Ewww
doppelganger | Chicago | 06/23/2003
(1 out of 5 stars)
"I was looking for data or an overview (hopefully educational) and would have been happy with some footage (or "reportage") but there's really NOTHING here. Besides reeking of Department of Defense production (ie propaganda) with some irritating music, there is absolutely not one snippet of information about our military operations, the status of the Afghani people or government, the results, the why, the when, or anything. A few gurbles of how great we are, but that's it. Personally, I wanted to know where the oil lines were being protected by U.S. troops, if it was true that we dropped "Daisy Cutters" on Afghani troop concentrations and so on. The back cover also promises "battle footage" of which there is none. They are referring to a scene at the end in which some U.S. troops hear gunshots and can't determine if they are the ones being shot at. The scene ends with our guys ducking and exiting, roll credits: DOD."
Disappointing and Disjointed!
doppelganger | 03/25/2003
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Rather than "examining" anything (which other reviews claim it does), this "documentary" is simply a short, boring, hour-long collage of pictures and soundbites of US military actions in Afghanistan since 9/11 -- likely from the US government's point of view (the movie was produced with the cooperation of the Department of Defense). There is no coherent message, no overall theme, and terrible editing as well (witness the opening lines by Donald Rumsfeld). In documentaries, I expect to gain insights into a particular situation, time, or place; this film provides neither new information about terrorism or Afghanistan and its people, nor a thoughtful critique of what US military action was or meant there. Highly, highly disappointing."