Peter Sattler's directorial debut, "Camp X-Ray," is a masterfully shot film that inhabits two stellar performances by Kristen Stewart and Payman Maadi.
Stewart plays PFC Amy Cole from small town Florida who is socially awkward and equally earnest. Meanwhile, Maadi's character of Ali Amir is a charismatic detainee whom is engulfed in his impotent anger and ceaseless boredom.
The film itself is quietly drawn and slow paced to convey the monotony of being a guard at Guantanamo Bay. "Camp X-Ray" is a two-hander for the majority of the film and it rests entirely upon the interactions of PFC Cole and Detainee 471 (Ali). Personally, I liked that the dynamic between the two is purely platonic and develops from the honest human requirement of connection. The tag line of the film "Connection takes courage" is entirely apt.
The supporting cast of Lane Garrison and John Carroll Lynch as Cpl. "Randy" Ransdell and Col. James Drummond do solid work in their roles as Cole's superiors at Camp Delta.
Sattler kept a film about Gitmo as apolitical as probably possible, but some will dislike the lack of a solid stance. The film does not offer any answers to the quagmire of Guantanamo Bay, but rather raises questions and displays the conflicting emotions one might feel while serving or detained there.
Overall, I really liked this little Sundance indie. The attention to detail is impressive and the performances are more than worth seeing.
