughman, I would strongly suggest that individuals search out a copy of Bhutto and any other titles that ey may be behind. This film is tremendously interesting without having an agenda any certain way, while also not being constrained to any certain length or ideological bent. This film is a must-see for anyone that even has the slightest amount of interested in Bhutto, Pakistan history, or even Asian history generally. I know that I will watch Bhutto again whenever I need to properly understand the current situation in Pakistan.
Rating: 8.1/10
Bhutto (DVD) / 2011 First Run Features / 111 Minutes / http://www.firstrunfeatures.com