Dans l'enfer de Waco

I remember watching this when it came out. I swear the siege was still going on when they started production. It made me wonder how accurate it could possibly be. I think it aired shortly before the trial or during. But this was when made for tv movies were rushed out the door and there were often multiple. Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan both got one on different channels and so on for each scandal. Hope this sets the scene a little bit for why movies were rushed. What it doesn't answer is where were the others from the opposite points of view?

But really the comedian from Wings was going to play this evil cult leader? But Tim Daly was so different and so frightening to be completely honest. He shined and I don't think I've ever been more impressed with him. Not to mention the makeup team. They really made him look like Koresh.

It followed the known information about the case at the time. But I think that was the point. They were a company that was trying to influence public opinion in a certain manner. Waco only got one tv movie in 93 I believe. And the radio show Koresh himself did. No one touched it for 5 years. I believe this is a good movie for explaining the times, how this tragedy happened, and how everyone reacted after. Maybe a little heavy for a movie review but I think it's an important one nonetheless.

I certainly don't support a lunatic like David Koresh at all. However this film is about an important true event in American history, in terms of law enforcement and human rights. This film is a totally biased propaganda film that entirely ignores the errors of every American government agency involved. This was obviously funded to some degree for the very purpose of their public image. It is an insult to truth. It is an insult to the viewer. It is an insult to the American public. It is an insult to the foreign public. It is an insult to humankind. Is there anyone else I can say it's an insult to? This is bottom of the barrel stuff. Whatever happened to admitting your mistakes and learning from them? Would it be so bad if they admitted their errors? If children covered up their mistakes with pure lies like this film does. Most parents would certainly have a big talk with, or even punish them for such things. And this is the behaviour of the most powerful government in the world. Absolutely ridiculous! Anyone who researches this event, or watched it unfold knows that this film is a biased load. This is the exact kind of ammunition that crazed idiots like Koresh use to trick vulnerable people into believing that their government is not to be trusted. With such ignorant public propaganda. It really makes you wonder how corrupt some American government agencies are. With this kind of stuff out there, it is also not much of a wonder that the U.S. has become such a distrusted country around the world. This film makes me mad, and it makes me sick. It also makes me wonder if the government could possibly hire any dumber public relations gurus than the ones who came up with the idea to fund this garbage.

0/10

This movie was the worst example of what really happened. The other persons comment really angers me. 80 men, women and children were burned alive by our government. Several years later it surfaced that the FED's really did launch incendiary devices at the Davidians church (compound labeled by the FED's to militarize the situation)I have seen the autopsy photos of the children and I cant tell you how much it brings tears to my eyes that no one has done anything to the ATF, FED and Military personal who are responsible. Keep harping on 9/11 and continue to close your eyes to what happen in Waco. I find it funny how the American Indians don't have a problem with believing what really happened in Waco but the rest of America cant seem to believe that our government would ever do such a terrible thing. Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it. Our government almost killed off an entire race of people (American Indians) and you find this hard to believe that it would murder 80 men, women and children?

This is quite a good movie, even though I remember it being started while the siege was still underway. The tension ratchets up throughout as we see Tim Daly do an excellent job as David Koresh ruling over his acolytes, alternately bullying and charismatic. He gives a convincing portrayal of a "sinful messiah" which certainly raised concerns in the straight-laced Baptist community of Waco, Texas. This is what initially attracted the attentions of various law enforcement agencies.

The interest of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is piqued, but never fully explained, as it is to this day. Both sides are then set on a course that ultimately leads to violence, leading up to the climactic attack of the Branch Davidian compound, which caps and concludes the movie. The siege and its fiery conclusion are not seen.

The movie doesn't portray Koresh as a frothing at the mouth religious fanatic but as a true believer in what he says. Thus, the viewer is left with the ambiguous feeling that he may not have deserved his fate. The ATF agents are never fleshed out and we don't feel any real sympathy for their deaths. We end up not totally understanding why this tragedy occurred, which is exactly how we felt then, as now.

Several up and comers appear in this film, including Neil McDonough (Band of Brothers and Medical Investigations) and NYPD Blue's Gordon Clapp. Lewis Smith is wasted as one of the slain ATF agents.

This slip-shod piece of government propaganda was rushed to production before the final fire killed over 75 men, women and children. Although the disclaimer at the beginning of the film claims it was thoroughly researched, the stereotypes in which the characters were portrayed were comical, if not tragic misrepresentations. Filled with downright lies, the writer of this garbage later apologized to the surviving members and the families of those lost for his role in perpetuating the horrible myths surrounding David Koresh and his followers. (See David Thibodeau's _A Place Called Waco_, page 207 and writer Phil Penningroth's own "Righting Waco: Confessions of a Hollywood Propagandist" available at http://www.killingthebuddha.com/dogma/righting_waco.htm) This piece does play a role in the history of the standoff, as a clear example of the dead wrong information surrounding the standoff and raid. Therefore, take it with a grain of salt.