Restrepo-2010

Directors Tim Hetherington, Sebastian Junger

Scott’s Review #514

Reviewed November 10, 2016

Grade: B-

Restrepo (2010) is an informative documentary concerning a group of American soldiers sent to Afghanistan to battle the Taliban.

Filmmakers spent one year in the life of this group of men, documenting their experiences, pains, losses, and joys throughout.

Camera crews follow them almost non-stop.

The most interesting aspect of this piece is the camaraderie that is evident among the soldiers- a bond that is a brotherhood of sorts.

Friendships that develop amid peril will undoubtedly never be broken or tarnished.

The fear and worry that these soldiers go through- under the constant uncertainty of attack, far away from their families, is powerful.

Slight gripes are the redundancy of the subject matter of the documentary itself. Seemingly endless are the projects developed surrounding one war or another.

I freely admit this is an important matter, but while watching Restrepo, I could not help but feel that I have seen other incarnations of the same documentary before- not to mention in mainstream film.

The war experience is a popular story to tell.

I also got the sense of an ‘us against them mentality’ in this documentary, which is not always a good thing. More about the relationships with the “good” Afghanistan people might have been nice.

Overall, though, Restrepo (2010) is a decent, interesting documentary.

Oscar Nominations: Best Documentary Feature

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Documentary