The Boys of Abu Ghraib

I found out about this film project from a message that I got on YouTube asking permission to use one of my videos that I took in Iraq. I was considering doing it until I looked up what the plot was suppose to be.

All American Jack Farmer leaves behind a fulfilling life to serve his country in Iraq at the peak of the war on terrorism. Stationed at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison, he is pushed to his limit as a daily bombardment of insurgent mortar attacks continually threaten his life. When an opportunity arises to work for the Military Police, Farmer jumps at it and finds himself behind the walls of the infamous Hard Site, a compound for the highest priority terrorists. He’s introduced to the world of military intelligence by Sergeant Tanner, whose harsh, and sometimes inhumane treatment of detainees raises doubts within Farmer about the Army’s procedure. Guided by a formidable moral conscience, Farmer treats the detainees well, even at the ridicule of his comrades, and befriends a wrongfully accused detainee named Ghazi, who becomes an unexpected confidant. When Ghazi is brought into military intelligence for interrogations, Farmer is forced to choose between his loyalty to his friend and his allegiance to his country. When his choice is proven wrong, the year’s worth of stress and trauma finally break him, driving him to commit an act he will forever regret.

What makes it worse is that it sounds like something I read before.

Even if you ignore all of this, there were things that did not make sense. Like Abu Ghraib happened in 2003 and I was there in 2008. Not to mention that I was no were near the prison during my tour and I have no idea what it looks like inside much less how it runs. It seems that they wanted this video because it had HUMVVs in them, but lets forget the fact that they are Iraqi with it’s national flag on the side. There is no way that you could play it off as US vehicles. Not to mention that there were no factory up armored vehicles like the ones in the video in 2003. After talking over with TAH resident film maker I decided not to agree to it.

So now it is in production and I cannot help but wonder what will become of this this film. Will this be another redundant Iraq view that we have seen so far or have something out of left field.

In short, we see how the dehumanizing effects of war are just as harmful to the soldiers involved as well as the prisoners of war. The film does not point fingers in this oft-discussed prison scandal, but instead is a psychological survey of how war wears away at the human in all of us.

We shall see if they keep that promise.

Category: Pointless blather, Terror War