Errol Morris examines the pictures of Abu Ghraib

by Euan Kerr, Minnesota Public Radio

Documentary film director Errol Morris says he's always been fascinated by photographs, and has long wanted to do a film about how they can shape history.

He thought he'd end up doing something about Civil War pictures. Then the scandal of the pictures taken at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq broke.

St. Paul, Minn. — "I think they are the most widely seen photographs of all time," he said. "These are photographs that have been seen by literally hundreds of millions of people. The iconic image of the Iraq war, the hooded man on the box with wires has been seen everywhere."

Morris's film about the Abu Ghraib pictures, and the story behind them, is called "Standard Operating Procedure." It opens in the Twin Cities this weekend.

Morris said he expected to find a story about error, but he was surprised to find a story instead that he said reaches all the way up to the top of the Bush administration. He was able to interview many of the major players in the scandal.

He told Minnesota Public Radio's Euan Kerr he went in with a simple idea.

Broadcast Dates

• All Things Considered, 05/21/2008, 4:50 p.m.