Venus Rising

Film & BooksIssue: Virgo 06

The War Tapes

Even though “The War Tapes” is not easy to watch, I think every American should be required to see it. The film does not put forth an opinion about the war in Iraq; however, it does something much more innovative and powerful. It actually takes you there through the video cameras of three New Hampshire National Guardsmen.

Director Deborah Scranton was asked to become an embedded journalist with the New Hampshire National Guard Unit in Iraq. She chose not to go, but instead gave video cameras to several soldiers who were deployed in 2004. The footage, edited along with interviews of family members, was developed into a feature length documentary. The result is a startling dose of reality, showing the complex and heartbreaking situation on the ground in Iraq and the profound divide between returning soldiers and their civilian family and friends.

The soldiers are: Sergeant Stephen Pink, who received his BA in English from Plymouth State College and joined the military to help pay for college; Specialist Mike Moriarty who is a Harley Davidson mechanic married with two children; and, Sergeant Zack Bazzi who is a University of New Hampshire student and a Lebanese-born American who escaped from the Lebanon Civil War with his family at age 8. The personal stories of these three men and their families are deftly woven throughout the action scenes in Iraq.

For me, one of the most striking and startling revelations put forth in the film is the very simple fact that Zack, being Lebanese, is the only soldier in his unit that speaks Arabic. There appears to be very little ability for the American soldiers to communicate with the Iraqis; even the hand symbol for stop is a miscommunication between the two cultures that can cause death to a civilian. Although the unit seems prepared with equipment and military know-how, their sensitivity to the vast cultural differences seems completely inadequate to maneuver effectively. The other not-so-startling revelation for me is that the chaos in Iraq appears to only be escalating, not improving.  

Although the subject matter might be jarring for some, there are only a few graphic scenes.

“The War Tapes” was chosen as the best documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival in June. I believe many more awards will follow. To find out when it opens in your town, go to http://thewartapes.com/screenings/