Sunday Screening – Restrepo

In the most dangerous place in Afghanistan, the violently contested Korengal Valley, a platoon of fifteen American soldiers fight a seemingly endless war against an Al-Qaeda stronghold. Told through the voices of the soldiers themselves, Restrepo takes the viewer on a harrowing journey through the lives of the men serving abroad without the interjection of the vox populi usually heard on the news.

The platoon, named after a medic who was killed during an insurgence, explore the remote countryside of their post in attempts to win the hearts and minds of the valley’s native Afghan people. At every step, however, the threat of bombs and snipers looms as the soldiers try to push forwards into no-mans land. A personal story of loss, tactic, isolation, and the human cost of war, the film explores one of the most hotly debated and discussed military actions in the past decade.

Directed by Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger
93 mins
2010

Awards:
2011 Oscar Nominated
Winner Grand Jury Prize 2010 Documentary Sundance

This screening is kindly supported by Dogwoof and is part of a season of their films showing at the club. More details of the season are here.