April 21, 2008
Rather weak for all its controversy.
Awkwardly contrived for trying to look like 'real-life' footage. Some revealing bits portaying the boredom and stress of manning dusty checkpoints all day - spoiled by goofy, unrealistic dialogue between the men themselves. The chief villains are portrayed simply as dumb jocks, spaced out and desperate to lay waste to all about them. To lay all the responsibility of the war crimes committed on some cowboys wanting to get their end away seems naive and irresponsible on the part of the filmmakers.
If the men serving in Iraq are too ignorant to understand what's going on around them, then responsibility should be placed on the people that put them in that situation with so little preparation. Apart from some token references to the military machine, we learn nothing about how this nightmare has come about or the culture behind the American society that has led to it.
Unsatisfying.
Awkwardly contrived for trying to look like 'real-life' footage. Some revealing bits portaying the boredom and stress of manning dusty checkpoints all day - spoiled by goofy, unrealistic dialogue between the men themselves. The chief villains are portrayed simply as dumb jocks, spaced out and desperate to lay waste to all about them. To lay all the responsibility of the war crimes committed on some cowboys wanting to get their end away seems naive and irresponsible on the part of the filmmakers.
If the men serving in Iraq are too ignorant to understand what's going on around them, then responsibility should be placed on the people that put them in that situation with so little preparation. Apart from some token references to the military machine, we learn nothing about how this nightmare has come about or the culture behind the American society that has led to it.
Unsatisfying.