Wartorn: 1861-2010

Relentlessly grim, gut wrenching documentary on Veterans afflicted by PTSD, from the Civil War right through Iraq.

A plea for more care to be given to soldiers' minds, with estimates in the film of numbers as high as 30% of all soldiers being affected by PTSD. Indeed one active army psychiatrist says he doesn't know how any man or woman could see much active battle and not be deeply scarred, unless they were dead inside to begin with.

The individual stories are all tremendously affecting, all so different, and yet all the same at the core, from aging WWII veterans openly weeping looking back to their shattered post-war lives, to a Civil War soldier's series of letters charting his decent from wide-eyed optimism into suicidal despair, to an Iraq veteran's family trying to hold it together with their father not the same man who left for war.

It's not an anti-military film. Indeed the film credits the modern army for at least admitting this is a real problem and trying to find better ways to help soldiers cope. But to paraphrase one mother in the film, until the army spends as much time and effort helping these men heal as it does turning them into killing machines, the destruction of souls will continue unabated.

How interesting and powerful to see a film that's pro-military but anti-war. And really, is there any better way to be pro solider? To appreciate what they do by trying to protect them the best we can, and by avoiding war and putting them in harm's way unless it's absolutely and completely unavoidable? And to do all that we can to repay them with care and attention, and the funds and social will that takes.

James Gandolfini, makes the most powerful "About War" film, this film is an amazing masterpiece, the stories about post-traumatic and mental illness patients, its so sad, shows you that America isn't the good guys, WE ARE THE BAD GUYS!. I always support the war because i was thinking that this was Heroic, after watching this, i can't stop crying because those stories gonna touch your heart. "Im not the same person when i left", the words of an WWII Veteran, do you think war OK? KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! they made you a MAD DOG! and America its a Big MAD MAD DOG!. "All this corpses still showing", James Gandolfini knows how to direct a documentary, the best documentary about War that i ever seen in my life, every scene its a Tear, Baghdad or Vietnam, ALL the SAME thing, they think a lot about War....but never about the soldiers. This is film is Totally recommended, its an amazing film, watch it and STOP supporting WAR.

A documentary on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in the US military, from the American Civil War to present times: its symptoms, effects and treatments (or lack thereof, in many cases). Most particularly we see what those suffering with it go through and the often tragic effect it can have on their lives.

A necessary and interesting documentary. We see the history of PTSD's appearance within the US military and how it affected personnel. The lack of understanding of it, to the point of soldiers being accused of cowardice when they had PTSD is also explored. US military personnel are interviewed on their experiences and it makes for harrowing viewing at tmes.

The film is quite superficial though. The point was made early about the effects of PTSD but the producers seem keen to show the stories of affected personnel, to the detriment of everything else. There's hardly any talk of what the treatment is, how this has evolved over the years and generally what can be done for veterans.

The film also seems to dwell on the lack of understanding of PTSD and treating those who have it as cowards. By 2010, when this film was made, that was no longer the case so that aspect seemed to be there for sensationalism only.

While this is a story that needed to be told, the film could have gone a lot deeper in its coverage.