Combat Obscura

Many people who are rating this, came into expecting a well directed, produced, and polished movie. This is not that, it was not meant to be that. This is the true accounts and events of these corpsmen. This is meant to display there day to day life, not all the stuff everyone says about the military and marine corps. At the end of the day this is a job, and this shows us the job that they have on deployment. It also shows us joe they deal with war, and how they act. This gives incredible insight to what actually happens and is experienced on deployment. The military is not full of perfect men, as one point it was talked about during this film. It captures the faults and the seemingly unwarranted behavior they display. This was recorded by a corpsman and so of course he's not going to know how to create and capture every thing like a paid cameraman. This is a great documentary of reality.

This film has received a lot of criticism for its lack of narrative story telling, and I can understand why that might frustrate some viewers. However, the title of the film promises exactly what it delivers: a view of combat from the periphery. Obscured from direct line of sight.

In my opinion, this is the most candid and realistic account of combat to be portrayed in documentary form. And it effectively conveys the absurdity and intensity of modern war.

This film is not supposed to answer questions. It is simply here to illuminate a side of war that is rarely seen.

I find this film incredibly refreshing in its honesty. The concept is fully realized and perfectly executed. I think it will serve as a staple for future generations that wish to understand America's war on terror and the men who fought it.

This movie is really interesting and well made. It shows the conflicting intellectual and spiritual toll war takes on individuals. On the other hand, it does a good job at depicting soldiers for what they really are: uneducated, narrow-minded, monoethnic, monolingual, violent, murderers, without any pride, honor, or courage, whilst convincing themselves they have all three. They clearly lack the wisdom and the intelligence to take or save a life. It conveys the true necessity to jail all soldiers for life, or give them the capital punishement. This movie provides a raw insight into the minds of individuals who are responsible for the destabilization of the Middle East, and for listening to even less educated politicians.

By far this is the most explicit graphic war documentary I have ever seen. Only The Dead, and Vietnam Television History come close. Here we see the US Marines trapped in a hopeless situation without the support of the local population. Their comrades die around them.

Totally uncensored and raw. No flashy Hollywood narrative or editing. The Marine filmmaker keeps recording at all times to tell his intended view of the reality of war.

They let their anger and stress out in a number of ways from daily hash and marijuana in the field, to out right anger. There's very intense gory footage of combat casualties and deaths right in front of the camera in high-quality. For those going to point the finger at these US Marines, if you've never lived under the Taliban control then you really shouldn't comment.

This film just throws you right into a war to get a glimpse of what it's like. If one is looking for more of a artsy documentary with a plot maybe stick to the National Geographic Afghanistan documentaries but of course they're censored.

Patchwork footage of fighting the Taliban and trying to win villagers' hearts and minds. Principally unfocused.

Screenplay...................................... 3 / 10 Interviews........................................ 3 Visuals................................................ 6 Sound................................................... 7 Editing................................................ 4 Timeless Utility................................. 5 Total.................................................... 28 / 60 ~= 4.7 (rounded to 6) Verdict................................................. Passable for a general audience.