Blu-ray, DVD Release: The Ambassador

Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: Oct. 23, 2012
Price: DVD $27.97, Blu-ray $29.97
Studio: Drafthouse Films/Image Entertainment


The AmbassadorThe fledging Drafthouse Films, the distribution arm of Texas’ Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas, scored another highly acclaimed film with the documentary The Ambassador.

In the movie, filmmaker Mads Brugger (The Red Chapel) visits the dangerous Central African Republic posing as a businessman trying to get diplomatic credentials so he can get into the lucrative blood diamond trade. Along the way, he shows how the resources of a war-torn third world country can easily end up in the hands of greedy, unscrupulous foreigners.

The Ambassador is shot in the documentary style that Brugger calls “performative journalism,” in which he inserts himself into the film as a character — in this case, a corrupt diplomat — armed with hidden cameras, black-market credentials and a razor-sharp wit.

As Brugger said of the film, “I want to show an Africa stripped of [non-governmental organizations], Bono, child soldiers and kids with bloated bellies, to show the kind of people you never see in the documentaries: white businessmen and diplomats, the fat cats in the urban centers, all the people who are in post-colonial [French Africa] having a great time.”

The Ambassador got rave reviews from critics. The New York Post‘s Kyle Smith said the movie is “Graham Greene crossed with James Bond, with a splash of Sacha Brown Cohen… A stunning, funny and vital piece of guerilla cinema.”

The documentary was only shown in a handful of screens, so this DVD and Blu-ray brings The Ambassador to its widest audience, although it has been available on instant streaming.

Both the DVD and Blu-ray contain these extras:

  • audio commentary with director Mads Brugger
  • theatrical trailer
  • 16-page booklet.

Check out the film’s trailer:


 

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About S. Clark

Sam Clark is the former Managing Editor/Online Editor of Video Business magazine. With 19 years experience in journalism, 12 in the home entertainment industry, Sam has been hooked on movies on since she saw E.T. then stared into the sky waiting to meet her own friendly alien. Thanks to her husband’s shared love of movies, Sam reviews Blu-ray discs in a true home theater, with a 118-inch screen, projector and cushy recliners with cup holders.