MovieChat Forums > Restrepo (2010) Discussion > we don´t get too see the enemy up close

we don´t get too see the enemy up close

posted 13 years ago by sucmacoc
7 replies | jump to latest

no pictures of taliban fighters, alive or dead.....the wiewer needs to get closer to the action...to much talk, and interwiews, and long distance shooting only......i think the other war docu "armadillo" is better, it has more intense fighting scenes.....it is in your face, and you feel you are there.
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there was alot of shooting in this docu, and it would be nice to see if they even hit anything.

[–] thegazmus 13 years ago

I think its about as close as most of the soldiers get to the enemy though...I liked that about it.

Its not like WW2 where everyone would meet up in a field or a town and have a scrap, theyre just randomly getting engaged from people they cant see and who can drop their weapons and become civilians at any moment.

[–] BSQuared_41 13 years ago

I think its about as close as most of the soldiers get to the enemy though...I liked that about it.

Its not like WW2 where everyone would meet up in a field or a town and have a scrap, theyre just randomly getting engaged from people they cant see and who can drop their weapons and become civilians at any moment.

^Exactly.

OP, did you miss where they showed the shots of the valley and all the houses sprinkled throughout? They know their enemies are "there" ....somewhere...but it's impossible to tell where exactly. They only know that when they're getting shot at from high above them, or across the valley, they should aim in that direction. The soldiers themselves have no idea who they're shooting at -- man, woman, child, old, young -- so how do you expect the filmmakers to get up close and personal enough to get the shooters on camera?

Also to OP, you mention another film and state it's better because it's more "in your face and you feel you're really there." Did you really feel so detached from these guys in Restrepo? I felt very much like I was there with them during this film, so much so that I found myself experiencing their emotional roller coaster rides right along with them -- I cycled through anger, fear, sadness, and relif (among others) constantly, just like they did. I thought it was very powerfully done.

Tell me how to get this laid-back or I'll kill your families!

[–] sucmacoc 13 years ago

hmm, maybe...but the cut-backs to interwiews constantly ruined the flow of the film.......also, since they where on a hill and shooting at distance i understand we don´t get to see the enemy up close.....but the camera crew should follow some other soldiers out on patrol....

[–] BigBirdtheBum 13 years ago

yeah you are right. i had two friends in afghanistan (american and australian army) and both said that generally they come under fire from a distance.... and its hard to know what direction the fire is from, as they were ambuhed. One of them actually had an imbedded journalist and said that they have to tell them where to stay... and to not move out of cover to shoot (film) as they can easily be shot. hence why there is no footage of the taliban.

And one of my mates said the closest living taliban fighther that he saw was in an urban area, after they were attacked on a foot patrol. And even then he wasnt living for long.

[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]

[–] nickm2 13 years ago

Right: to be seen during the day is to be smashed by Tac Air & Artillery. Now from excerpts others have quoted from Junger's book, sometimes US Paras in the Korengal valley successfully ambushed Tally-wackers with small arms but at night;

NM

[–] stage-577-735504 13 years ago

Well it is kind of hard to show enemy that does not really exist, don't you think? If you want to see "the enemy" (of something, god knows what...) you just have to watch FOX News or CNN or read NY Times. So do not worry, Everything is OK.