Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

A Good American

Play trailer Poster for A Good American 2015 1h 40m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
80% Tomatometer 10 Reviews 84% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Bill Binney, the former technical director of the NSA, discusses the NSA's decision to not use a cheap surveillance tool that would have predicted the 9/11 attacks.
Watch on Fandango at Home Buy Now

Where to Watch

A Good American

Critics Reviews

View All (10) Critics Reviews
Ben Kenigsberg New York Times "A Good American" gets bogged down in details and personnel talk, but its subjects have an urgent narrative to tell. Feb 2, 2017 Full Review Nick Schager Variety A cautionary tale of a man who sought to protect the world with an ingenious creation that could be used for ill as well as good. Feb 2, 2017 Full Review Daphne Howland Village Voice Slow, quiet, and infuriating ... Jan 31, 2017 Full Review Ard Vijn ScreenAnarchy Nobody even speaks on behalf of the Trailblazer program, and as predictable as that probably is, it is very unsatisfying. Jan 10, 2020 Full Review Avi Offer NYC Movie Guru Prepare to be riveted by this equally enraging, terrifying and eye-opening documentary. Rated: 9.5/10 Feb 5, 2017 Full Review MaryAnn Johanson Flick Filosopher Shocking, essential documentary looks at the shameful and avoidable failure of the NSA to prevent 9/11. All Americans (and everyone else) should see this film. Rated: 4.5/5 Feb 2, 2017 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (6) audience reviews
Audience Member An eye opening documentary that is just another credible piece of data, along with the rest of human history, that outlines how greed almost always leaks into the public sector and therefore, we should never ever allow government to hold unlimited power over its citizens. Somehow that has become forgotten (again) Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/07/24 Full Review Audience Member Eye-opening and worth watching! A documentary that pulls back the curtains on the NSA. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/13/23 Full Review gareth d A really interesting look at ThinThread and some of the politics surrounding it. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member It Just Leaves You Wondering Why Risk America & The Free-World For Money?? But I Guess Sensible Smarts Is Often Overun By Money Linked To Power. It's So Troubling To See Such Things Play Out Time & Again. Executive Producer; Oliver Stone, Does Well To Present A Story From Those Whom Possibly Could Have Helped Prevent Things Going So Wrong..But Now That They're Ousted?? Where To From Here? It's Troubling & Disheartening All At Once. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member An important film. While some of the doc's content has been aired before, the inside experience has not been voiced in such a collective manner, with director Moser joining the dots just as Binney might connect his metadata. The misdemeanours and acts of folly pile up miserably; the villains of the piece - Hayden and his NSA stooges - decline to participate. Watch it! Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/16/23 Full Review Audience Member Damning testimony given by four interview subjects as to those responsible for taking away an ingenious system of information gathering, and installing one designed more for making profit for the N.S.A. than performing its function: to protect the U.S. public and U.S. interests, home and abroad. An infuriating watch. If even 1/10th of the testimony given was correct, those N.S.A. officials named (none of whom seemingly qualified to be in their positions, except for being part of the right cliques) should be tried for treason and other heinous crimes against the United States. Sickening, to say the least, to imagine what could have been, vs. what did happen. All because of disgusting greed. I hope those responsible rot. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Read all reviews
A Good American

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

Zero Days 90% 75% Zero Days Watchlist TRAILER for Zero Days Dirty Wars 84% 74% Dirty Wars Watchlist Citizenfour 96% 87% Citizenfour Watchlist National Bird 100% 60% National Bird Watchlist TRAILER for National Bird ACORN and the Firestorm 75% % ACORN and the Firestorm Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Bill Binney, the former technical director of the NSA, discusses the NSA's decision to not use a cheap surveillance tool that would have predicted the 9/11 attacks.
Director
Friedrich Moser
Producer
Friedrich Moser
Screenwriter
Friedrich Moser
Production Co
El Ride Productions, Blue+Green Communication
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Jun 6, 2017
Runtime
1h 40m
Most Popular at Home Now