07-04-02 The Ground Truth (2006)

Seen: March 29th, 2007
Format: DVD
Rating: 7

This documentary has to do with the war in Iraq. That right there causes you to have some opinion, or at least expectation, about it. I'm here to talk about film, not the war.

The Ground Truth is a documentary concerning veterans who've returned from the war in Iraq. Specifically, it is about Iraq Veterans who have become anti-war activists since their return.

Documentaries are seldom completely objective. The filmmakers own beliefs and convictions are often reflected by their work. By Patricia Foulkrod's choice to document combat veterans who actively oppose the conflict, I'm making the assumption that she herself is against the war.

Foulkrod does an admirable job of presenting her subject. The film is engaging and informative. Her subjects are generally intelligent and well spoken. Their interviews are well done. They are occasionally emotional, but for the most part are simple and, I feel, accurate representations of these people. Who they are, what they've been through and how they've changed.

The cross section of subjects is good. There are a range different personalities. Their differences underscore and emphasize the thing that they do have in common. Their reactions to the war and the things they experienced differ as well. This also goes a long way to show the wide range in the way that they individually deal with their various traumas.

The film is shocking at times. It contains graphic depictions of the conflict. Some will find them gruesome, but they are not sensationalized for the sake of the film. They are generally presented without commentary, but some with narration. They enhance the film, underscoring its points without dominating it or derailing it.

The film has good flow. We're not sure where it's headed when it starts. It leads us down the subjects' paths, showing us their individual experiences and reactions to their own journeys. As these journeys progress, their similarities increase and ultimately converge. The convergence is powerful, coherent and for these subjects, inevitable.

The Good: Vets speak their piece

The Bad: Abandoned Vets

The Ugly: Bringing the War home