[Movie Review] REDACTED
(BIG TIME SPOILERS HERE. Ye be warned) This is the most disturbing movie that I’ve seen all year. Possibly EVER. Before I go into my review of Brian DePalma’s Redacted, a background story is essential for you to understand where I will be coming from in terms of this review. Number 1: I’m American, if you didn’t know. Number 2: My father was in the Army for twenty years before he retired. Number 3: I live in Fayetteville, home to Fort Bragg, NC, so I know a ton of military people. My uncle was in the military, and most of the people in this city(people I went to school with, church with, etc.) are military personnel. As an Army brat, I was very interested in seeing this film after hearing all of the uproar over the film’s content. Usually, when critics whine and bitch about a film, it turns out to be much ado about nothing. In this instance, those critics might have a bit of a legitimate case.
Redacted is a fictionalized re-telling of the true events surrounding the brutal rape and murder of a 15 year old Iraqi girl by U.S. soldiers. I believe that the main reason that this film is catching the ire of so many critics is because of how REAL the thing looks. It’s shot with handheld camera, Blair Witch style, to create the illusion that the soldiers themselves filmed these events, and the technique is incredibly effective. Imagine if Blair Witch had been shot like a typical movie. Wouldn’t have been the same flick, right? Same thing here. It feels like a movie that the soldiers themselves put together. The scene transitions look like something that could be done with a computer’s PowerPoint presentation program. The handheld cameras give this film’s subject matter a visceral feel, which ultimately leads to why it is being considered one of the most offensive films ever made over here in the States. Hell, some pundits are calling for DePalma to be accused of treason for how he depicts the U.S. soldiers in this movie. To be blunt, the soldiers in this film are utter assholes.
It was downright uncomfortable for me to sit there and watch as these troops who I am supposed to support referred to tiny Iraqi children as “soccer-playing shitbirds”. There is absolutely nothing heroic or admirable about any of these men. They are incompetent, they are cowards, they are MONSTERS. A scene at a military checkpoint was one of the hardest things I’ve had to watch in a long time. A car comes careening through the checkpoint, and when the car does not stop, the soldiers open fire and blast the hell out of, what turns out to be, a pregnant woman in labor and her brother who was racing her to the hospital. The brother couldn’t understand the soldiers’ hand gestures telling him to stop the car. As her bloody body collapses out of the car, a graphic flashes on the screen to pointedly tell us that 2100 people have been killed at checkpoints like this, yet only 50 of them turned out to be insurgents. This moment in the film is representative of the entire film as a whole to me. On one hand, it was incredibly dramatic, and I found myself wincing in my seat. On the other hand, as I rode back home in the car with friends, I found myself wondering if I was truly moved by that scene, or if it was simply manipulating my emotions. Who wouldn’t be freaked out by seeing a pregnant woman bleeding to death and riddled with bullets? Even worse, after the woman dies, the men who killed her show absolutely ZERO REMORSE, and even joke about it later on! I was absolutely stunned by what I was seeing.
For the entirety of this film, I sat and stared at the screen in abject shock and awe. I am so used to seeing American soldiers being treated like, well, the dudes in 300: tough, manly, brave, honorable guys who bust some ass to protect their homes and beliefs. THESE guys were downright villainous, and I’m not quite sure what to think about it. They are so casual in their discussions of the atrocities that they commit that I found myself looking around the theater, which I know had some military guys in attendance, and thinking, “Are THESE the guys that I’m supporting? Is THIS really how they behave over there? Am I a traitor to my flag for even THINKING about this stuff?” I mean, how would you feel if you saw a film that depicted your countrymen laughing it up about “blowing away” and “smoking” damn CIVILIANS?! Not just that, but referring to them as….I’m not going to fully type it because it is beyond offensive to me, but “sand n*****”. They hit on the local women like lecherous dogs, patting them down and groping them in the process. At this point, I began to wonder if DePalma had co-directed this thing with Bin Laden. I felt sick to my damn stomach. But, the worst was yet to come.
Out of nowhere, here comes a scene at a poker table where they decide to go to a house that they’ve recently raided and rape a 15 year old girl. Just the casualness of this discussion….I can’t remember word for word, but it basically comes down to “I haven’t had pussy in a while, so let’s go rape her!” followed by high-fives and cheers. I was beyond disturbed by this display. This scene is immediately followed by an Internet video sent from one of those soldiers’ wives, tearfully wishing him well. Just unnerving as hell. The sequence where they actually break into this girl’s house and rape her, shot totally in night vision and in graphic detail, is just gut-wrenching. I really wanted to leave the theater and get some air, I was that damn upset. I had to bury my head in my friend’s shoulder and just cry. My nerves just couldn’t take much more of it. Following this girl’s rape(as well as her murder, the burning of her body, and the murders of her entire family), a member of the team who was there during her rape is beheaded(shown in GRAPHIC detail), and the soldiers’ response is complete nonchalance, joking and laughing about one of their own being brutally killed(and having the killing filmed and posted online). I was horrified, uncomfortable, and angry…just like DePalma wanted me to be.
I was desperate for this film to end. The 90-minute runtime felt longer than King Kong 2005 to me. My desperation didn’t come because this is a bad movie, but because it was doing such an excellent job of making me question every conception that I had about my military. All of the guys in this film are amateurs, to the best of my knowledge, which added to the authentic feel of the flick as well as to my discomfort. If this thing had starred Tom Cruise or some other evil midget troll, I could have divorced myself from it, but DePalma purposely chose unknown faces to push this message that my neighbors, my friends, the strangers I pass in the mall, could all be just like THESE GUYS. I swear to you, I had to drive to Fort Bragg to drop off one friend after watching this, and I felt ill as I saw the soldiers walking around and driving their Humvees.
