This is one of the best documentaries you'll ever see. Aircraft carriers are incredible war machines and it takes a crew of about 5,000 to run it. "Carrier" follows the USS NIMITZ on a 2005 cruise to the Persian Gulf in the midst of the Iraq War. The filmmakers focus on about 12 or 15 of the crew, most of them enlisted but a couple of officers.
Their stories are very compelling. Young people, many of whom join the Navy or Marines because they don't have any other realistic options. Military service transforms their lives, transitioning them from directionless teenagers to people living with a purpose.
There are several things that stand out in this series. First, is the tremendous melting pot that the military is. You lose count of the variety of backgrounds represented by the crew---black, white, Hispanic, Pacific Islander, gay, straight, male, female, Texan, California surfer, small town Americans, farm kids, you name it. All of them put together ono one team with a mission to wage war against the countries enemies.
Some of the stories are very poignant. The pilot who's wife finds out she's pregnant while he's on the cruise but who miscarries before he comes home. The young crewman who has gotten his casual girlfriend pregnant before he leaves and is wringing his hands the entire cruise wondering what's going to happen when he gets back (clue: nothing good for him). The Marine gunnery sergeant who was abandoned by his parents when he was 3 but who finds a family in Corps. And, as hard as nails as he is, he weeps when he sees the first photos of his newborn son. The young woman from a dead-end town who decides that the Navy is a better shot at life than staying home and becoming an addict or unwed mother like nearly all of the friends she had growing up.
This detailed a documentary probably couldn't be made about a smaller ship and crew although if one is ever made about a cruiser or submarine crew that is as good as "Carrier" I'll be first in line to watch it.
Their stories are very compelling. Young people, many of whom join the Navy or Marines because they don't have any other realistic options. Military service transforms their lives, transitioning them from directionless teenagers to people living with a purpose.
There are several things that stand out in this series. First, is the tremendous melting pot that the military is. You lose count of the variety of backgrounds represented by the crew---black, white, Hispanic, Pacific Islander, gay, straight, male, female, Texan, California surfer, small town Americans, farm kids, you name it. All of them put together ono one team with a mission to wage war against the countries enemies.
Some of the stories are very poignant. The pilot who's wife finds out she's pregnant while he's on the cruise but who miscarries before he comes home. The young crewman who has gotten his casual girlfriend pregnant before he leaves and is wringing his hands the entire cruise wondering what's going to happen when he gets back (clue: nothing good for him). The Marine gunnery sergeant who was abandoned by his parents when he was 3 but who finds a family in Corps. And, as hard as nails as he is, he weeps when he sees the first photos of his newborn son. The young woman from a dead-end town who decides that the Navy is a better shot at life than staying home and becoming an addict or unwed mother like nearly all of the friends she had growing up.
This detailed a documentary probably couldn't be made about a smaller ship and crew although if one is ever made about a cruiser or submarine crew that is as good as "Carrier" I'll be first in line to watch it.