ScreenFish

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war

Sniper: The White Raven – Is this Ukraine’s soul?

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Sniper: The White Raven is the story Ukraine wants to tell about itself in the midst of its war with Russia. Director and co-writer Marian Bushan leads us to see those fighting for their country as heroic and determined. Certainly, this is in line with the accounts we have seen in news accounts. But I also think, whether it is intentional or not, that the film also shows a cost of such actions.

In 2014, Mykola and his wife Nastya are living as close to nature as they can. A local news crew comes out to film these “eco-settlers” whose home is carved into the side of a hillside. This is portrayed as an Edenic existence. The colors are vibrant and vital. It’s not at all unlike the vision of 1960s American hippies. They look the part. They even have a peace sign in their landscape (although it is described as the footprint of the white raven).

This all changes when a pair of Russian soldiers come into this paradise bringing violence and death. They kill Nastya and burn the home, leaving Mykola beaten. When local soldiers find him and take him to their base, he is determined to drive the Russians from the land. He begins training as a soldier and eventually as a sniper. He excels at this training, even with an inferior rifle.

His is a specialized job. He and his cohort kill suddenly from a distance, often to allow others to fulfill their missions. But we see that Mykola has changed. This is especially true when we note his lack of remorse when a former student is among the Russian soldiers he kills. The film continues through years of his actions, showing us that he is still at it in 2022.

When a nation is at war, their films often are more about how they want to be understood than just a simple storytelling. If Mykola is a stand-in for the Ukrainian people, we see them as peace-loving and seeking to live in harmony with the world around them. But all that changes when Russia invades. Now everything revolves around ridding their country of the invaders.

This is not unlike the films that were made when the US was at war (best examples are during World War II, although there are films late that strive to do the same thing). It is certainly a legitimate use of filmmaking to try to define who a nation is in such a difficult time. I hesitate to use the world “propaganda” because of its negative connotations, but this film is clearly a declaration of how Ukraine thinks of itself at this time.

It is much harder, however, for such a film to also be self-reflective about the cost of this transition. If the Eden of the first act was what life was meant to be, how will that ever be attained again? Bushan makes use of his color palate throughout the film, beginning with the colorful land when Mykola and Nastya live. Then browns and grays of military life dominate. By the end everything is ashen and colorless. Sadly, I think this in many ways also reflects Mykola’s (and by extension, Ukraine’s) soul. The joys of life have been completely eroded. All that is left is rage and death. When the conflict is over, will there be any peace?

Sniper: The White Raven is in select theaters and on digital.

Photos courtesy of Well Go USA Entertainment

Reflection – War and aftermath

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Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection is a look at war and its aftermath. The film is part of Film Movement’s Ukrainian Film Collection being released in theaters. These films give us insight into the country and culture that has become such an important part of world affairs. Ten percent of the gross ticket sales of the collection will be donated to Ukraine Crisis Fund, administered by Americares.

While it may seem that the Russo-Ukraine war is very recent, this film takes place in the first year of the war, 2014. At that point, the fighting was limited to the eastern part of Ukraine. In the first scene of the film, we see two men at a girl’s birthday party. They are the girl’s father and step-father. The two talk about the war. The step-father, Andriy, is a soldier who has been to the front. The father, Serhiy, is a surgeon who is dealing with war injuries that overflow the military hospitals. Then we see the children at the party take part in a paintball battle. This is clearly meant to disturb us with such play happening in the midst of real war. Soon Serhiy is also at the front, where he is taken prisoner. In the prison, he experiences torture by the Russian commander. He also witnesses Andriy being tortured to death.

At the midpoint of the film, Serhiy is returned home as part of a prisoner exchange. This is an abrupt change in focus. Instead of seeing the horrors of war, we now return to the (then) more peaceful world of Kyiv, where children play in the snow. Serhiy’s ex-wife is worried because there has been no news of Andriy. Serhiy is trying to readjust to civilian life and deal with his PTSD.

