There's not supposed to be a cut and seamless transition between the action and the downtime, because of the situation they're in and face daily. I had a strange excitement when I heard about Combat Obscura- I didn't live through any of the scenes in the movie but what I saw on that deployment haunts me still and rhymed closely enough with what I saw in the teaser. In the end the movie sums up everything infantry feel being stuck around an outpost all day for contact and to be cut down at every turn. Simkins - Military Times. The portrait it paints of its Marines is redolent of the twitchy frustration caused by a long stint in a sparse landscape with a hazy mission. Leaning in to the style its patchwork of source material requires, Combat Obscura, is an eye-opening dispatch from a conflict mired in confusion. Upon discharging, Lagoze took all the footage he and his fellow cameramen shot, and he assembled the very documentary the Corps does not want you to see. Neither the fighting nor the withdrawal seemed particularly well reasoned. Due to the movie’s deliberate lack of narrative arc, thematic stance and clear characterizations (the soldiers feel interchangeable and Logaze’s interview style is weak), we’re never always sure what we’re watching — or why. He was deployed to Afghanistan where he served as his unit's official videographer, shooting and editing footage for the Corps' recruiting purposes and historical initiatives. Obscured from direct line of sight. Documentary Review: Marines in action, unfiltered in “Combat Obscura” Posted on February 20, 2019 by Roger Moore It always looks so neat, clean — pristine even — in combat … I could not have been more disappointed in the film. War is “boredom punctuated by moments of terror,” as the old adage goes. Review: Combat Obscura. Camille Baker April 7 … Full Review John DeFore Hollywood Reporter . For example when the guy was up on the roof of the hut calling out where they're taking fire from and someone tells him not to get shot, there's an instant feeling of foreboding and in an instant the relative safety they had with their man up on the roof letting them know how close they are is cut down. Chinese philosopher Mozi recognized the phenomenon of light passing through a small hole into a darkened space to create an image of what's outside and called it … The portrait it paints of its Marines is appropriately discordant, redolent of the twitchy frustration caused by a long stint in a sparse landscape with a hazy mission. Notable Video Game Releases: New and Upcoming. Written by George Bacon More than a mere compilation of violence, the edit ingeniously repurposes the original footage to reveal the intensity and paradoxes of an ambiguous war from an unvarnished perspective. For example during a firefight with the taliban hiding in the ridge inside the caves Lagoze turns the camera on a soldier and the immediate response is "We should just blow everything up". Military myth-making dies hard in Combat Obscura, perhaps the most unfiltered account of American boots on the ground in Afghanistan. Its supposed to give you the chaotic and tense fights in a blur between being on patrol, spending time with the men around you, and dealing with the effects of patrolling. Read full review. . He was deployed to Afghanistan where he served as Combat Camera — his unit's official videographer, tasked with shooting and editing footage for the Corps’ recruiting purposes and historical initiatives. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. It shows the true grit of being in the Infantry, and how quick your are threatened, there's a bend and a break moment throughout the deployment, once the men have reached their breaking point they think irrationally and only care to preserve themselves and the men around them. Baldoni and his collaborators have their hearts in the right place, but Five Feet Apart is an exhausting experience, one that relies on the shameless manipulation of … Combat Obscura ein Film von Miles Lagoze. Check box if your review contains spoilers, Just out of high school, at the age of 18, Miles Lagoze enlisted in the Marine Corps. The critics that reviewed this poorly, clearly didn't understand the intent of the movie. Soon following that Lagoze is shot at by a taliban sniper narrowly missing him, and when he moves to get better cover a 30mm hits about 5 meters in front of him, injuring a soldier and Lagoze himself. It's along the same lines as Restrepo, and in many ways its more honest. But upon discharging, Lagoze took all the footage he and his fellow cameramen shot, and he assembled quite simply the very documentary the Corps does not want you to see. Everything is one long, blended fuckup, and while we already knew that about the war in Afghanistan, Combat Obscura lays it out in a unique and candid way. 2018, Documentary, 1h 10m. While Lagoze’s film may not offer any genuinely new insights, it is an