Corridors of Power: Should America Police the World? (2024)

After the fall of the Soviet Union, America stood alone as the world's only global superpower, but what responsibilities came with that power?
What happens in the White House when reports arrive of foreign leaders murdering their own people? The Corridors of Power investigates the workings of the inner sanctums of the White House over the past 40 years. This film focuses on the decision-making of American leaders in the face of genocide, war crimes, and mass atrocities committed after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In Bosnia, Rwanda, Iraq, Libya, and Syria, what principles and reasoning guided action, and especially inaction, when political, economic, and diplomatic interests were weighed against the humanitarian emergency? The film delves into the heart of the debates, moral dilemmas, strategic calculations, and power struggles that have shaped the corridors of power and American foreign policy over the past few decades.
Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2013 for "The Gatekeepers", Dror Moreh sheds light on how American leaders have responded to reports of genocide and the massacre of civilians since the end of the Soviet Union. The filmmaker interviews leaders and advisors to understand the various failures to prevent these crimes, particularly in Kuwait, Rwanda, Libya, and Syria. Dror Moreh meets men and women at the highest levels of government whose decisions influenced the position of their countries during various international crises and within the UN Security Council, shaping the course of history.
By combining in-depth interviews with rare archival footage and state-of-the-art CGI animations, Moreh gives viewers the unique opportunity to peek behind the scenes and behind the headlines to better understand not the "what," but the "why." Featuring interviews with decision-makers, including Madeleine Albright, James Baker, Condoleezza Rice, Colin Powell and Hillary Clinton, the film reveals how our past mistakes can dictate our future.

Scripted, Produced & Directed by Dror Moreh ; Executive Producer for the BBC: Jo Lapping ; Dror Moreh Productions in association with BBC

Narrated by Meryl Streep

Episodes:

1. Iraq – For Every Insect There Is an Insecticide
2. Bosnia – Our Soldiers Are Not Toy Soldiers
3. Rwanda – That Was a Local Thing
4. Kosovo – In the Name of Our Future
5. Darfur – Carrots for a War Criminal
6. Libya – If You Break It You Own It
7. Syria – The Risk of Doing Nothing
8. Syria – A Loop of Imperfection