One day when his daughter is staying with him, a bird flies into the apartment window and is killed. This event leads to some interesting discussions about death, the soul, the body, and afterlife. These are concepts that are just now becoming real for the ten year old daughter. For Serhiy, the concepts have a much different meaning. In a sense, he has already come through death (and perhaps a bit of Hell). Some of the conversations that Serhiy has with his daughter about the dead bird could just as well have been about Andriy.

Vasyanovych has designed each scene to be framed in such a way that we are drawn to watch. Even when horrific things are happening, we are unable to avert our eyes. He also makes each scene uncomfortably long, not letting us move on too quickly to something else. Even in the few scenes that are not done without a static camera, the framing keeps us centered on what is happening. Part of the director’s goal is to make us see the terrible things that happen in war. He also wants us to know that the aftermath of war can have its own harrowing effects, not just on those who are in the war, but the people they love as well.

There were times as I watched that I had a sense of sorrow, especially seeing Kyiv as a peaceful, happy city filled with life. That time is gone for Kyiv. As we watch now, we know that much of what we see has probably been destroyed or damaged by more recent fighting.

This is a film not so much about the fighting spirit of the Ukrainian people as about the suffering that the war has brought to them—and is bringing yet again. The wounds to the souls of soldiers and ten year old girls continue to cry out for healing.

Reflection is playing in select theaters.

Photos courtesy of Film Movement.

A New Civil War? Squid Game

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The country has never seemed more divided. New data suggests that many Americans think it’s “time to split the country.” Are we in for a new Civil War?

In this new episode of the Your Sunday Drive podcast, we use an article by David French, a quote from Andrew Yang, the recent controversy surrounding Facebook, the current congressional fight over Biden’s infrastructure bill and the debt ceiling, and other angles to take a look at this topic. What underlies such division? How is media and social media involved? Would there even be something ultimately “wrong” with an actual split in the country? Most vitally, how should individual Christians and the church navigate the opportunity of our polarized times?

In our second segment, we shift focus to the uber popular Netflix show Squid Game, relating it to another current cultural obsession, the Gabby Petito case. Why are people fascinated by “true crime” stories and violent media such as Squid Game? What are the dangers and what elements of the redemptive can we discover in this human impulse?

Come along for Your Sunday Drive – quick conversation about current events, politics, pop culture and more, from the perspective of a couple of guys trying to follow Jesus.

Hosts: Matt Hill and Nate Polzin. Presented by the Church in Drive of Saginaw, MI, as often as possible. Please visit churchindrive.com and facebook.com/thechurchindrive

Afghanistan & Abortion & Ivermectin, Oh My!

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The war in Afghanistan comes to a controversial end. Abortion is again in the news due to an unusual Texas law. Ivermectin hits center stage in Covid politics thanks to Joe Rogan.

How should Christians think through such varied yet pressing news items, events and issues? How is the nature of God a guide when it comes to having a “Christian take” on things? Find out in this new episode of the Your Sunday Drive podcast!

Also, a quick pop culture minute generates a metric ton of mentions, including Smallville, The Golden Girls, The White Lotus, Hades, Dune, Star Trek, Star Wars, David Lynch, Twin Peaks, The Green Knight, The Thin Red Line, The Fountain, and Ted Lasso.

Come along for Your Sunday Drive – quick conversation about current events, politics, pop culture and more, from the perspective of a couple of guys trying to follow Jesus.

Hosts: Matt Hill and Nate Polzin. Presented by the Church in Drive of Saginaw, MI, as often as possible. Please visit churchindrive.com and facebook.com/thechurchindrive

1982 – Love and War

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Oualid Mouaness’s 1982 is a story about fear and courage, love and war, innocence and maturity. The film is Lebanon’s official submission for Best International Film consideration.

For fifth grade student Wissam (Mohamad Dalli) the end of year exams aren’t a problem; he’s a top student. What he is worried about is if he will be able to tell classmate Joanna that he loves her. He doesn’t understand the import of what is going on in the world—that Israel has invaded his country.

His teacher, Yasmine (Nadine Labaki) is fully aware of the dangerous times. Her brother is going south to fight with the Christian militia. She has an ailing father. She is in the middle of the political conflict that is represented by her brother on one side and her fellow teacher and boyfriend on the other. As the school day goes on, the contrails and sound of planes are a constant reminder of what’s happening. In time the sound of explosions rumble in the distance, then nearer. Plumes of smoke rise out of Beirut where the students live. Dogfights happen in the sky above.

