1) Even if you have seen films like "Loose Change", did the film segment make you question or challenge your beliefs about 9/11? Explain.
This film definitely challenged my beliefs about 911. However, for some reason I find that I really want to believe it, but I can not. There are just too many things to take in to account and I think I need to see a movie just like this one, but for the conventional thinking of the attacks before I make any kind of final thoughts.
2) What documentary conventions did this film employ?
This film included many documentary conventions. These conventions included, archival footage and photographs, talking heads, (although they weren’t really talking to him) jiggly camera, narration, and real people.
3) What aspects of the film make its assertions seem true? List three facts that support their claim that 9/11 was authored by the US.
Parts of the film does seem true and the filmmakers has a few very interesting points. Part of the reason it seemed more truthful was because he was using clips and pictures from actually news reports and it’s not just him talking. There were three main facts that stood out for me. First the part about the buildings collapsing. It did look an awful lot like a controlled demolitions and it is hard to imagine how a plane crashing into the top would make it collapse from the bottom “pancake style”. Another interesting point was all the meetings with the Bush’s and the Bin Laden’s and their involvement with the Carlyle Group. A third point was how they got the money for the operation, it came through Pakistan, which is an ally of he U.S, and the official report of 911 said it wasn’t important where the money came from. I think that would be one of the most important parts about the investigation.
4) What would make you think that the film's assertions are false?
For one thing we don’t actually know anything about who made the film so right off the bat it seems a bit unofficial. Also there are always parts of a theory you can pick apart. One thing I found strange was his arguments about the planes crashing in the Pentagon and Pennsylvania. Was he suggesting that the planes didn’t actually crash there? That doesn’t make sense because there were many people that would have seen the planes crash. And if they didn’t crash then where did they go?
5) Why are critical thinking and research skills important when viewing a film like Zeitgeist?
Films like “Zeitgeist” are out there to try to convince you of something that goes against the conventional way people think about a topic. They are not called “conspiracy” theories for nothing. Critical thinking and research skill are important for picking out how much truth there actually is in the film. There is a reason that most people think the same way about what happened, because it’s quiet possibly what did happen.
