I attended opening night in New York on 12/7, to a full theater. There was a long ovation followed by a talk-back with the star and the director, which everyone stayed for. This is a very intense narrative, that succeeds in:
A)Opening a frank dialogue on the effects of post-traumatic stress/combat trauma on our military veterans and those around them, rising suicide rates, and the lack of preparedness, and from a policy perspective, willingness to commit resources (as evidenced by 2012 Congressional and Senate voting records) to give our troops the care they need.
B)Helping to remove the stigma of veterans coming forward to share their suffering. Do you know a veteran who has been trained to kill, to become that rigid serviceman and protector, only to return to society emotionally unavailable, unable to open up, and no one you should ever sneak up on? I do. It's not a switch you can flip off. And those are the ones who still have all of their physical faculties, unlike the main character, who returns home broken in so many ways. We need to take better care of our men and women, inside and out. They are not disposable.
The film ends with the statistic that about 18 veterans commit suicide each day. That's around 6,500 of our men and women per year who take their own life. But of course that can't be true...because that's only the amount that are reported.
I hope this film will be screened in other cities as well. It may not play as well in the more jingoist regions of the country, but it needs to be seen.