The story moves back and forth between Wassim’s attempts to get the courage to talk to Joanna and the adults in the story trying to deal with their own worries and at the same time keep calm in the classrooms. It makes for a useful contrast between the innocence of childhood and the dangers and troubles of the adult world. But in time, the film wants us to understand that relationships—and love—are a key to being resilient in the times of trouble.

The childhood storyline is really the more compelling one. As he talks with his friend about his desire to make himself known to Joanna, and Joanna talks to her friend about who could have left the anonymous note in her locker, the sense of the power of childhood love is very clear. It is at once both scary and something we crave. It is a reminder that even in the midst of terrible and fearful events love has the power to transform us. It has the power to save us. For Wassim, we see that power come forth in the end with a bit of magical realism to save not just his love for Joanna, but his city.

The film triggers in me a touch of a contrast between scriptures. The Apostle Paul wrote, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I thought as a child, and I reasoned as a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways.” That thought fits well with the adults in this story as they must deal with the realities of the war drawing close. But there is also the story, “[Jesus] called a child, whom he put among them, and said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  1982 captures both of those perspectives. And it calls us live in the light of both.

1982 is available on VOD and via virtual cinema through local arthouses.

Photos courtesy of Utopia.

The Outpost: ‘If We Survive, We Win.’

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Directed by Rod Lurie (The Contender), The Outpost tells the story of Bravo Troop 3-61 CAV, a small unit of U.S. soldiers left alone at the remote Combat Outpost Keating, who are tasked with helping maintain the peace and build relationships with the locals. Trapped at the bottom of a deep valley between three mountains in Afghanistan, the division sits exposed and faces daily attacks from insurgents. Then, when an overwhelming force of Taliban fighters attacks them, the unit finds themselves faced with the impossible task of defending their station and staying alive. 

Based on the true story of The Battle of Kamdesh, The Outpost is a visceral and intense experience that feels like an authentic look at the brutality and senselessness of war. A master of the handicam shot, veteran cinematographer Lorenzo Senatore has created battle sequences so intense and lifelike that they refuse to allow you to look away from the screen. Long takes that follow soldiers as carry their wounded across the seemingly endless showers of gunfire that surround them feel endlessly stressful, despite their actual brevity. Featuring solid performances, especially standout Scott Eastwood, Lurie’s film gives time to every member of the throughout the film. Although the film offers little in the way of backstory for its characters, the decision to do so is deliberate as The Outpost focuses its narrative on this particular moment in their lives.

In a unique structural choice, The Outpost is split between two narrative pieces. While the first half feels like a series of narrative ‘events’ over a period of months and years, Lurie’s final battle extends over the rest of the film. In doing so, Lurie builds the tension in a way that recognizes the importance of each moment within military altercations. Though battle scenes in other films can feel simply too long or over-choreographed, Outpost uses its time to remind the viewer that death stands above them at any moment. (This idea is also emphasized through high overhead shots that highlight the unit’s increasingly feeble hopes for survival.)

The interesting thing about Outpost is that, even though every character is named, eventually they begin to blur together. Almost all of them similar age and ethnicity, you could be forgiven if identifying them becomes murkier, especially when they’re covered in gear in the midst of a firefight. In this way, Outpost has a ‘next man up’ mentality in their approach that emphasizes the need to make use of whomever may be available. (In fact, the narrative is even framed through the lens of an endless parade of commanding officers that come through the unit for various reasons.) However, this is not to suggest that anyone’s life is unimportant in any way. Rather, Outpost serves as a reminder that, in the most dangerous of scenarios, everyone must work as one seamless unit in order to survive.

And survival is the only goal.

While many other war films focus on the overall ‘mission’, Outpost states on several occasions that their sole objective is to survive their assignment. Sent to watch over an impossible location, the soldiers of Outpost Keating have lost any sense of their mission and are simply trying to live until their assignment is over. Though the film absolutely highlights the bravery of the men who sacrifice their lives on the front lines, these soldiers also understand that their assignment is a battle that can never be won. Instead, for these men, if they ‘all stay alive…, [they] win’. 

