Bush's Brain (2004)
BeBe Films Inc.

Description

The relationship between Karl Rove and President George W. Bush is one of the most fascinating political marriages in history. Rove's masterful manipulation not only succeeded in winning Bush a second term, but helped secure him the honor of Time magazine's 2004 "Person of the Year." Feared and admired by Republicans and Democrats alike, Rove has raised a new and disturbing question for America: Who really runs the country?

Collected reviews and ratings

9.0 Amazon user reviews

This documentary shows the facts underlying what we already knew about Rove. Well done, but not as great as Michael Moore.
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8.9 DVD Verdict | Brett Cullum

Bush's Brain is not as flashy or wildly entertaining as Fahrenheit 911, but it's still compelling and deserves to be seen. It will inspire ire and screams from Republicans, and Democrats will find it absorbing and intelligent. It's certainly not as heavy-handed as Moore's work, and it's an easy eighty minutes in your DVD player.
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7.5 Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

Filmmakers Joseph Mealey and Michael Paradies Shoob trace Rove's rise from school debating champ to attack dog who allegedly masterminded smears against Texas Gov. Ann Richards and senators John McCain and Max Cleland, among others. Rove isn't blamed for the John Kerry Swift-boat fuss, but you feel he would be if the film hadn't already been completed. Propaganda? You bet. But a scary and persuasive case is made.
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7.0 Variety | Joe Leydon

By turns darkly comical, seriously scary and purposefully incendiary, "Bush's Brain" may seem, depending on your politics, either a shamelessly one-sided assault on a popular U.S. president or a justifiably harsh critique of a politician who personifies the Peter Principle.
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7.0 documentaryfilms.net | David Loftus

As a piece of filmmaking, “Bush’s Brain” is fairly pedestrian: it lacks the verve of Moore’s film or the calm elegance of “Control Room.” Its makers don’t give the viewer much more beyond a series of talking heads, with an occasional TV clip here and there. Fortunately, the subject is inherently gripping.
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4.0 filmcritic.com | Chris Barsanti

What the filmmakers promise is an investigation into the mind and methods of Rove, the GOP puppetmaster, but what is actually delivered is much, much less – proving once again that Rove always wins.
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