March 03, 2005
Gunner Palace (Matchflick)
Nick Reilly, Matchflick
While it may not be the case for everyone, it is safe to say that the average American citizen generally relies on the information supplied by a local news source when it comes to the conflict in Iraq. The more resourceful (and less trusting) among us may do some digging to get a look at the state of affairs through an alternative or foreign reporting agency and although this may give us a different perspective, it fails to provide us with a key element: the voice of the nameless, faceless entity that fights and dies silently 6,000 miles from our coastline. Other than the occasional shoutout during a sporting event or the like, these individuals rarely have the opportunity to be heard, much less tell us first-hand the plight of the American soldier.
GUNNER PALACE brings the viewer into Uday Hussein's bombed out pleasure palace to meet some of these formerly anonymous individuals. Residing in the center of the most volatile section of Baghdad, what was formerly a haven for iniquitous revelry is now inhabited by the 2/3 Field Artillery or "The Gunners." Filmmaker Michael Tucker lived with and filmed these troops over two one-month periods, gaining their trust and giving the viewer a glimpse at what life is like when any day that nothing happens is a good one and each day is just another day closer to coming home.
Taking place four months after an end to "major combat operations," the viewer is treated to a soldier's eye perspective of what President Bush declared to be (and the troops jokingly refer to) as "minor combat." Spending their days on patrol and nights on raids, dealing with snipers, mortar attacks, IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices) and RPGs, we see a group of individuals that is not concerned with weapons of mass destruction, the war on terror or oil. Their main goal is survival.
Finally, thanks to Tucker and fellow filmmaker Petra Epperlein, we can put a name and a face to the masses that many of us take for granted. GUNNER PALACE manages to be frightening, poignant, surprisingly humorous, and --as an added bonus-- has an outstanding soundtrack consisting of freestyle rap and guitar performed by the soldiers themselves. The film paints a balanced picture of life in the war zone and allows the viewer to observe a truly human side of the conflict sans all the political manure that has a tendency to cloud the facts, and deserves a look by anyone with an opinion on the war, anybody who loves a great documentary, and everyone who just enjoys a great film.
