Review of The Invisible War (2012) by Mike N — 09 Feb 2013

2012 was a great year for documentaries, that's almost inarguable. The Invisible War stands out, not for any bold new style of filmmaking, but for the frankness with which it tackles its subject. Yes, perhaps the more informed civilians may be aware that rape occurs within the military, its unlikely that those outside of what the film depicts as the world's biggest gang realize just how much of an epidemic rape of both female and male service members is.

The hardest part of the film to swallow isn't the statistics (such as "Out of over 3,000 rape accusations made in the past year, less than 300 have turned into convictions), nor the testimonials of the victims, but when the film just sits back quietly and follows Coast Guard veteran Kori Cioca as she attempts, not even to get justice for her rape, but simply to get the Department of Veteran Affairs to cover her treatment for injuries sustained during her brutal sexual assault.

To discover that military rape isn't handled by courts, but rather by the accuser's superior officer (who cannot be accused of a conflict of interest, no matter what their relationship is with the accused, and yes, even if they're the accused), is a harsh reality, but one that must be confronted.

Please, people, don't avoid this just because "I don't like to watch sad stuff". Become aware, it's what documentaries are for. To wake us up from the Quentin and Chris Nolan fantasy coma and see the world around us, to provoke action, to provoke change.

Because before we start asking more of our women in uniform (namely, asking them to serve actively in combat) perhaps we should examine what we have already forced them to endure.