The producers wanted to do a documentary on a man, a dictator, of recent history, or even specifically, how he applied a "play book" (or "RULE BOOK" as the series was first titled), but it does niether well enough to give one anything more than a rough idea of it's subject. Franco's career was such that he might rate more than fifty-something minutes, the Spanish Civil War at least a few hours, to do it justice. About twenty years ago there was such a set, but I regress.
Once again, this series has an editorial point of view, and omitted what should be vital facts. We hear at the start, and is repeated near the end, an assertion that because of Franco, "Spain has more mass graves than any country but Cambodia". You mean more than Russia? Or China? Or North Korea? How can that be? Also, are you telling us that the Franco forces did them all?
That the Spanish imperial forces were cruel and bloody masters over native populations is beyond doubt, but the Moroccans were not as easily broken as thier counterparts in other territories. One of the reasons given for Franco's early rise through the colonial ranks is that the officers above him were killed off at a rapid clip. It's made to seem like the "terror" was all on the part of the Spanish toward the natives, as we are shown piles of bodies in streets, somewhere, that are of no certain event, and mighty unlikely to be of a vintage matching the era described.
After he won the battle of Toldeo, we are told Franco didn't show up in the city until the next day, when the newsreelers were present, as if to say this was some act of fraud or cowardice, a lie to decieve the world's press and people. If I am not mistaken, the last time a general was at the head of the attack was sometime when he'd be on horseback.
Probably the most glaring laspe is how, after Hitler and Mussolini aid Franco's men to travel out of North Africa to Spain at the beginning of the war, they vanish! A very small bit about Stalin's material aid to the Republican army is given, but Franco apparently won the war without further assistance.
When they address Franco's indoctrination of the young, the writer is incensed that Franco forced Catholicism on them, even including a mandatory study of his life, described as made to seem like Christ. Of course, when the "Republic" was in control, they must have broke with communist tradition and never force fed the kiddies any undemocratic ideas, or else we surely would have been told about it, ha?
Because he tried to get along with the west, and was a staunch anti-communist to the end of his life, this is put up like just further evidence of how bad he was. (Ominous chords over footage of him hanging out with Eisenhower).
The end brings the triumphant words "Franco's attempt to obliterate socialism failed." Apparently they think socialism is something good, like it was an opposite of fascism.
No pro-Franco voices are heard. A couple of the talking heads they used are presented as "Political Scientists." If the film makers could ignore phoneys like this, maybe their heads would clear and then they could get back to real documentary productions.