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It’s this level of futility that drives the unit and speaks to the overall senselessness of the mission itself. One example of the film’s point of view comes when one soldier questions his commanding officer on the fact that neither the Qur’an nor the Bible should be used to validate military action. When is commander argues that both sides ‘can’t be right’, his responds that ‘but we can both be wrong.’ In moments such as these, Outpost recognizes that these aspects of war are misguided and cause unnecessary sacrifices of human life in the end. 

Ferocious and unrelenting, The Outpost is not for the faint of heart. Known as the bloodiest American engagement of the Afghanistan War, the film’s portrayal of The Battle of Kamdesh wants the viewer to feel as though they’ve lived through the moment themselves. However, the value of Lurie’s film lies not in its graphic violence but in its message. At The Outpost, the sacrifice of these men is great but seems unnecessary overall. Though the characters are many, each life matters in The Outpost. 

For Lurie, it’s the mission that remains in question.

For audio of our interview with director Rod Lurie, click here.

The Outpost makes its stand on VOD on July 21st, 2020.

For Sama – Oscar-Nominated Love Letter

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Nominated for Best Documentary Feature, For Sama brings a personal perspective to the Syrian conflict. The conflict in Syria has been fertile ground for documentary films. Two years ago The Last Men in Aleppo was among the doc nominees. This year The Cave is also nominated in this category. The war going on in that nation is a story of human suffering that needs to be brought to our comfortable lives. For Sama was shown on PBS Frontline, and is now available to stream on PBS.org, Amazon Prime, and YouTube.

Filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab (who shares directing credit with Edward Watts) chronicles five years in her life from the beginning of the revolution against the Assad regime. Hopes were high in those early days, but the regime (with Russian support) soon cracked down. In time the city of Aleppo was under siege, being bombed daily. As the siege gets worse, Al-Kateab films the life people were forced to live, as well as the injury and death that was all around. Much of what she filmed takes place within a hospital trying to do the best it could in such dire circumstances.

But it is not just the story of what was going on in Aleppo, it is also Al-Kateab’s story—including falling in love, getting married, and becoming a mother in the midst of this war. That personal story is highlighted by the fact that she designs the film as a love letter to her baby daughter, Sama. In many ways it is an apologia for the choices she and others have made and for the life that they have subjected Sama to.

As we overhear Al-Kateab explain this war to Sama, it gives us insight into those who have chosen to stay in their home rather that become refugees. The hardships and danger that fill the city are all that Sama has known in her few years. Was it right to have brought a child into this kind of life? That is part of what Al-Kateab ponders as she shares the story with her daughter—and with the world.

But a key part of what she shows us is not only the hardships they deal with, but the human need to which they have dedicated themselves to deal with. This is a film with lots of pain, anguish, death, and destruction. But it is also a film that shows triumphs in the midst of all this. But more than anything else, this is a film about caring—caring for family, caring for neighbors, caring for humanity. The love letter that Al-Kateab creates for her daughter teaches us all about the deep meaning love can have in the midst of suffering.

2020 So Far: Iran, Church Shooting, Star Wars, Golden Globes

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your sunday drive

Your Sunday Drive Podcast Season 2, Episode 1.

In our first episode of 2020, we briefly refocus the goal of this podcast: seeking ways to approach current culture in a Christian/biblical way. We then ask “what’s happening so far in 2020?,” covering topics from the conflict with Iran and another recent church shooting, to some reflections on Star Wars and the Golden Globes fallout.

Come along for Your Sunday Drive – quick conversation about current events, politics, pop culture and more, from the perspective of a couple of guys trying to follow Jesus.

Hosts: Matt Hill and Nate Polzin. Presented by the Church in Drive of Saginaw, MI, as often as possible. Please visit churchindrive.com and facebook.com/thechurchindrive

M*A*S*H – Showing the Folly of the Times

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“This isn’t a hospital; it’s an insane asylum!”