unsettling opportunity to bear witness to the numbing chaos of war. Combat Obscura. Immediately in the next scene the marines are back at Alcatraz debriefing and being told by the CO or SL that they have to cut all of the men free. This film has received a lot of criticism for its lack of narrative story telling, and I can understand why that might frustrate some viewers. By John Messer, E23 Reporter. Notable Video Game Releases: New and Upcoming. © 2021 METACRITIC, A RED VENTURES COMPANY. Review: Combat Obscura Depicts the Wounds of an Unending War. The portrait it paints of its Marines is appropriately discordant, redolent of the twitchy frustration caused by a long stint in a sparse landscape with a hazy mission. (Combat Obscura) Marines from 1st Battalion, ... Once he got the footage declassified through a Pentagon review process, word of the film wormed its way onto the Marine Corps’ radar. One of the more compelling films at the 2018 True/False Film Fest was Miles Lagoze’s “Combat Obscura.” What sets “Obscura” apart is its composition. Review by Aaron Kelley 3 powerful, essential, shocking verite doc that i can’t believe the pentagon allowed to be released. More than a mere compilation of violence, the edit ingeniously repurposes the original footage to reveal the intensity and paradoxes of an ambiguous war from an unvarnished perspective. Just out of high school, at the age of 18, Miles Lagoze enlisted in the Marine Corps. Combat Obscura is a groundbreaking look at the daily life of Marines in a war zone as told by the soldiers themselves. Unsurprisingly, the results aren’t pretty. COMBAT OBSCURA is a groundbreaking look at daily life in a war zone as told by the Marines themselves. Find a full list of the movie and TV titles headed to disc in July,... We rank every Eddie Murphy film from worst to best by Metascore, from... Find a list of the best recent and upcoming film and TV titles added to... Get a list of the best movie and TV titles recently added (and coming... Music title data, credits, and images provided by, Movie title data, credits, and poster art provided by. “Combat Obscura” amounts to a deft condemnation of the behavior of U.S. troops, an excruciating lament for the loss of life caused by the Afghanistan War. Miles Lagoze, U.S., Oscilloscope The earliest known mention of a camera obscura is from the 5th century B.C. While Lagoze’s film may not offer any genuinely new insights, it is an unsettling opportunity to bear witness to the numbing chaos of war. More than a mere compilation of violence, the edit ingeniously repurposes the original footage to reveal the intensity and paradoxes of an … More than a mere compilation of violence, the edit ingeniously repurposes the original footage to reveal the intensity and paradoxes of an ambiguous war from an unvarnished perspective. Military myth-making dies hard in Combat Obscura, perhaps the most unfiltered account of American boots on the ground in Afghanistan. 14 Reviews Fewer than 50 Ratings You might also like Documentary Review: ‘Combat Obscura’ is a Brutally Honest Look at the Blurred Morality of the War in Afghanistan by J.D. For the most part, Combat Obscura doesn’t go all out to provide overtly resonant images. Combat Obscura is a groundbreaking look at the daily life of Marines in a war zone as told by the soldiers themselves. True/False Review: “Combat Obscura” is an unflinching look at the lives of Marines. From having knowledge of what you're about to face to having a man down with a round that's gone through kevlar and into the brain, immediately there's a sense of hopelessness. Just out of high school, at the age of 18, Miles Lagoze enlisted in the Marine Corps. Combat Obscura is simultaneously shocking and utterly familiar. It's along the same lines as Restrepo, and in many ways its more honest. A searing documentary based on footage filmed by US Marines in Afghanistan. Oprah With Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special, The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers, The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy. However, the title of the film promises exactly what it delivers: a view of combat from the periphery. They try their best, but when one. