PrintSeptember 1, 2007
Hollywood Hates the Troops
Just as we were inclined to dismiss Robbins as a lonely voice of idiocy, news came of director Brian DePalma's Redacted, one of eight new movies about the Iraq War due out in the coming months, according to Reuters. "Inspired by one of the most serious crimes committed by American soldiers in Iraq since the 2003 invasion, it is a harrowing indictment of the conflict and spares the audience no brutality to get its message across."De Palma also directed what many feel is the absolute worst Viet Nam movie ever made, Casualties of War, which also portrayed American soldiers as brutal thugs who raped a little Vietnamese girl.
The film is based on the story of a brutal rape and murder of a young Iraqi girl and the killing of her family at the hands of four American soldiers. Sgt. Paul Cortez, who has admitted his role in the attack, was sentenced earlier this year to 100 years in prison. Most Americans who read about this brutal crime probably understood that most soldiers don't behave this way. DePalma does not. "The movie is an attempt to bring the reality of what is happening in Iraq to the American people," he said last week.
The four soldiers involved were all punished severely for these crimes - crimes that were discovered and prosecuted by the military itself.
One wonders if De Palma or any other Hollywood director would ever consider making a film about the agonizing decisions made by combat officers with regard to engaging the enemy while civilians are present or perhaps the enormous amount of good being done by the troops in assisting the Iraqis in rebuilding their country.
I guess that kind of thing just doesn't sell - at least in Hollywood.
