LONDON: British television channel More4 plans to broadcast a dramatic film, documentary-style, about a fictional assassination of US President George W. Bush, the network's head said Thursday.

The program uses actors and digital manipulation of real footage to show a fictional account of Bush being gunned down after delivering a speech in Chicago, Peter Dale, the head of More4 , told a news conference.

” Death of a President ”,' also scheduled to be shown at the Toronto Film Festival in September, focuses on all those linked to the pretend crime -- including nearby anti-war protesters nearby, suspects, Secret Service guards and investigators, Dale said.

More4 , which is the digital offshoot of Britain's Channel 4 network, plans to show the program on Oct. 9. The White House declined to comment on the network's announcement, saying it would not dignify the program with a response.

``It's an extraordinarily gripping and powerful piece of work, a drama constructed like a documentary that looks back at the assassination of George Bush as the starting point for a very gripping detective story,'' Dale told reporters.

``It's a pointed political examination of what the war on terror did to the American body politic,'' he said.

Dale said he expected the film would upset some, but defended it as a sophisticated piece of work.

``It's not sensationalist, or simplistic but a very thought-provoking, powerful drama,'' he said. ``I hope people will see that the intention behind it is good.''

`` Death of a President'' is directed by Gabriel Range, whose 2003 TV movie `` The Day Britain Stopped'' showed what might happen if the country's transportation network ground to a halt.

Source: TimesofIndia

I presume those of us waiting to watch this in the U.S will have to wait till well after the 2008 election!!

Fox, the Right Wing elements of the Republican Party and the Bill O'Reilley's / Rush Limbaugh's of this world are already frothing at the mouth waiting to get their hands on these "fascists" who dare oppose Bush and the misguided War in Iraq!!

It's about time there was an intelligent (sans name calling) discussion as to the long term devastating impact of the hair brained, oil thirsty decisions of this Boy King -"King George" and his nut case cabbal of Condi, Rummy and Shooter Dick...

i just want to see the reaction from ann coulter...

Ann Coulter!!!....that woman...my only reaction when I hear her speak is to scream in agony and start throwing things!!

I'm surprised that "Boy Wonder" Karl Rove has been quiet about this--I would have thought he would spin this in any way he can to try and tie this to "National Security" or "The War of Terror"..

whenever i see ann coulter talking in the tv ,i just feel like changing the channel...i just hate that woman....

I don't watch Ann Coulter or Bill O'Reilly as both are a total waste of time. David Brooks, George Will etc provide much more substantive conservative opinion than loud-mouthed idiots like O'Reilly and Coulter.

As for the movie, bring it on. Close to two-thrids of the US public opposes the war : - http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0901/dailyUpdate.html - I bet you the movie will play well in the big cities. As for election impact, Bush and Co can spin this as much as they want, but I doubt they will gain much electorally from it.

To hell with herd mentality. If the title isn't a ripoff of "Death of a salesman". Fu*ked up title, and I bet the libturds who came up with it thought they were being tongue in cheek. Arthur Miller is prolly rolling in his grave, and I bet a dollar to a doughnut that the creators are capitalistic pigs using Bush's current political vulnerabilty to laugh their way all the way to the mo fu*king bank. Of course libturds don't see it. As long as Bush is being bashed, who gives a rip is how they see it.
It's obvoius that liberals are once again shooting themselves in the foot by giving conservatives talking points that can be used, and effectively too, as Republicans are always more organized than Democrats in presenting a united front, to delineate liberals as being out of touch with mainstream America. And guess what, all these gaffes will add up in the end and will ultimately end up biting libs in the a$$ come November. I'd say that some American libtard will surely and naturally make derogatory/disparaging comments to defend this movie(Ted Rall comes to mind--this guy has to be the biggest douchebag I have ever come across), and ultimately republicans will milk the comments till hell freezes over. I can see it from a mile away.
If anybody here believes that this can't be used as ammo by conservatives, then I say you're sniffing glue. America is divided as it is already. In some precincts where repubs and dems are in a close race, even a minor faux pas may end up helping the other side. I can already see ads,financed by the RNC of course, that will capitalize on this movie. Do y'all think that dems are safe just because this movie came out of Europe?

I'm personally an independent( as my registration card can vouch) with a conservative streak, but I still cannot get myself to vote for republican candidates, primarily because they're in bed with the religious right. I don't want a frigging theocracy. I'll probably vote for Jim Webb( I'm in Virginia) or sit it out this time. I do think that George Allen's "macaca" comment was blown out of proportion. The video clearly indicates that George Allen didn't not use "macaca" disparagingly. Should I be offended just because I'm of South Asian descent? I sure as hell was not offended. Liberal cut and runners just won't get the job done either. I don't understand how pulling out is the solution.

Now as regards Ann Coulter, I think she's pretty hilarious. Here's one comment I found to be quite hilarious. "Bill Clinton may not be gay, but Al Gore--now he's a total fa.g"!

