Although the war in Iraq has been underway for five years (and counting), the polarizing conflict often feels as though it's been ongoing for much, much longer. With every passing month and its attendant, heartbreaking casualties, the public resentment against the Bush administration seems to build up more, heading towards the 2008 presidential election, which in some quarters, is being positioned as no less than a referendum on the future of America.

Or is it? One of the most fascinating elements of CSNY/Deja Vu is that David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash and Neil Young, beloved liberal folk-rockers from the Sixties, acknowledge that protest in 2008 does not nearly carry the same weight as protest at the height of the Vietnam War in the late Sixties and early Seventies. That self-awareness did not deter them from embarking on the "Freedom of Speech" tour in 2006, near the mid-term elections that signaled the beginning of a shift in attitude towards Republicans in power, is admirable, but viewers may be left at the film's conclusion wondering if the whole pursuit wasn't a little self-righteous and slightly quixotic. Is this seizing an opportunity -- unrest with the way things are going in Washington and the world -- or attempting to inject oneself into the discussion, where they may not be wanted?

Directed by Bernard Shakey (an alias of Young's that the DVD producers saw fit to ignore on the front of the case), CSNY/Deja Vu is a loose chronicle of the period surrounding the creation of Young's blistering album "Living with War," most infamous for its sing-along single "Let's Impeach the President" and the subsequent American tour that incorporated songs from Young's solo album with such classics as "For What It's Worth" and "Ohio."

Amid all of the concert footage and snippets from recording sessions in California, Shakey/Young elected to hire ABC News correspondent Mike Cerre to "embed" with CSNY and document the public's reaction to the rockers' essentially going into potentially unfriendly territory and defiantly performing tunes that, to put it mildly, don't always please the paying customers.

There's an element of brazen activism through CSNY/Deja Vu that's inspiring -- particularly during the highly charged Atlanta segment, which finds Cerre bearing the brunt of some hostile (and drunken) concertgoers -- but at the same time, watching Young buddy up with Vietnam and Iraq veterans is a bit disconcerting, as though "Living with War" wasn't a response to President George W. Bush and his policies, so much as it was artistically expedient and exceptionally well-timed. (Plus, there's the issue of people paying considerable sums to see CSNY -- a fact brought up frequently in the film -- and then having the gall to be surprised that the band is on the road for a reason other than cashing in on past fame.)

There's a lot of lip service paid to artists not latching onto a movement, but rather reacting when they've had enough (and been moved to create). I'm not about to speculate about Young's motives -- he has a long track record of bucking convention, as well as charitable work -- but making a film about these experiences can't help but feel like preaching to the choir. (Amusingly, Nash says in the film he'd "like to see the choir get off its ass.") No one who screams "fuck you" and storms out during "Let's Impeach the President" or "Living with War" is going to watch this film; their minds have already been made up and they certainly won't seek it out on DVD.

In essence, the existence of this doc simply reinforces the notion that perhaps the time has passed when popular culture can have transformative impact upon the thinking of the masses. A sobering notion, certainly, but one that underlines the scenes of CSNY in the Sixties juxtaposed with the aging rockers in the present day with an undeniable poignancy.

CSNY/Deja Vu won't surprise anyone who's aware of Young's liberal leanings (or the other three members of the seminal folk-rock group, for that matter) but it may shock those who simply want a no-frills concert film. Young and the band have bigger aims here, attempting to incorporate their views of the last few turbulent years through the lens of their experiences. It's an occasionally powerful film, but one that doesn't quite connect as it fully as perhaps it should.

The Video:

Presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.78:1, this anamorphic widescreen transfer is comprised of newly filmed and archival footage, so the quality can vary from one sequence to another. There's also the consideration that much of the documentary was filmed in rather informal, ragged fashion, so focus and detail are sometimes lost in the name of journalistic immediacy. Overall, it's a fine visual representation of occasionally sub-par material.

For the several sequences in CSNY/Deja Vu that revel in live performance, the included Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 soundtracks more than get the job done, conveying those crystal clear (albeit time-ravaged) harmonies without a hint of distortion. Much of the film is composed of interviews and stock news footage, so the clarity varies, but when there's an extremely quiet segment, forced subtitles kick in. An optional Dolby 2.0 stereo track is included, as are optional English and Spanish subtitles.

The 10 music videos Young created to correspond with each track of "Living with War" are included here. As the "home theater edition" info screen explains, these 10 videos are presented for the first time with the song's raw mixes, the 100 Voices choir and "special 5.1 surround effects created for the total Living with War experience." (The audio options are DTS 5.1 or Dolby 2.0 stereo; the clips themselves are presented in 1.33:1 fullscreen). Playable separately or all together, the videos run for an aggregate of 42 minutes, seven seconds. The "Find the Cost of Freedom" video (presented in anamorphic widescreen), which is glimpsed frequently in the film, is offered uncut and runs three minutes, 46 seconds. The film's theatrical trailer (presented in anamorphic widescreen) is here, along with information on tour dates, biographies for the film's cast and crew, a list of Web links and DVD credits.

CSNY/Deja Vu won't surprise anyone who's aware of Neil Young's liberal leanings (or the other three members of the seminal folk-rock group, for that matter) but it may shock those who simply want a no-frills concert film. Young and the band have bigger aims here, attempting to incorporate their views of the last few turbulent years through the lens of their experiences. It's an occasionally powerful film, but one that doesn't quite connect as it fully as perhaps it should. Recommended.