Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media

This movie, like the title suggests is required viewing for every single person living in the free world. Not many movies can claim to start political and grass-roots movements but this one has.

If you value your intelligence, if you don't believe a pre-fabricated word of what the media machine throws at you, if you want to fight to keep your intellect alive and your own individual thinking original, if you are sick and tired of how this world is NOW and passionately want to change it for the better, then this movie is for you. The movie and accompanying book claim to be primers in intellectual self-defense, which they certainly are but beyond that, they also serve to showcase the many talents of linguist/political dissident/writer/philosopher/professor Noam Chomsky.

I'm surprised the movie didn't win a Best Documentary Oscar, which it certainly should have, perhaps more than anything it just goes to show you that the contents of this movie probably strike too close to home and make the media elite squirm in their seats.

Take 3 hours off some Sunday afternoon instead of watching the football game and WATCH THIS MOVIE, you won't regret it! The movie leaves you with an immense feeling of hope and a profound sense that each one of us can do something actively and constructively in order to make this a better world to live in. If you're apolitical now and/or politically inactive, you won't be after you watch this movie. Guaranteed.

The film makers, Mark Achbar and Peter Wintonick, achieve the seemingly impossible by turning Noam Chomsky's dry political theories and persona into a fascinating, entertaining movie, and all on a presumably tight budget. If you want to gain insight into the workings of the US media system then this movie will give you some food for thought. Hardly surprising then that Hollywood did not award them an Oscar for this, even thought they sure would have deserved one.

Manufacturing Consent attempts to teach deep social, political and philosophical studies with mainstream and sometimes simplistic filmmaking that edges on a PowerPoint visual aids strategy. But... it works! The movie is not necessarily targeting MIT intelligentsia, but the people-in-the-street that the same media depicted in the film are aiming at. If you liked the movie, or if it just left you wondering, read the book! The film and/or the book will probably be worth your time... more, anyway, than any Hollywood littering the screens nowadays. In this day and age of political and social polarization, of media playing the role of king-makers (or king-slayers), of discussions of the very existence or relevancy of democracy in a highly mediated and influenced political climate, Chomsky's suggestions are as timely as ever.

This is one of the five best educational tools not in use in the United States. A film so deep and full of non-stop, reality-busting evidence that —what you see ISN'T what you get in America.

Chomsky is arguably the most intelligent political observer on Earth today. Its easy to be the Plunderer and commit the atrocities... its far more difficult to uncover the plots, organize the facts, and be vigilant of the actions. This is Must-See Media for the masses!

Americans are too busy to begin think outside the box. This is 2h46m of intensive training in true democratic responsibility. Chomsky may favor the social structure of an early 20th century Kibbutz, but certainly his lessons of observation would stand well for any social structure. If you are not bought and owned by the system... you owe it to your children or your immortal soul...or karmic rebirth, to wake up and smell the fascism.

Chomsky is one of my heroes, so I am a little biased. I consider myself a moderate, and I see Chomsky as a transcendent of politics. He spouts the truth, and tries to decipher incredibly complex institutional interactions. This doc will make you think about the world you live in like you've never thought about it before, being led by one of the premier thinkers of our time. Chomsky will be remembered far beyond the present, a true maverick and one of the few people intelligent enough to address societal and institutional ills and be right close to 100% of the time.

Do NOT dismiss Chomsky because you think he's a lefty nut. He's not a pre-Bowling for Columbine Michael Moore. Noam Chomsky is a distinguished intellectual in the truest sense with a near 100% accuracy in placing his words properly in sentences. When you hear him speak, try to focus on how clearly and concisely his ideas are discussed. Then look into his eyes and take note of his demeanor. A human body does not suit a mind like his. This documentary is a must for truth seekers and lefties. It is long, but you can watch it in parts. If you wanna have a great discussion, watch it with one or two other people. Its inevitable. 10/10