Reviews

This is a great series that is both funny, witty, and very well produced. None of the jokes are "Ph.D. level history," but at the same time you can tell that these guys actually have researched their subjects or at least know what they're talking about. They do a really nice job of making jokes that are actually funny without offending just for the sake of offending, and more often than not both sides get at least a few good lines. They also often do a pretty good job of finding clever match-ups, e.g. Christopher Columbus vs. Captain Kirk or Napoleon Bonaparte vs. Napoleon Dynamite. Both of the main stars are talented, but Nice Peter really stands out for disappearing into his role (for example, his Mr. Rogers is outstanding). The series has also had several guest stars who have often done a good job, although a few have been pretty disappointing.

Imho, the series has gone downhill a little, and some of the match-ups are a little groan-worth/clichéd, but the new episodes are still pretty good. While it isn't perfect, I still like this series enough to say that it may very well be the single best Youtube creation.

This is a pretty good series that often does a good job of parodying chart-topping songs. A lot of times their lyrics end up being a lot more memorable than the lyrics of the original song, and remembering the lyrics have made me smile when I hear the original. Many of the videos are quite well done, and the two main characters have real charisma on the screen. The music itself is also very catchy (unsurprisingly, since it's based on pop music, which is scientifically designed to be catchy) and often a pleasure to listen to.

The series is definitely hit-and-miss though, and there have been a few videos that didn't make me laugh at all. Sometimes they pick stuff that doesn't resonate with me: at point they did seemingly a half dozen One Direction parodies in a row, and I recognize about 2- 3 One Direction songs. Granted, familiarity is often a subjective thing, but I just don't understand their song choice sometimes.

Also, like a lot of Youtube videos, their insistence that you "like" or "subscribe" can be a little annoying, but I guess you can't really hold that against them.

Both the US government and Julian Assange come under lots of criticism in this movie. One of the major arcs of the movie is Assange's descent into what he claims to hate: a power-mad autocrat obsessed with secrecy. Meanwhile, the US government comes across poorly for their treatment of Bradley Manning, along with them casting Assange as a villain but ignoring the mainstream media that worked with Assange.

The doc probably could have used a little bit more of a pro-Assange viewpoint. To be fair, they did ask to interview Assange, but (according to the doc) he asked for $1 million.

While the movie doesn't have interviews with Assange or Manning, they do have interviews with former Wikileaks employees, people who knew Bradley Manning, and others. The film focuses on more than just Assange, as it also looks at the impact of the cables released by Wikileaks, along with the US government's policies before and after Wikileaks.

It should be noted that Wikileaks disputes the accuracy of the film, while the director disputes the account of Wikileaks. See here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Steal_Secrets#Response_from_Wikileaks

Looking at the other reviews, this review will probably be voted as "unhelpful" by Assange supporters, but oh well. Watch the movie and make up your mind for yourself.