KnoxvilleFilms.com

By Michael Samstag for Knoxville Films

I was very fortunate to be treated to an advance screening of the first two episode's of "Generation Kill" last week at the Nashville Screenwriters Conference. The seven part mini-series is based on the book "Generation Kill" written by Rolling Stone journalist Evan Wright chronicling his experience as an embedded reporter with the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion‎ during the first 40-days of the US led invasion of Iraq.

Right away, "Generation Kill" is different than any other show attempting to convey what it's like to be at war. The series has more of a documentary feel--relying on the sounds of battle to heighten the tension rather than the use of traditional musical scores. The dialogue was gritty, sometimes vulgar, funny, and there were whole scenes that felt like they were recorded directly in the heat of battle. The production was enhanced further by the military technical consulting services of Sgt. Erik Kocher and Cpl. Jeffrey Carisalez who ensured that at no point did you feel you were watching actors playing Marines.

Yeah, the series is a sort of narrative-documentary hybrid--imagine The War Tapes meets the best parts of We Were Soldiers Once--but is it entertaining or simply another condemning look at the War in Iraq?

Well, it's not that easy to summarize but I can tell you that I was expecting to get caught up in the technical aspects of the show and not get swept away by the story. It was a hell of a ride! I felt like I was riding along with the Marines. Pictures I remember from photogs in Iraq came to life before my eyes. The horrors I worked hard to drink away were alive again with an unapologizing, unflinching reality I would not have thought possible outside the documentary genre.

Trailer for Generation Kill:


As for whether it's a condemning portrayal of war, that's not for me to say. What it is is an honest portrayal of what it must have been like being embedded with the Marines. It took a very frank look at the problems the marines faces with the Rules of Engagement and problems within their own ranks with command and control. This is not Hollywood's version of war, though it's just as riveting as the action movies Hollywood can produce. Bravo to Evan Wright, the cast and crew of "Generation Kill" and smart people at HBO who brought this series to the public.

"Generation Kill" premieres July 13 at 9pm on HBO.