Redacted (2007)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Brian De Palma

Writer:

Brian De Palma (written by)

Release Date:

16 November 2007 (Spain)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | War

Tagline:

Truth is the first casualty of war.

Plot:

A montage of stories about U.S. soldiers fighting in the Iraq conflict, focusing on the modern forms of media covering the war.

Plot Keywords:

Soldier | Iraq | Vulgarity | Talk To Camera | Bullet Proof Vest

Awards:

3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Sahar Alloul	...	Arab News Reporter
Happy Anderson	...	Battalion Commander (as Eric 'Happy' Anderson)
Lara Atalla	...	Buddy #3
Karima Attayeh	...	Farah's Mother
Francois Caillaud	...	Buddy #2
Patrick Carroll	...	Reno Flake
Andrew Cullen	...	Buddy #1
Rob Devaney	...	Lawyer McCoy
Izzy Diaz	...	Angel Salazar
Mike Figueroa	...	Sergeant Jim Vazques
Qazi Freihat	...	Hadi
Shatha Haddad	...	Embedded Journalist
Paul Hijazin	...	English Newscaster
Suhail Abdel Hussein	...	Farah's Father
Ty Jones	...	Master Sergeant Sweet
Dhiaa Kahlil	...	Soldier
Hiyam Abdel Karim	...	Pregnant Woman
Yanal Kassay	...	Soldier
Ohad Knoller	...	Army Psychiatrist
Shukraya Maran	...	Young Screaming Woman
Sabrine Munther	...	Farah's Little Sister
Paul O'Brien	...	Barton's Father
Adel Odai	...	Interpreter
Kel O'Neill	...	Private Gabe Blix
Hameed Sahi	...	Farah's Grandfather
Abigail Savage	...	Tattooed Kid
Nick Seeley	...	Criminal Investigation Agent #1
Issam Shamary	...	Pregnant Woman's Brother
Daniel Stewart Sherman	...	B.B. Rush
Julie Thiery	...	'Barrage' Narrator
Helen Zamel	...	Date Girl
Jafar Zoubi	...	ATV Anchorman
Mazen Zoubi	...	Company Commander
Zahra Zubaidi	...	Farah

MPAA:

Rated R for strong disturbing violent content including a rape, pervasive language and some sexual references/images.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English | French | Arabic | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Portugal:M/16 | Ireland:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | Ireland:15 (video rating) | Netherlands:16 | Japan:R-15 | Singapore:M18 | Australia:MA (2008) | Germany:18 | New Zealand:R16

Filming Locations:

Amman, Jordan

Company:

Film Farm, The

Trivia:

The genesis of the film began when HDNet Films approached Brian De Palma in 2006 to make a film with only two strings attached: it had to be shot for $5 million and on HD.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Angel Salazar's video camera, as shown in the opening scene, is a small, cheap camcorder. However, during the scene where Master Sergeant Sweet is introduced, the camera's shadow suggests a much larger high-end HD camera with wide lens and external microphone is being used.

Movie Connections:

References Clerks. (1994)

Soundtrack:

Voice of a Gun

Excessive, unfinished, manipulative - but not nearly as bad as others say

Despite the many criticisms by others on this site, Redacted is a compelling film based on an actual incident that occurred in Baghdad in 2006. Yes, the acting leaves something to be desired, the 'mixed-media' approach is distracting, and there are some manipulative moments (the beheading, the final still); But this is still an eye-opening film on the state of events in Iraq and the trials that *both* Iraqis and Americans have to deal with daily. The scenes at the checkpoint are particularly well done. Some of the dialog between the soldiers in the unit is compelling in its own way; Similarly so the scenes with the Iraqi reporters and 'embeds.'

I've seen all the recent films about Iraq ('Valley of Elah', 'Lions for Lambs', 'Rendition' ) and think that 'Redacted' provides insights none of the others do. In particular, it does an excellent job illustrating the clash between the respective cultures of Iraq and America. (50% of Iraqis can't read the signs at US checkpoints!)

Is this film a bit of an unholy mess? Yes, but see it anyway and make your own mind up. I think this one deserves at least a 6 out of 10.