The Energy War(1979)

The Energy War is a three-part PBS documentary that captures America's 1970s energy crisis through the eyes of those who fought to solve it. President Jimmy Carter declared the shortage "the moral equivalent of war," then pushed Congress toward the divisive Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978. Directed by D. A. Pennebaker, Chris Hegedus, and Pat Powell, the series follows lobbyists, senators, cabinet members, and Carter himself as they navigate a fractured Congress in search of compromise. The result is an unflinching portrait of backroom negotiation and legislative gridlock—a window into how policy actually gets made when the stakes are highest and agreement seems impossible. Essential viewing for anyone curious about how Washington really works.