country

A soldier sits hunched in the grass speaking in hushed tones. He smokes a cigarette and talks about how his unit took heavy fire. He looks worried when he explains the way the radio went out. There’s an exhaustion in his voice when he talks about being the oldest member of his unit at twenty-four years old. His uniform, his surroundings, and his words would suggest that it’s 1970’s Vietnam and that we are somewhere in The Shit. Just then, he leans back and waves and a 2000’s model Sierra pickup truck gently drives by.

Wait, what?

This is IN COUNTRY – a documentary about Vietnam without being “about Vietnam”. The film is a look at events in present-day, where weekend after weekend, several men gather in rural Oregon and re-enact The Vietnam War. Some of them are war enthusiasts, some are collectors, some Vietnam veterans, and some are even veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq. They gather in very authentic uniforms, carry very authentic weapons, hire a few dudes to wear black and stand in for “Charlie”, go on patrol and fire blanks at one another.

Right about now, you’re probably asking yourself “why” – and believe me, that ain’t an easy question to answer.

IN COUNTRY takes a very handsome and in-depth look at the participants in these war games. Often staying back at arm’s reach and letting the subjects come to them, it feels suitably observational – like a National Geographic crew has been sent to search for ‘The rare Ho-Chi-Men Trail re-enactor in his natural habitat.” All of the subjects of this film spend most of their time speaking and acting as if all of this is real, so by staying unobtrusive, the film props up that illusion. As if to underscore their trajectory, the film weaves in actual archival news film footage from Vietnam. The result is haunting, as it can sometimes be hard to tell where one ends and the other begins.

But back to the question of “why”…

The short answer is that all of these men have different reasons why. Some think the entire subculture of The Vietnam Era is cool. Some are trying to experience what it’s like to serve since they don’t have the mental or physical makeup to serve for real. Some are veterans trying to sort through some PTSD, and others are veterans who clearly see war as a drug. It throws us all for a loop – this activity that gathers many men of both dubious and noble background. They can’t be written off as naive, or not understanding the horrors of war. Many of them are quite the opposite, which keeps bringing us back to the question of “why”.

In case you haven’t figured it out by now, it’s not a question I can answer. The film held me in its grasp as it marched behind these pseudo-soldiers. It made me appreciate their dedication, wonder about their mental health, and hope that eventually there won’ be any wars left to re-enact. IN COUNTRY fascinated me with the way it could invoke the eeriness of APOCALYPSE NOW or THE DEER HUNTER. Perhaps it comes from knowing the vast numbers of soldiers who didn’t return from that war, and the feeling of dread that has been instilled from decades of footage shot over their shoulders as they go on patrol in uncertain territory.

The men who gather tap into that dread and anxiety, so by turning on the camera and keeping pace with them, IN COUNTRY taps into that dread and anxiety. In the end we are given a unique glimpse into the psyche of a subculture; what goes on in the minds of those that went, those that wish they went, and those that came back.

IN COUNTRY plays at Hot Docs 2014 tomorrow, Friday May 2nd – 6:30pm at TIFF Bell Lightbox. It plays again at The Regent Theatre on Saturday May 3rd – 4pm (official website)