What does it mean to lead men in war? What does it mean to come home? Hell and Back Again is a cinematically revolutionary film that asks and answers these questions with a power and intimacy no previous film about the conflict in Afghanistan has been able to achieve. It is a masterpiece in the cinema of war. "Hell and Back Again" chronicles the return of Sgt. Nathan Harris' return home and the result is interesting, disturbing and somewhat lacking. Sgt. Harris, is a Marine and always wanted to be one. He wants to fight (and "kill") and almost thrives upon it with his obsession with guns. However, after taking an injury in the field in one of the most violent areas in Afghanistan, Harris goes through rehabilitation back home to try and get his life back on track. The focus of the movie is almost entirely on Sgt. Harris and that both helps and hurts the film. While this does offer personality towards the subject matter but it is difficult not to watch "Hell and Back Again" and wonder what this would have been like with other people as subjects as well as outside opinions about Harris himself. The film ends up almost lacking as it tries to alternate between life at home and life (sometimes clumsily) in the military with little to no interaction with anyone else but Harris. Outside of flashback sequences, none of the other members within Harris' Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment are given much development in regards to the narrative which is a shame because most of the segments in Afghanistan are by far the most interesting of the documentary. In the end, "Hell and Back Again" attempts to become the Marine Corps equivalent of "Restrepo" in terms of depicting military life and ends up somewhat missing the mark. It's not an awful documentary, it just could have been so much more than what it was. What was the Academy thinking? Nominate this and snub The Cave Of Forgotten Dreams, Living In The Material World and Project Nim?? I am not even sure this qualifies as a documentary at all. It feels as fake as your average MTV reality show. Some vignettes about the interaction of the US forces and the afghan villagers are revealing enough, but the rest is pure manipulation. There are even moments that may provoke unintended laughs; that is what generally happens when you try to get a "dramatic performance" from non actors. I believe the whole project is a very misguided attempt at portraying the harrowing effects of war in the bodies and psyche of soldiers. It would have been much better as a biopic given the director obvious penchant for giving the facts a little extra boost though cinematic techniques more commonly associated to fiction. I hope the Oscar in this category goes to Paradise Lost: Purgatory or even to Pina. Similar in its battlefield passages to last year's Danish-made "Armadillo," Dennis' film scores a layered perspective that follows Marine Sgt. Nathan Harris into combat and back home.
Ramangeral replied
364 weeks ago