Screening – Hell and Back Again
Hell and Back Again is a revolution in the cinematic documentation of war. Filmmaker Danfung Dennis follows U.S Marine Sgt Nathan Harris on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan and then, after he is wounded on duty, during his recovery at home.
Over a six- month period, Dennis uses a home made camera rigging system that allows him to capture footage of unprecedented quality and intimacy in extreme wartime situations – including an IED attack in which one American LCP and one Afghan soldier lost their lives.
The footage is interspersed with footage of Nathan recovering at home as he struggles with pain, medication and inactivity in his small town home in North Carolina. Nathan’s young wife Ashley also rises to prominence in these sequences as she deals with the parallel struggles of caring for an injured husband and her daily routine.
It is the immediacy, clarity and artistry of the sequences in Afghanistan, however, that make Hell and Back Again a revolutionary film – a literal change in the way we are able to view the events and their impact in 21st century war.
Directed by Danfung Dennis
2011
88 mins
2011
88 mins
World Cinema Jury Prize Documentary – Sundance Film Festival 2011
World Cinema Cinematography Award – Sundance Film Festival 2011
Best Film of the Documentary Competition — Moscow Int’l Film Festival
