ChikPapa Very disappointed :(

PlatinumRead Just so...so bad

ScoobyMint Disappointment for a huge fan!

Aubrey Hackett While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

RococoTapes This film troubles me. The quality of shooting and editing is excellent, but I'm somewhat unnerved by what the possible consequences of exposing so much about a damaged individual could do to harm their already fragile metal state. A man who is obviously struggling to make sense of his rapidly diverging ideals is here used as fodder for sensationalism - Danfung Dennis does not hesitate to fictionalise Nathan Harris by crudely overdubbing scenes of him struggling during physical rehabilitation with the sound of warfare. Harris is treated as a puppet and it is never explained why. I don't remember Harris himself mentioning flashbacks? This film was either poorly edited or poorly conceived of, but I would say it is still worth watching simply to understand the manner in which the war in Afghanistan is being portrayed to the public at large, a public that have reacted positively to the film in the most part.

Steve Pulaski Hell and Back Again is a war film that should be shown to teenagers rather than something like Battle: Los Angeles. This is a true account of the war in Afghanistan, showing real-life footage of the war taken from the director himself.We follow around Nathan Harris, a twenty-year old Marine sergeant, who has returned from his six month tour in Afghanistan in a wheelchair. Shortly before the end of his deployment, he is shot by a sniper, with the bullet going through his right hip, punctured his hip socket, before finally collapsing to break his leg. It's a messy scenario, and Harris will need a full year of rehab before returning to Afghanistan.In the meantime, Harris is trying to adjust to civilian life, while coping with an injury, and is being cared for by his high school sweetheart Ashley. He always seems to be on some sort of medication, and is clearly suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. During this time, the film is intercut with combat footage, showing Harris leading his men, strategizing, sometimes stressing, and shooting. It's effective and serves purpose because it real and not fictionalized or dramatized for theatrical purposes.Some sequences, arguably some of the best, show the Marines talking to the Afghanistan civilians who are disgusted by the Marines invading their area, complicating farming and disrupting their family life. They give the Afghanistan people some humanity and distinction rather than we Americans declaring them "stupid terrorists." One of the strongest things a documentary can do is obviously inform, and Hell and Back Again shows us a world we don't like to think about.Although the film is poignant, relative, and undeniably interesting, at some points it feels a bit too distended from its actual topic. It's trying to showcase the struggle and inevitably complex adaptation from one life to another, yet it seems to be too sidetracked by showing a number of from the Afghanistan War. And sometimes, the results feels a tad too cinematic by showing a stressed out, barely functional Nathan with his head in his hands, while audio from combat is playing over the scene. It's things like that in which a documentary tries to be too much like a fictional film, by splicing up its own narrative and thoughts in the process.It still doesn't derail what an incredibly moving film Hell and Back Again is. I recently discussed with a friend about the abundance of media coverage returning soldiers get. I find it to be extremely necessary to show our troops coming home, and that we should never forget the fact that freedom is a lot of things, but not free. I was also told by my grandmother that when soldiers used to come home, they came home and that was it. The Vietnam Vets didn't even get a look from bystanders in the same directions. We have become graphic nationalists in just a few decades and here is a beautifully crafted documentary showing the hardships soldiers face when the battle comes to an end and is transported overseas in your own living room. It seems one doesn't go back to Hell, but rather remains in it.Starring: Marine Sgt. Nathan Harris and Ashley Harris. Directed by: Danfung Dennis.

samuraifa451 "Hell and Back Again" chronicles the return of Sgt. Nathan Harris' return home and the result is interesting, disturbing and somewhat lacking. Sgt. Harris, is a Marine and always wanted to be one. He wants to fight (and "kill") and almost thrives upon it with his obsession with guns. However, after taking an injury in the field in one of the most violent areas in Afghanistan, Harris goes through rehabilitation back home to try and get his life back on track. The focus of the movie is almost entirely on Sgt. Harris and that both helps and hurts the film. While this does offer personality towards the subject matter but it is difficult not to watch "Hell and Back Again" and wonder what this would have been like with other people as subjects as well as outside opinions about Harris himself. The film ends up almost lacking as it tries to alternate between life at home and life (sometimes clumsily) in the military with little to no interaction with anyone else but Harris. Outside of flashback sequences, none of the other members within Harris' Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment are given much development in regards to the narrative which is a shame because most of the segments in Afghanistan are by far the most interesting of the documentary. In the end, "Hell and Back Again" attempts to become the Marine Corps equivalent of "Restrepo" in terms of depicting military life and ends up somewhat missing the mark. It's not an awful documentary, it just could have been so much more than what it was.

dalefried Sometimes the power in the imagery of a film alone tells an ambiguous tale that can be taken in many directions by a viewer. With the plethora of documentaries on the Iraq and Afghanistan adventures pushing you this way or that, it was incredibly refreshing to see one that had its intentions somewhere else. Just present the war and its impacts and let the chips fall where they may.People made a big deal last year about Restrepo showing the intensity of moments in combat. That film, while great, doesn't even touch what young Danfung Dennis achieves here. The up close intimacy of the war moments took the most brazen courage to compile, but the shots are so beautifully constructed you truly can touch the daring and fear of those moments. I have only felt this before in narrative films like The Hurt Locker.But the footage of the struggle this troubled soldier endures in his recovery from crippling injuries is equally compelling, frightening and heartbreaking. The sewing together of the two worlds presented has a power all its own.I really believe this amazing young filmmaker, who really gives his all to the art in this film, deserves recognition. It won the documentary jury prize at Sundance. It now has been shortlisted by the Oscars for nomination consideration. These are so deserved.