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Genre: Education/General Interest, War, Documentary, Theatrical
Release, Soldiers, Military (USA), Weapons, Saddam Hussein
Director: Mike Tucker
In this striking documentary
shot in 2003, early on in the US-led war on Iraq, a group of
American soldiers in Baghdad who have taken over a bombed-out
palace that belonged to Uday Hussein, the son of Saddam Hussein,
offer the camera a view on their world. While they party poolside
for most of the day and lead raids on homes of suspected
bomb-builders most nights, they also have a lot to say about the
war and their situation. Rapping to each other or to the camera,
they use rhyme to speak their minds about various aspects of the
war, their day-to-day duties, and life in Iraq. Their youth and
immaturity is striking, as is the war itself and the nebulous
reasons that they are stationed there. While the primary purpose
of GUNNER PALACE is to give the perspective of the soldiers,
secondarily viewers get a glimpse of Iraqi civilians and how they
react to the US military presence--some are terrified, others are
skeptical, still others are compliant and grateful if not totally
sure why. However, giving voice to the soldiers remains the film's
major theme, and for this reason, filmmakers Michael Tucker and
Petra Epperlein appealed the original R-rating given to the film
by the MPAA, and won. With a PG-13 rating, filmmakers explained,
teenagers considering military careers can watch the film and
benefit from seeing soldiers in combat and hearing them talk about
what it's like.
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