Oct. 24, 2014|United States, Germany, United Kingdom|114 Min.|R
Genre: Documentary
Description: “Citizenfour” is a 2014 documentary film that delves into the story of Edward Snowden, a former NSA contractor who exposed extensive surveillance programs conducted by the U.S. government. The film begins with Snowden revealing his identity on June 9, and as media outlets uncover his location, he seeks refuge in filmmaker Laura Poitras’ hotel room in Hong Kong to avoid detection. Facing potential prosecution in the U.S., Snowden arranges meetings with legal advisors and applies for asylum.
On June 21, the U.S. government requests Snowden’s extradition from Hong Kong. Despite leaving Hong Kong, his U.S. passport is revoked, leaving him stranded in the transit zone of Moscow’s airport for 40 days. Eventually, Russia grants him temporary asylum for one year. Meanwhile, journalist Glenn Greenwald returns to his home in Brazil and publicly discusses the NSA’s foreign surveillance activities. Both Greenwald and Poitras express reluctance to return to the U.S., maintaining correspondence throughout this period.
The film includes vignettes of key moments, such as discussions about NSA programs and testimonies before the German Parliamentary Committee investigating the NSA scandal. It concludes with Greenwald, Snowden, and Poitras reuniting in Russia, where they cautiously document new revelations about U.S. intelligence programs, ensuring sensitive information is only written down and later destroyed.
The project began in 2012 as part of Poitras’ trilogy on post-9/11 themes, focusing on domestic surveillance. After Snowden contacted her in January 2013, unable to establish encrypted communication with Greenwald, Poitras traveled to Hong Kong in May 2013 to film Snowden in his hotel room. She later conducted a second interview with him in Moscow, alongside Greenwald.
This documentary offers an intimate look at Snowden’s revelations and the global impact of his whistleblowing.
Cast director: Laura Poitras
Cast actor: Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, William Binney, Barack Obama, Jacob Appelbaum, Julian Assange, Jeremy Scahill, Kevin Bankston, Ewen MacAskill
Original name: Citizenfour