Restrepo

National Geographic Entertainment | Release Date: June 25, 2010

7.5	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 91 Ratings

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khoinAug 20, 2010

I'm a huge war film and documentary fan and a high school history teacher so I had high expectations about this film and was certainly not disappointed. This was clearly one of the most powerful war movies I've ever seen. I never got aI'm a huge war film and documentary fan and a high school history teacher so I had high expectations about this film and was certainly not disappointed. This was clearly one of the most powerful war movies I've ever seen. I never got a sense that the soldiers or the filmmakers had a clear point of view about the war or their role but that, in and of itself, says much about the overall U.S./Afghanistan policy. I couldn't help but see frightening glimpses of Vietnam, Iraq, and Korea. History certainly repeats itself and we (the U.S.) seemingly never learn our lesson; however, this movie proves that sending young, innocent men into harm's way for cloudy objectives is too often the default and demented policy of a nation too quick with the trigger finger and an egomaniacal attitude. I highly recommend seeing this movie and I intend on showing it to my students when it comes out on DVD.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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CitizenCharlieMar 23, 2011

It is good the general public is now able to see just how remote and prehistoric most of Afghanistan is. Restrepo is the name of a fallen soldier from the Korengal Valley in 2007 and it is also the name of the outpost the soldiers in BattleIt is good the general public is now able to see just how remote and prehistoric most of Afghanistan is. Restrepo is the name of a fallen soldier from the Korengal Valley in 2007 and it is also the name of the outpost the soldiers in Battle Company construct in the valley and name after him. The Korengal Valley is two provinces north of where I was stationed and it makes my base, which was remote and sparse, seem like Vegas compared to OP Restrepo. A long deployment to Afghanistan is extremely monotonous punctuated by brief periods of action. This is how the documentary is edited. It briefly shows some of the soldiers a week pre-deployment, as newbies on the ground, and then follows their highlights (and lowlights) throughout the next 15 months. Building the new outpost takes up most of their time as do the relentless patrols to the surrounding villages. They conduct shuras (meetings) with the locals who they know are in contact with the Taliban but dare not tell them their locations for fear of death. It would be extremely difficult to convey the bleak day in, day out routine of a deployment that long and in around 90 minutes, Restrepo does not really pull that off. There are a lot of firefights on film including one with a KIA and they effectively show just how confusing situations like that can be. This documentary felt too brief for the heavy subject matter; however, I'm glad it was made at all. The guys on the ground at the Company level and below rarely get any face time.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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j30Sep 22, 2011

Nearly no narritive, but a powerful film that is one of the best documentaries of 2010.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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egovirusFeb 12, 2011

I can see people not liking this movie, and I think their criticisms are legit. How do you make a war documentary in the middle of a war, and expect it to make sense? The people who die in this film are still dead, still murdered, and by theI can see people not liking this movie, and I think their criticisms are legit. How do you make a war documentary in the middle of a war, and expect it to make sense? The people who die in this film are still dead, still murdered, and by the end of it, when they explain what has happened since, their deaths feel empty, pointless, their lives wasted on ideas that don't count in places where ideas aren't allowed to exist freely. Places such as Afghanistan. As for the survivors, what is to become of their lives? How do they transition back into our universe? How can they communicate with us after what they have seen and done? How do we even begin to comprehend their needs when they have lost a piece of innocence that we in the West get to have our entire lives? They are changed. This documentary shows them changing, shows what they have done. It makes no judgments, pulls no punches, and I can't believe the crew survived when men trained to kill did not. You have to approach this film passively, and with an open mind.… Expand