I found the movie to be thought provoking and intriguing. The man being interviewed was allowed to present their thoughts without being interrupted or pushed into a corner. Although the movie veers to being anti-Iraqi war, it still allows plenty of room for the audience to draw their own conclusions. It helps that Rumsfeld is an intruding man to listen to, and the accompanying soundtrack is phenomenal. The reason I didn't give it 5 stars was that it felt a bit too long to watch in one sitting.

Fascinating historical documentary. This is an extended interview of Donald Rumsfeld. He shares his eyewitness account of some of the most interesting moments in political history.

There is much to learn in paying very close attention to what Rumsfeld has to say and how he thinks. He is clearly a very intelligent person who thinks deeply. He did tell truth to power at times. I would say if you are the type of person who is interested in history and politics this is a must-see documentary. If you are an intellectual type you will also enjoy this documentary as Rumsfeld is indeed intellectual. If you are looking for a "mea culpa" asking for forgiveness well forget it. Rumsfeld is not one for apologies or regrets. He is no Robert McNamara like the "Fog of War" documentary Morris did long before this one. That said the closest he comes to an apology is for how the Abu Ghraib prison abuse occurred. In many ways, he is emotionally detached from what happened in his time in government and what happened to the people who were impacted by his decisions and actions. In some ways, he reminds me of the "good soldier" who was following orders. You will have to see the documentary and come to your own conclusions on Rumsfeld and if this documentary shed any light on the situation or not. That said I found it very interesting and profound myself.

A solid, interesting documentary although strangely not as engaging as Morris' earlier work The Fog of War. Rumsfeld maintains his political doggedness throughout and many of the hard questions on Iraq and the War on Terror simply get lost behind his impenetrable grin. Nonetheless it's a fascinating and revelatory insight into the man and the events during his time in office. An enjoyable watch for political hacks and casual observers alike.

Milton Friedman wanted Rumsfeld to be Reagan’s VP. He would have been elected president for two terms. History would be so different. This was an excellent movie.

Unfortunately, with Donald Rumsfeld maintaining his political dodginess, The Unknown Known does not bear the similar vindicating tones as the similarly shot Fog of War.

Intersting, but too much of a kid-gloves approach investigatively IMO. I.e. Some bullshit calling is done here, but not nearly as much as is warranted.

Frustrating, but in the best possible way, 'The Unknown Known' is a study in self-deception and genuine delusion. Who is Donald Rumsfield? Well, don't ask him because he'd give you five different answers... Unlike his look at Robert McNamara, 'The Unknown Known' doesn't really focus on the thoughts and feelings of its subject as it does on Rumsfeld's idiosyncrasies, of which there are many (he's since released an app called 'Churchill Solitaire' for instance'). Some won't enjoy Morris', well, failure really, to get anything substantial out of Rumsfeld but it's clear that Morris was quick to catch this and saw that what he was witnessing was something unique in its own right. As he himself said of the film: "to me this is a horror movie. A deeply disturbing horror movie about a man who wielded just incredible power, controlled the most powerful military apparatus in history and yet seems singularity disconnected... from what he's doing and who he is" Needless to say, that makes for some pretty fascinating viewing.

Must watch about one of the people, that help start the Iraq war.

The Bush's Minister of defence Donald Rumsfeld lies bluntly through the whole movie. If you wanna watch a pathological liar in action here is a real life horror move for you!

I wasn't that impressed but it did give some interesting insights.

http://filmreviewsnsuch.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-unknown-known.html

A study of the significance of language in international relations through the prism of one of its more reflective recent protagonists, which will probably diminish in historical interest in very little time. Looks nice though.

Scary and depressing how little these men feel about the damage they've done.

With a man who's been scrutinized for so many decades it's difficult to view anything about this with objectivity. Help should come from the director, Errol Morris who is one of the best documentarians. And yet, as he asks his questions there's a clear hostility, with an accusatory tone. The problem with well-edited interview footage is that it's difficult to tell what spurns such a tone, frustration or aggression. Then there's that slick smile Rumsfeld has when answering questions, which in some contexts comes across as callas. A half century of being in politics, it's easy to develop such a look, and here we have the chance to visually study it, reading the face of a man who helped develop military strategy during the most tumultuous times in American foreign policy. Throughout this interview Rumsfeld rereads memos from his entire political career (the man wrote everything down), then each word of it feels questioned by Morris. Definitions of words pop up on the screen, as Rumsfeld rigorously focused on the proper wording to justify his point of view. But when the questions become hard his response is an aw-shucks "I'll be darned if I know." By the end of this he seems more wistful than contemplative. Less devious, and more devoid. And calling him 'Machiavellian' gives and old stubborn man far too much credit.

This movie is a good watch, until the one hour mark. From what I gather from this man from the movie I watched, is that he furthers his own interests, and does not care for the people of our country or the people of the world. He only sees himself getting ahead, and if that means putting down another, then so be it. I hate this characteristic. However, I will say the premise of this movie is good, and that the effort put into this is great. Still, I will have to give this movie a low score because of my beliefs.

Very well done. Balanced. But not much revealed that any history buff would not already know.

Fascinating look into the concept of knowledge. Even though you leave scratching your head, you'll be smiling.

Creepy and well executed, but not that revealing.

Saw at art house when Seth was working