`Osama bin Laden film Hollywood electioneering for Obama`

Washington: The controversial film about the killing of Osama bin Laden will air on US television two days before the presidential election, leading the critics to suggest that it amounts to ‘Hollywood electioneering’ for President Barack Obama. ‘SEAL Team Six: The Raid on Osama bin Laden’, which will be broadcast on the National Geographic Channel on Sunday, has been produced and distributed by movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, a prominent fundraiser for the president.

Early reviews of the 90-minute action thriller included one from the New York Times which called it an ‘ode to presidential resolve wrapped in a thick layer of Special Forces derring-do’. According to the Telegraph, the Wall Street Journal called it ‘Hollywood electioneering’, adding: “Harvey Weinstein is bent on having Barack Obama join his pantheon of action stars.” Obama is often seen in the film, which was shot in India and New Mexico, but only in the form of archive footage. Last week it was reported that the movie had been re-cut with news and documentary footage of the president to increase his role. The film-makers, however, said that the changes were merely to bring realism to the production, which is a fictionalized account of the May 2011 raid in which US Navy SEALs killed al Qaeda leader bin Laden in Pakistan, the report added. ANI