State of Siege

Product Description Left-wing rebels kidnap a U.S. adviser to the right-wing regime in Uruguay. Directed by Costa-Gavras. Additional Features DVD SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:  New 2K digital transfer, supervised by director Costa-Gavras New conversation between director Costa-Gavras and film scholar Peter Cowie NBC News excerpts from 1970 on the kidnapping of Dan Mitrione, on which the film is based New English subtitle translation PLUS: An essay by journalist Mark Danner Review Costa-Gavras ( Z) puts the United States’ involvement in South American politics under the microscope in this arresting thriller. An urban guerilla group, outraged at the counterinsurgency and torture training clandestinely organized by the CIA in their country (unnamed in the film), abducts a U.S. official ( The Wages of Fear’s Yves Montand) to bargain for the release of political prisoners; soon the kidnapping becomes a media sensation, leading to violence. Cowritten by Franco Solinas ( The Battle of Algiers), the electrifying State of Siege piercingly critiques the American government for helping institute foreign dictatorships while also asking difficult questions about the efficacy of radical violent acts to oppose such regimes.