Brothers In Arms (Documentary)
Picture: C+
Sound: B- Extras: C Film: B-
All the way to the 2004 election comes more attack ads and
documentaries. In the pro-John Kerry
camp, many of the documentaries going after George Bush have been that way by
default, but Paul Alexander’s Brothers In Arms (2004) features
interviews and footage that show how Kerry did serve in Vietnam and why he
earned his medals of honor for bravery.
Until the 2004 Election, only the Rollbacking
Neo-Conservative revisionists were in a corner pretending Kerry did not do
anything good in Vietnam as if he had not been there. Part of this is that Kerry’s story is the story of thousands of
loyal soldiers who managed not to get killed came back to the United States and
realized what a lie the Vietnam conflict was.
We saw this so well portrayed by Tom Cruise in a breakthrough role in
Oliver Stone’s Born On The Fourth Of July (1989) that this story should
not be such a surprise by now.
At only 68 minutes, though it sets the record straight
inarguably, it still has the stilted feel of a political propaganda film. Being so short and completed so recently
does not help, but the some lighting and same camera angles in the interviews
(especially at this aspect ratio) feel recycled. I wish there had been more content and more creative camera work,
but it still shows that this is a man who absolutely served his country
correctly and is lucky to be alive to tell the tale. We still cannot say that about his opponent.
The full frame image is a mix of film and video from then
and now, with some footage looking better than others, typical of documentary
filmmaking. It looks good with that
considered, though it feels a bit odd and even old to have a 1.33 X 1 image,
but it does retain the authenticity of the footage and credibility is important
here. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo has
some Pro Logic surrounds, but some of the audio is obviously monophonic. This plays back just fine otherwise. Extras include a text director’s statement,
biographies on the participants, a stills section and trailers for other First
Run DVDs.
Of course, even this will not be good enough for
many. The lie is amazingly being
perpetrated more than ever that Vietnam was some legitimate involvement that
“fought Communism in the name of God” and that ugly, deadly, blind faith myth
is being furthered to serve the propaganda being perpetrated for the Middle
East affairs that are being badly mishandled.
The deeper truth, of course, is much uglier and plays like a second run
of Vietnam, no matter who gets killed unnecessarily. As Senator, President, or citizen, Kerry can only be a success if
he does not abandon these truths and roots.
If not, he fails and time will quickly vindicate that statement. If the events of 35 years ago must be
remembered, they must be done uncompromisingly so. In that respect, Brothers In Arms may not go far enough,
but it is a good start.
- Nicholas Sheffo
