How Rob Reiner’s political activism led to Shock and Awe, his film about the US invasion of Iraq

The 2017 drama screened at Dubai International Film Festival

Rob Reiner, seen here at the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004, made films that spanned politics and pop culture. AFP

American director Rob Reiner, who was found dead in his LA home on Sunday, was best known for defining moments in pop culture cinema of the 1980s and 1990s. However, his filmography also reflects a growing political consciousness – one that culminated in Shock and Awe, his exploration of the US invasion of Iraq.

In the 2017 drama, which screened at Dubai International Film Festival, Reiner told the true story of a team of US media company Knight Ridder reporters who, in the run-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, found evidence of falsified intelligence about weapons of mass destruction. However, their findings were largely ignored by major media outlets in a country swept by nationalist sentiment post 9/11.

“I wanted to make this movie right after the invasion of Iraq,” Reiner told The National in August 2018. “But I don't think I could have done that. You had to be so careful around that time, as the national mood was a strange one.

Director Rob Reiner and wife found dead at Los Angeles home

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“It is a very tough reckoning to realise that America was wrong. But this film is all about the importance of the truth and getting the truth out.”

The drama starred Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, James Marsden, Milla Jovovich and Jessica Biel, alongside Reiner, who played an editor.

James Marsden, left, and Woody Harrelson in Shock and Awe. Photo: Front Row Filmed Entertainment

Known for his political activism, Reiner was a supporter of the Democratic Party and a vocal critic of US President Donald Trump.

In the week of Shock and Awe's release in 2017, Reiner joined several Arab filmmakers to criticise Trump who, during his first term, unilaterally recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel – a move that was criticised by Palestinian officials and other Arab nations.

Reiner, who was Jewish, signed a petition led by Palestinian director Annemarie Jacir slamming the decision.

“We stand in solidarity with the Palestinians in Jerusalem, the capital of Palestine, and an open Sacred City that belongs to all Muslims, Christians and Jews,” the petition read. “In your decision, Mr President, you have created more animosity, less faith and profound sorrow in the hearts and minds of all justice lovers in the world.”

Rob Reiner and wife Michele Singer at Dubai International Film Festival in 2017. Getty Images

Speaking to The National in 2017, Reiner was more scathing of the US President.

“Right now we've got a president who says all Muslims should be banned from the country. We've got a president who says we should put a wall on our southern border to keep out rapists,” he said. “We've got a president who is attacking the law enforcement agencies and the media, all the outlets that carry out checks and balances on those in power. We've got a president who is turning his back on science and doesn't acknowledge global warming.

“The man has no concept of geopolitical events or how things are interconnected. There was no consideration that went into this decision, no outreach to allies in the Arab world, or even the non-Arab world to see what the impact of something like this is.”

In its review of Shock and Awe, The National called it a film “that deserves to be seen”.

“The story it tells is simply too important to be ignored for another 15 years, particularly in the era of growing fake news,” the review read.

Reiner, 78, was found dead alongside his wife Michele Singer, 68. Authorities said the deaths are being investigated as an “apparent homicide”.