So, is this a GOOD movie? Man…I can’t say that I was ENTERTAINED by it, but I was certainly never bored, either. The actors did a great job, because if I saw any of them on the street and didn’t remember that they were just acting, I’d be ready to put a cap in their asses. The film is tightly paced. I can’t take away points for the film’s style or structure, but the content matter did bother me a great deal. A movie alone isn’t enough to make me completely turn my back on the soldiers, but it does raise some tough, tough questions. That being said, a non-American won’t have the same reaction that I did. This movie joins a very short list of films(namely The Passion of the Christ) that are a one-time viewing experience only. I never want to see this film again. Ever.
12 Responses to “[Movie Review] REDACTED”
Damn. Good review Kris but I gotta be honest and say that this is going to be a movie I think I’ll pass on.
Yes, it’s good that a movie can make you question your own conceptions and beliefs but I have to be honest when I say that some of this sounds like it’s shocking for the sake of it. And I felt disturbed, disgusted and shocked at your description of the checkpoint scene so I can only imagine how you felt actually watching it! And I’m damned if I want to feel like that so I think I’ll pass.
Great review and it does sound like its well made but I still think I’ll pass.
Yeah, the discussion in the car on the way home basically went like this…
“That was so shocking!”
“Yeah, shocking for shocking’s sake.”
The movie really doesn’t have much of a point or purpose except to freak out Americans, I suppose. I dunno. I completely understand you wanting to pass on it. I wish you could have seen my dad’s reaction when I told him what the movie was about. I could practically see steam coming out of his ears, he was that pissed.
Kristina, that was a really hard hitting and thought provoking review. I’ll definitely be seeing this because I think all depalma films are important cinematic events; but now I’m feeling an extra level of curiosity / trepidation.
One thing I feel compelled to add:
re: “Is THIS really how they behave over there? Am I a traitor to my flag for even THINKING about this stuff?”
You’re never a traitor for asking questions and demanding accountability in gov. Those are traditional american values that the right-wing is too quick to forget about. The founding fathers wrote about checks and balances, and a vigilante citizenry to whom the gov is accountable. They never wrote anything about “my country right or wrong”.
Everything our military does is done in our name and financed by our tax dollars. We’re directly responsible so we need to make sure that everything is being done right.
That’s just my two cents. Great review.
Thank you for the nice compliments on this review. I gotta tell you, this was a hard one to write. It took me ages to figure out what to rate this thing.
I was really undecided about this one but thanks to the review I really think I’m going to give this a go.
Because after all, nothing screams “Great Night’s Entertainment” like rape huh?
Nice job Kristina. I think this was your best review yet (I haven’t read the ones further up).
So DePalma doesn’t balance the bad soldiers with some good? I think in any group there’s a mix of good and bad, but never simply homogenized villainy. So more a propaganda pice…but an effective one?
I think I’ll pass on this for a while. I don’t really think I need to go pay $10 to watch some soldiers rape and kill a girl and her family.
Thank you so much! That’s so kind of you to say. I really appreciate all the kind comments you guys have left about this review, because I really struggled with writing it. Truth be told, I’m still unsure about how many popcorns I gave it, but the thing is a very effective piece of propoganda.
And to answer your question about the soldiers, there is at least one good soldier that tries to stop them, but he’s basically pushed into the background while the others run rampant.
This movie is disgusting! Another liberal attempt to demonize the military. I served for 3 tours to war as a memmber of the Army infantry IN the 101st and I have NEVER witnessed soldiers act the way they were portrayed. I HAVE however seen 2 of my closest friends DIE defending Iraqi civilians when insurgent dirt sacks opened fire in a crowd. Why doesnt the fim industry go out on a limb and try to protray what we really do? Like render medical aide, take food and water to villages, fight the insurgents that are slaughtering civilians like cattle (and yes it’s them NOT us) Ok I’m done with my rant now but know this….the terrorist really are winning..just as soon as someone watches this liberal garbage and thinks the military and NOT the terrorists are the bad guys…
oh and argue with me all you want I lived it everyday of my life for 3 years and what you saw is NOT how we are
sorry to rant
Still doesn’t take away the fact that it actually happened.
Grundy,
Yes thats true it DID happen but let me run a few things by you. We have had nearly a million soldiers deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan (on rotation) and we have THREE reported cases of rape…hmmmmm THREE out of a MILLION people that would lead me to believe that these few despicable indivduals DONT represent us as a whole and that is exactly what this movie is trying to do make us ALL out to be…the bad guys. I want you to know RIGHT NOW that I have seen these “HOLY WARRIORS” AKA terrorists commit acts that would turn your stomach…far worse than anything you saw in this idiotic movie. Am I defending the actions of these FEW individuals absolutely not the death penalty is too good and they are a disgrace to the uniform. What I am trying to say is dont be swayed by this movie because it does not represent us all…see reason people
It’s good to know that you’re not trying to justify the actions of these people Josh!
But I agree, if you’re going to show the bad you should also show the good, which is something that a lot of movies/documentaries are guilty of not doing unfortunately!
Trackbacks
What's Your Opinion?