I was in college, of prime draft age, when M*A*S*H hit the theaters in 1970. That probably says a lot about what I found so appealing about that film when I first saw it. It also explains why when it played at AFI Fest as part of a Robert Altman retrospective that I felt compelled to see it again and compare it to that first encounter.

The film was somewhat eclipsed by the TV series starring Alan Alda. And it is good to keep the two versions separate. The film version has an entirely different cast (except for Gary Burghoff who played “Radar” O’Reilly in both versions) and a very different tone and outlook than the more lighthearted (though often very poignant) TV series. The film is often described as antiwar (especially since it came out in the midst of the Vietnam War), but it really says less about war per se than about the iconoclasm of that particular time in American history. Even though the film is set in the Korean War, it was almost a given that viewers would read this as commentary on Vietnam.

The film synopsizes itself in a PA announcement at the end of the film:

Attention. Tonight’s movie has been “M*A*S*H.” Follow the zany antics of our combat surgeons as they cut and stitch their way along the front lines, operating as bombs — operating as bombs and bullets burst around them; snatching laughs and love between amputations and penicillin. Follow Hawkeye, Trapper, Duke, Dago Red, Painless, Radar, Hot Lips, Dish and Staff Sergeant Vollmer as they put our boys back together again.

Altman often put together ensembles that were more about the collected talent than any one person being the star. That is certainly true in M*A*S*H. The cast included Donald Sutherland (Hawkeye), Elliot Gould (Trapper John), Tom Skerritt (Duke), Robert Duvall (Frank Burns), Sally Kellerman (“Hot Lips” Houlihan), John Schuck (“Painless” Waldowski), Rene Auberjonoir (Father Mulcahy, aka Dago Red), and many others.

I think what made this film so appealing to a 19-year-old college student was the utter disdain the film had for all institutions. Altman had a reputation for being a maverick or subversive in his films. The military was the main butt of jokes in the film. The doctors were all draftees. All of the regular army officers were pompous and out of touch. They were more concerned with regulations than saving lives. Those who try to do things the Army way are constantly made to look foolish and impotent. At a time when many in this country were becoming increasingly anti-military in response to the war, that resonated strongly.

The film also skewered religion. Religion comes into play in various ways. Frank Burns is a zealot. When Hawkeye and Duke show up as new surgeons they are put into a tent with Burns. He is teaching a local boy to read using the Bible. He prays fervently only to be ridiculed by the other. In time he is shown to be a hypocrite. Father Mulcahy is treated more kindly, but only because he is seen as innocuous. His efforts as a priest are really ineffectual and impotent. It is almost as if he is seen by the doctors as a child. The height of the mocking of religion is the “Last Supper” scene which many may consider as bordering on sacrilege. In it the characters eat a final meal before Painless’s planned suicide. As they gather at a table in a tent, they are positioned exactly like Jesus and the Twelve in DaVinci’s painting.

The film’s anti-religious sentiment was also very much a part of the zeitgeist. Even though I attended a Christian college, this way of seeing religion reflected my own views of the institution of religion. In those days, we wanted to find a simpler expression of faith. This was also the time of the hippy-like Jesus People, and musicals like Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell, all of which reflected attempts at new ways of understanding Christianity.

But all of these things I expected when I watched the film at AFI Fest. What struck me after nearly fifty years was the extent to which this film objectified women. The women served as the focus of lust. Even those who exhibited some kind of competence (Major Houlihan, Lieutenant “Dish”) all served to make life better for the men in the film. This was especially noteworthy since the day before the screening at AFI Fest, women gathered at Hollywood and Highland for a protest march about sexual harassment in the film industry. I expect that this attitude was also very much in line with the times. Women’s liberation existed only in a nascent form. This film would be criticized today for this treatment of the women characters.

In some ways this film may seem a bit anachronistic. After all the draft has been gone for over forty years. The all-volunteer armed forces are much different than the Vietnam and Korean War versions. And my generation has become a part of many of the institutions that we so wanted to tear down. (Hopefully, we’ve managed to change them more than they have changed us.)

