"I destroy my enemies when I make them my friends."
Abraham Lincoln

Restrepo is a decent doc about the men of Battle Company 2nd of the 503rd Infantry Regiment 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, and what they went through in one of the deadliest valleys in Afghanistan. When it's all over one can't help but question should they have been there in the first place? In my opinion no!

Out of an hour and a half there was only about 20 minutes that were worthwhile. Some moments were touching and heartfelt but not overly exciting or interesting.

An unvarnished view of the war in afghanistan. You watch a bunch of well-meaning soldiers serve in an outpost in the Korengal Valley in Afghanistan. You see them struggle with the local insurgents and accidentally kill local civilians.

It's a pretty unflattering view of the conflict, and should be required viewing before you make up your mind on the merits, or otherwise, of continued presence in Afghanistan.

A harrowing documentary shot over the period of 15 months, in one of the most dangerous places a soldier could find himself.

We see the full deployment for the soldiers involved, as they go about their duties under constant threat. Their laughs, tears and fear all caught expertly during various events.

"I destroy my enemies when I make them my friends."
Abraham Lincoln

Restrepo is a decent doc about the men of Battle Company 2nd of the 503rd Infantry Regiment 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, and what they went through in one of the deadliest valleys in Afghanistan. When it's all over one can't help but question should they have been there in the first place? In my opinion no!

This has a really distinct and unique feel, you see the day to day life of the the soldiers and you hear about the highs and lows of their deployment but it's not constructed as a linear narration and it avoids showing violence, really you see the boot of one of the dead and you see blood stains on the uniform of a soldier, and that's it, well there's the cow on the credits which was horrible... but it really gives the whole thing a human face and you can see how war would work for these soldiers and how they can clearly see an enemy that is not clear to most of us.

Powerful stuff. Fourteen months of unrelenting assault, it's difficult to imagine the mindset of the men in that company. They're quite clearly affected by their time in Afganistan.

What's even more curious is that, according to the DVD extras, a majority of them are still in the services.

Brave fellas, and a brave camera crew for capturing it.

The thing that struck me about this film was how all the fighting in someone else's country was being done by people who also had to meet with the village elders on a regular basis. There was no real ability to empathise with the people whose lives were being upended by the conflict, and the main guy responsible for talking with them obviously had no patience nor understanding of different cultures. What that ends up boiling down to, for me, is that the fighting and involvement is even more pointless; what good is it if the end result is just a moron spouting the company line to people who don't want you there in the first place?

I'm not sure what I had imagined previously, but it wasn't that.

A touching, intimate, and brutal portrait of soldiers in Afghanistan's most dangerous outpost.

Better than I expected, the way the makers shared the lives of these boys and men in this dangerous place was skillful and not over the top. I never did learn what they were actually there for, the meetings with the old guys, the promises to bring prosperity to the region if they could make this road, or clear this valley … seemed bizarre fantasy to me. One boy will stay with me, the one who was brought up by his hippy mother, not allowed to play with toy guns, not even a water pistol in the shape of a turtle. He said he was encouraged to draw and paint instead, and there he was - firing the big guns at real people, and sketching and writing in his journal in the down times. I found the presence of these very young men in this place so far from home, heartbreaking. Well done in a down to earth way.

An excellent film following one platoon serving in Afghanistan. The film offers a good picture of the camaraderie built out of mutual uncertainty and dependence. It also reveals the raw truths about what life on the front lines looks like. There's a certain sense of futility to the whole mission--we never get a good look at the enemy--that raises questions in my mind about the mission overall. That said, the real strength of the film is its ability to capture a human portrait of these men.

RIP

A war documentary about how every life is sacred (unless you count everybody that isn't a US soldier.)