Armadillo documents the six-month tour of a Danish military unit at Camp Armadillo, a forward operating base in southern Afghanistan. Much like "Restrepo" it was filmed by embedded journalists, took place around the same time frame and in the same country (though on the opposite side), included pre-tour and post-tour footage from the soldiers'respective home countries, and features a small team of Allied forces engaging the Taliban.
I'm a big fan of historical films and war epics, and have seen a fair amount of movies and documentaries about global events, conflict, armed forces and government intelligence. As an American, I love a good civil war story, WWII drama and CIA thriller. But I also like to explore foreign films of the same genres -- to see what these topics/events/stories are like in other cultures. Sure, we might get an occasional glimpse at an ally country (James Bond movies) or opposition/enemy ("Valkyrie" / "U-571" / "Hunt for Red October"), but these typically only give us superficial perspectives. So one of the things I really enjoyed about "Armadillo" is that it provides a unique, raw, behind-the-scenes look at what wartime military life is like in another country (Denmark) -- from how the families cope with the fear & anxiety of having loved ones in harm's way, to how their troops react in combat.
Regardless of the "rules of engagement" controversy that ensued when this film came out (which I won't go into because it involves a spoiler of sorts), I was really impressed by how well-trained and prepared the young Danish soldiers were. I don't know why, but I wasn't expecting that. Although Denmark is much smaller than the U.S. (roughly half the size of South Carolina) and our countries may not have a lot in common, life in Afghanistan for Danish and American troops seems almost identical. They appear to receive similar training, use a lot of the same equipment, follow the same protocols, conduct the same types of operations, and have similar camp "cultures." Even the familial and societal dynamics felt familiar. While many Europeans (IMO) harbor bitter "it's all America's fault that we're in this" anti-war sentiments, the Danish civilians in this film seemed more sympathetic to the war effort, displayed a lot of patriotism and national pride, and showed strong support for their troops. I was sincerely moved by the (all-too-familiar) emotional airport scenes where families are sending off their sons/brothers/boyfriends to war -- and then eventually welcoming them home.
As far as action goes, there are a handful of suspenseful combat scenes -- including one intense, up-close, bloody skirmish that involves several allied and combatant casualties. (This is the part that sparked the aforementioned controversy.) I don't think I've ever seen fighting that "real" where the camera was so close. At one point the cameraman, Taliban and Danish soldiers were within 10 yards of each other while exchanging gunfire and grenades.
But this film is about so much more than action/combat. It forced me to think about things that I wasn't expecting, and it did so in a very subtle way. For me, that's one of the hallmarks of a good documentary.
9/10
(Original review date: October 2011)
I'm a big fan of historical films and war epics, and have seen a fair amount of movies and documentaries about global events, conflict, armed forces and government intelligence. As an American, I love a good civil war story, WWII drama and CIA thriller. But I also like to explore foreign films of the same genres -- to see what these topics/events/stories are like in other cultures. Sure, we might get an occasional glimpse at an ally country (James Bond movies) or opposition/enemy ("Valkyrie" / "U-571" / "Hunt for Red October"), but these typically only give us superficial perspectives. So one of the things I really enjoyed about "Armadillo" is that it provides a unique, raw, behind-the-scenes look at what wartime military life is like in another country (Denmark) -- from how the families cope with the fear & anxiety of having loved ones in harm's way, to how their troops react in combat.
Regardless of the "rules of engagement" controversy that ensued when this film came out (which I won't go into because it involves a spoiler of sorts), I was really impressed by how well-trained and prepared the young Danish soldiers were. I don't know why, but I wasn't expecting that. Although Denmark is much smaller than the U.S. (roughly half the size of South Carolina) and our countries may not have a lot in common, life in Afghanistan for Danish and American troops seems almost identical. They appear to receive similar training, use a lot of the same equipment, follow the same protocols, conduct the same types of operations, and have similar camp "cultures." Even the familial and societal dynamics felt familiar. While many Europeans (IMO) harbor bitter "it's all America's fault that we're in this" anti-war sentiments, the Danish civilians in this film seemed more sympathetic to the war effort, displayed a lot of patriotism and national pride, and showed strong support for their troops. I was sincerely moved by the (all-too-familiar) emotional airport scenes where families are sending off their sons/brothers/boyfriends to war -- and then eventually welcoming them home.
As far as action goes, there are a handful of suspenseful combat scenes -- including one intense, up-close, bloody skirmish that involves several allied and combatant casualties. (This is the part that sparked the aforementioned controversy.) I don't think I've ever seen fighting that "real" where the camera was so close. At one point the cameraman, Taliban and Danish soldiers were within 10 yards of each other while exchanging gunfire and grenades.
But this film is about so much more than action/combat. It forced me to think about things that I wasn't expecting, and it did so in a very subtle way. For me, that's one of the hallmarks of a good documentary.
9/10
(Original review date: October 2011)