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Combat Obscura Dir. © 2021 METACRITIC, A RED VENTURES COMPANY. If Brian Di Palma’s Redacted was the Reefer Madness of . Best of 2018: Film Awards and Nominations, Music title data, credits, and images provided by, Movie title data, credits, and poster art provided by. Due to the movie’s deliberate lack of narrative arc, thematic stance and clear characterizations (the soldiers feel interchangeable and Logaze’s interview style is weak), we’re never always sure what we’re watching — or why. More polished docs like "Restrepo" have covered similar ground in less scattered fashion, usually giving more coherent pictures of military operations while they're at it. Due to the movie’s deliberate lack of narrative arc, thematic stance and clear characterizations (the soldiers feel interchangeable and Logaze’s interview style is weak), we’re never always sure what we’re watching — or why. Leaning in to the style its patchwork of source material requires, Combat Obscura, is an eye-opening dispatch from a conflict mired in confusion. Presumably, Lagoze and the other personnel who shot this (he and Justin Loya are the credited DPs) had plenty to occupy them besides looking for pointed visual metaphors—like survival and fending off boredom, as well as doing the basic job of reportage they were assigned to. Neither the fighting nor the withdrawal seemed particularly well reasoned. 2.5. Leaning in to the style its patchwork of source material requires, "Combat Obscura" is an eye-opening dispatch from a conflict mired in confusion. More than a mere compilation of violence, the edit ingeniously repurposes the original footage to reveal the intensity and paradoxes of an … Read full review. A searing documentary based on footage filmed by US Marines in Afghanistan. However, because of what's shown in Combat Obscura — Marines smoking hash, for one — and how the video was obtained, the query was passed to the Corps for a service-level review. War is by definition a cruel and confusing bafflement that encourages just about all the worst aspects of human behavior. True/False Review: ‘Combat Obscura’ is an Extraordinary Look at the Futility of War Daniel Schindel March 4, 2018 Along with the creeping destabilization of the Middle East and the spiraling growth of the war economy, the American invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq also helped instigate a … You have young men being placed in impossible situations, trying to win a war that shouldn't even be fought. Depicts the Wounds of an Unending War. You have young men being placed in impossible situations, trying to win a war that shouldn't even be fought. Please enter your birth date to watch this video: You are not allowed to view this material at this time. Combat Obscura is a groundbreaking look at the daily life of Marines in a war zone as told by the Marines themselves. Just out of high school, at the age of 18, Miles Lagoze enlisted in the Marine Corps. Anyone who is interested in the war on terror ought to see it. Oprah With Meghan and Harry: A CBS Primetime Special, The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions for Dreamers, The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy. Unsurprisingly, the results aren’t pretty. He was deployed to Afghanistan where he served as Combat Camera — his unit's official videographer, tasked with shooting and editing footage for the Corps’ recruiting purposes and historical initiatives. Combat Obscura revels in the chasm separating civilian from military life and questions the psychological toll war exacts on all that it touches. At the age of 18, Miles Lagoze enlisted in the Marine Corps. Inhaltsangabe: Jahrelang diente Miles Lagoze in Afghanistan als Kameramann, machte Aufnahmen und Videos für Rekrutierungszwecke des Marine Corps. In a still from ''Combat Obscura,'' a film that uses footage shot in Afghanistan by a Marine, a U.S Marine appears to smoke marijuana out of a makeshift bong while deployed to Afghanistan in … I could not have been more disappointed in the film. Boredom, however, has never made for a good film, which has led to a cinematic century of war presented as an exciting, if … But upon discharging, Lagoze took all the footage he. He was deployed to Afghanistan where he served as Combat Camera — his unit's official videographer. COMBAT OBSCURA is a groundbreaking look at the daily life of Marines in a war zone as told by the soldiers themselves. There's moments when the scene by scene style captures the tension slowly building and building, another example of how it shows exactly the emotions the marines are feeling is the entirety of when they're in the village with 3 or 4 POIs and they spend the entire day there waiting for them to bring them in. They try their best, but when one doesn't speak the language or cant tell who the enemy is, then its a surefire recipe for disaster. Combat Stick Combat Baton Training Course held at GI Combat Supplies on 26/08/2012 002 I had a strange excitement when I heard about Combat Obscura- I didn't live through any of the scenes in the movie but what I saw on that deployment haunts me still and rhymed closely enough with what I saw in the teaser. War Doc ‘Combat Obscura’ Is An Unflinching Microcosm Of War In Afghanistan. More polished docs like "Restrepo" have covered similar ground in less scattered fashion, usually giving more coherent pictures of military operations while they're at it. The movie was never meant to be portray the Corp in a perfect or propaganda-esque depiction. it’s been almost two *decades*, what in the world are we still doing there?