I'm pretty much searching my soul trying to figure out where I stand. I am definitely not a bleeding heart liberal. I'm not a conservative either. I'm somewhere in the middle. Dittoheads who agree with liberal or conservative views to a tee without using their heads are morons as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway, back to reading Pat Buchanan's book. He makes some good points, although he seems to be pretty xenophobic.

I'm quite sure the Dems/Liberals aren't safe anywhere in the U.S from the Right wing agenda that paints any opposition to legitimate concerns as the hallmarks of Terrorists and in the words of Rummy "Nazi appeasers"!

I agree that this may be a boon to the GOP, but I think there's something to be said for the need for rational debate as to where the Policies of this administration in particular are taking us - I'm one of those who believes that the War in Iraq was nothing more than a farce and that the troops need to be brought back because I don't have the right to ask/expect another man/woman's child to die for a huge mistake--does that make me a "cut and run liberal"?..I'd like to believe that a sense of humanity dictates that response.

Speaking of the GOP and the religious right- Katherine Harris (Yes, the same Katherine Harris who certified the 2000 election in favour of Bush) has made comments on her election trial stating that voting for Republican's was a way of acting out God's will!!..Seriously, why does God seem to have conversations with just the nut jobs in the neo-conservative, religious cabbal?

Thus far, no comments from Tony Snow and Karl Rove...but, I'm sure they'll find a way to spin this by connecting it to the "we need to keep America safe by having the Religious right in power"...we shall have to wait and see.....

"I'm one of those who believes that the War in Iraq was nothing more than a farce and that the troops need to be brought back "

Iraq is already a hotbed for terrorist activities. While there may not have been any terrorists before the invasion, there is no doubt that they are in Iraq right now. There also is no guarantee that Iraq won't morph into another version of Talibanized Afghanistan if we pull out a tad too quickly. And consider this, if America messes a country up, isn't it the moral obligation of America to fix it up? Colin Powell said it best, "You break it, you own it". We have another situation in Iraq right now. The debate isn't about whether invading Iraq was the right thing to do or not anymore. That debate is so passe. Under a less inept government, perhaps the rebuilding process could have taken place more smoothly.

If you check the polls, Americans are against the war, but they are also against bringing our troops home. That'd totally be another slap in the face. All the money down the tubes for nothing. Mark my words, if democrats do that, then they'll lose even more credibility. And then there's another loon running around screaming "death to Israel and America" on top of his lungs. I'm talking about Ahmedinejad, of course.

A republican politician said the following, if I am correct, of Bill Clinton, which I found to be hilarious. To paraphrase, "while I was biting bullets in nam, he was busy biting his nails"[source, Bill Clinton's biography, "my life"]. The point is that liberals are seen as tree-hugging cut-and-running pansies. I'm personally the type who supports Joe Lieberman. We sure as hell need someone who can wade through all partisan crap that goes on in Washington.

Rudra ji,

The points you raise are valid and well noted. Yes the U.S has a moral obligation to try and put Iraq back into some semblance of shape; however, keeping in mind that the fall out of the War in Iraq is the ongoing ideological warfare between the Shia and Sunni factions, I'm very sceptical that the U.S forces viewed as "Imperialists" and "Infidels" will be able to regain control of the country, particularly when the controlling faction is an army that is fighting an ideology; therefore, how much longer can we expect troops to lay down the ultimate sacrifice?

As to the Bill Clinton analogy- the same applies here don't you think? Shooter Cheney managed to get not one but four deferments from the Vietnam War, and Bush was "protecting the skies over Texas" at the same time...yet, this is the same group that was clamouring for war with all they had--it's the hypocricy of this lot that angers and frustrates me to no end!

As far as Ahmedinijad is concerned, there is no dispute that the guy is a nut job; however, the rising rhetoric of the administration towards Iran and the constant injection of Syria and Iran into the "Axis of Evil" only gives Ahmedinajd more fodder to contribute to the Mahdi army of Al-Sadr and the millitant faction of Nasarallah of Hezbollah.

Clealry, this is not an issue that is going to be resolved anytime soon...the legacy of this administration is and will be the Civil war in Iraq and Afghanistan!

Some progressives in this country are too scared of being labeled liberal (and therefore, by implication, 'weak'). The way I see it, when the American public is ready to pull out, and that day is bound to come sooner or later, there is a good chance they will want the Democrats to be running the show, if recent opinion poll trends are anything to go by. The same 'liberals', who the likes of Oreilly and Coulter view as imbeccile, could very well have the last laugh at Bush and Co who, according to Pat Buchanan himself, have precipiated the decline of American power world-wide in the long run.

Howard Dean put it best : "the democrats can never come to power by trying to become Bush-Lite" . If it's Bush the public wants, there's no reason to vote democratic. Democrats can only get elected on their own merits and by being themselves.

PS: I am not a Democrat (not that it would matter one bit to me if I was one)