Review of Redacted (2007) by Iana D — 17 Nov 2008

This is a very different Brian de Palma from the master of The Godfather or Scareface. It's a De Palma gone on civic duty. Several layers to the film: first, a banal story of American soldiers in Iraq raping a girl and killing her family near the checkpoint they are on duty to watch.

The duty is both boring and full of tension and real deathly danger. Also an experimentation with new media and filming tools: digital video cameras, webcams, blogs, websites, with both sides of the war involved as well.

Finally, a reflection on reporting and documentation today: the act and meaning of recording and filming horrible events, the ambiguous role of the press and media. The violence of the film is shocking - precisely because it is not big cinema with great effects.