Watch An Unlikely Weapon

An Unlikely Weapon is a 2008 documentary film directed by Susan Morgan Cooper about the life and career of Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Eddie Adams. The film explores both the personal and professional sides of the photographer whose iconic photograph of a Vietcong prisoner being executed on a Saigon street in 1968 shocked the world.

The documentary recounts Adams' career as a photojournalist, highlighting many of his most significant images, including his work in Vietnam, his portraits of celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor and Frank Sinatra, and his coverage of major news events such as the Kent State shootings and the fall of Saigon. Through interviews with Adams' colleagues, friends, and family members, as well as historic footage and photographs, the film paints a vivid picture of a man who was both a compelling and complex figure.

One of the most interesting aspects of the film is its exploration of the impact of Adams' famous photograph of the execution of Nguyen Van Lem. The image, which won Adams the Pulitzer Prize, became an iconic representation of the brutality of the Vietnam War, and had a profound effect on both the war effort and the American public's perception of the conflict. The film examines the way that Adams struggled with the fame and notoriety that came with the photograph, even as it continued to define his legacy.

Another important theme of the film is Adams' use of photography to document not only the famous and powerful, but also the marginalized and forgotten. The film features striking images of the homeless, the mentally ill, and others living on the fringes of society, and provides insight into Adams' motivation for capturing these often-overlooked subjects.

Throughout the film, Adams is shown to be a man who was deeply committed to his work and to the power of photojournalism to effect change. His dedication to his craft underpinned his success as a photographer, but it also came at a personal cost, as he often put his work before his family and relationships. The film conveys a sense of the toll that Adams' career took on his personal life, and the complex emotions he felt about the work he was doing.

The documentary also includes interviews with several notable figures in the world of journalism and photography, including Peter Arnett, Morley Safer, Tom Brokaw, and Nick Ut, and features a moving musical score by Marc Anthony. An Unlikely Weapon provides a fascinating glimpse into the life of a man whose work had a lasting impact on the world, and whose story is as compelling as the photographs he took.

An Unlikely Weapon is a 2009 documentary with a runtime of 1 hour and 26 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.4.