But M*A*S*H still represents an attitude that needs to be a part of our culture. It looks at the foolishness that is nearly always found in things (like war) that demands to be taken seriously. It’s not a bad idea to step back from time to time and make note of the folly around us. And since I’m no longer that young would-be rebel, I (and my generation) may be in line to be the focus of the satire.

The Long Road Home: Lessons Learned

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(Photo: National Geographic/Van Redin)

When we last left the eighteen trapped soldiers in The Long Road Home (National Geographic), they were surrounded on all sides by enemy insurgents carrying human shields.  Lt. Shane Aguero (EJ Bonilla) gave the command to open fire while the screen went to black.  It was an effective way to end an episode, that’s for sure.

The final three episodes chronicled the continued search and rescue of not only Aguero’s team, but a second platoon led by Staff Sgt. Robert Miltenberger (Jeremy Sisto) who had a broken down vehicle, limited protection, no method of communication, and a bunch of soldiers who had never fired a gun in combat before.  Sadly, the result was exactly what you might expect.  Insurgents saw the weakness and attacked it mercilessly, leading to a number of significant injuries and deaths.

Aguero’s team was also in significant danger after the shots rang out in Episode 5.  They still had a house of refuge, but insurgents were still swarming.  The main problem was a lack of ammunition, dwindling by the second. Their interpreter  Jassim al-Lani (Darius Homayoun) was still around, but even he was in trouble if the ammo ran out.

As you might expect, there was some good news. A tank finally found them, but only after Aguero put himself in the crosshairs of death for the third time, chasing the tank down with a flashlight. Miltenberger makes a dash to keep an insurgent from bringing friends, but finds himself looking down the barrel of a gun—just as he predicted.  Thankfully, the person wanted to help him.  In the end, the soldiers in both platoons were rescued and taken to the base, where their injuries were treated.

But not everyone was able to successfully recover.  Pfc. Tomas Young (Noel Fisher) was left paralyzed thanks to a bullet that hit him before he ever fired a shot.  Specialist Israel Garza (Jorge Diaz), always the jokester, didn’t survive his wounds.  The scene where members of the Army inform his unprepared wife Lupita (Karina Ortiz) was difficult to watch.

I thought the ending was well done as Lt. Col. Volesky (Michael Kelly), in a gathering of the soldiers, called out the names of the eight soldiers who died, giving them the honor they deserved.  The role of the surviving soldiers was reinforced when they had a meeting the next day and told about their upcoming mission.  It wasn’t a ‘one battle and you get to go home’ deployment; it was ‘stay until the mission is complete, then go home.’ In the end, the ambush cost eight lives, injured over 60, and left soldiers with physical, emotional, and spiritual scars.  War isn’t fun; that’s for sure.

(Photo: National Geographic/Van Redin)

So what can we learn from all of this?

* As just noted, life doesn’t stop just because an attack occurs. We sometimes have days when it seems everything goes wrong.  We’d like to crawl into the bed and hide until the sun shines again.  But that’s not the way life works.  Instead, we have to draw on our reserves of courage and determination (or just ask God for some wisdom – see James 1:5) and go out again into the world.

* Sometimes bad things happen, as with Pfc. Young. We have to choose how to handle the adversity—can it be used for good in some way, shape, or form? If so, we can make a positive difference in the lives of those we come into contact with (see Romans 8:28).  Or we can choose to wallow in negativity, passing that on to people who don’t deserve it.

* I was struck by the role hope played in The Long Road Home. It would’ve been extremely easy for Aguero to give up as the odds were definitely against his squadron. But deep inside, he continued to hold out hope of being rescued even when the world around him was burning. That didn’t mean he was able to sit idly by; he had to lead his troops, play the role of counselor, and go after the tank after it drove by them numerous times.  Hebrews mentions faith “is the confidence that what we hope will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see” (11:1 NLT).  That hope turned into faith, which eventually saw his troops rescued with only Chen dying.

The Long Road Home brought the realities of the Iraq War into homes across the country. It wasn’t easy to watch at times, but was a necessary reminder of the sacrifice and bravery our soldiers make on a daily basis. Thank you, men and women of the Armed Forces, for all you do!