Magnolia Pictures has acquired domestic rights to Jehane Noujaim'sControl Room, abehind-the-scenes look at the Al-Jazeera network's coverage of the recent Iraqwar and the criticisms it faced for its coverage.

Magnolia will open the documentary in New York in mid-May followedby a nationwide release. Control Room premiered at Sundance earlier this year.

The deal was negotiated byMagnolia president Eamonn Bowles with Micah Green and Josh Braun of CineticMedia.

"Over and above the obvious timeliness of the film, ControlRoom is just greatfilm-making," Bowles said in a statement. "The film-makers' clear-eyed handlingof such complex, incendiary material is absolutely bracing and transcendent."

"GivenMagnolia's success with Capturing the Friedmans, a film which deals with similarquestions of truth, journalism, and the media, Magnolia seemed liked a naturalhome for Control Room,"Noujaim, whose credits include Startup.com, added.