INDOCTRINATION (W. Germany/1987)

Commissioned for a television series called "Ziele," Harun Farocki's Indoctrination (Die Schulung) is an unassuming 44-minute documentary which recaps a five-day seminar involving a group of management executives who learn how to sell themselves better. Employing a "neutral," Wiseman-like approach the filmmaker ably captures the key moments when the students are taught intricate skills of communication (or, as some might say, manipulation). The smart, surreptitious instructor handles the proceedings in a most fascinating manner (his retorts are particularly provocative). Issues of race and class surface tangentially, but the primary draw here is a glimpse behind the psychology of power at the ground level.