Armadillo

Premiering at Cannes 2010 and winning the Critics Week Grand Prize, Armadillo is a documentary that's surprising hard to be treated like one, with its picturesque cinematography of an ongoing warzone in Afghanistan from the titular forward operating base that's home to almost 300 British and Danish troops, and with a host of character soldiers that boggle the mind to know that they are not scripted, because in many scenes the narrative does look as if there's someone who had put in a lot of work with the devil in the details. Which is what makes it a startling film to sit through from start to finish, especially if one had served in the armed forces before.

We follow a platoon of Danish troops who get sent to Armadillo for their 6 months tour of duty, beginning with the sending off from their hometown, where it's natural for friends and especially family to struggle in coming to terms with their loved ones leaving home to fight another man's war in a faraway land, especially so when the threat is very real and the soldiers are headed for the frontline. From then on it's getting acquainted with a number of characters especially that of Mads Mini, a Nicklas Bendtner lookalike, and an Asian medic, amongst others such as the fearless platoon commander.

As mentioned, this documentary is so expertly filmed that it looks very much a fictional narrative, which it isn't. For instance, to the viewer it's hard to reconcile, not that it's a bad thing of course, how the troopers here seem more like characters rather than real people (kudos to the editing), and constantly brings to mind whether director Janus Metz Pedersen and his camera crew had to be embedded with the soldiers constantly during their dangerous missions in order to get the footage they obtained so up close, with the obvious element and sense of danger, exactly how and where they had to be around and yet not getting in the way should the soldiers get engaged by enemy gunfire, and not to forget that bullet rounds cannot differentiate film crew from soldiers.

We get to go behind the scenes of this high-tech army (which I think SAF is trying to emulate with the 3G capabilities on display here), their professionalism even when the call of duty means mundane, incident free patrols of the surrounding areas of their camps, getting acquainted with their rules of engagement, and being very much in tune to life in a secured barracks, with their involvement pretty much in defensive ops to try and win over the hearts and minds of the local Afghan community. It isn't easy since they're being viewed as the enemy still, and more so when they go about their burly ways of trampling onto crops, or worse, to cough up compensation when things go awry, from the destruction of crops, livestock and property, to the more serious loss of innocent lives by way of being collateral damage in any offensive operations.

It opens up insights as to how tense a situation can be when one is out there in the field where anyone, by way of the people's dressing, could be more than meets the eye, weapons properly hidden away, not knowing who's friend and who's foe since everyone's intent is pretty much walled away through the inability to communicate directly without an interpreter, and where loyalties still lie with the Taliban otherwise the villagers will be subjected to cruel torture once the Danish troopers leave. Improvised Explosive Devices also litter the landscape, and can be planted easily overnight by the enemy such that no trodden path can always be absolutely safe. All these play a part in the mental well-being of anyone having to live it up on a high alert status, with most events being much ado about nothing. Think of Jarhead, and you'd come to understand better what life on site would be like.

You get to learn things as well from a soldiering standpoint with the experience these troops undergo, besides rushing to wait and waiting to rush, understanding how important or more significant the success of diplomacy is on the ground, and to read tell tale signs of enemy presence when civilians start to abandon their land to get out of the way of a major fire fight. Those worried that there are no action in this film can be rest assured, although the gun fights are never as glorified as what you've seen in war films, with the great unknown on enemy identities and locations being a constant pain, and a pivotal moment in this film involved conquering the enemy, but in the real world rarely does one get to walk into the sunset. It's a little controversial since the filmmakers captured an aftermath that won't go down well with any civilian, but for those who have been in those uniformed shoes before, it's nothing that far fetched when one gets caught up in euphoria (stemming from being alive or dead).

In every theatre of war we get to know how soldiers who return never really go back to their selves before their tour of duty, and looking at the group in focus, that again is quite true with perspectives being changed from harrowing experiences gained, epitomized by Mads Mini who started off looking for adventure, but probably got more than he bargained for, returning a more sombre person than one seeking thrills. If it's an up close and personal look at a modern day active warfront, you can't get any closer with a more nuanced feel of being there and having done that, with Armadillo. Highly recommended!

Armadillo is a tour de force, reclaiming the pictures of war from the aseptic news rooms back to real fear, confusion and adrenaline that soldiers have to endure in a combat situation. The movie is captivating and demanding and certainly no easy experience for its audience. Still, it is worth it. Modern warfare and its embedded journalism has led to a distorted view of the public of what happens in war. Honestly, I thought such a frank documentation could only come from Europe. But now I heard from the American project "Restrepo". Really looking forward to this movie that sounds like a brother-in-arms to "Armadillo." There cannot be enough movies showing the cruelty and futility of war.

This deserves the award it won at Cannes. Our theater is only showing this for a few days, it seems, although they have now doubled the amount of showings. It was packed when I went. Maybe this will aid in the situation and approach finally being reevaluated, because it clearly is hopeless right now; if you weren't certain, this will cement it for you. This has some of the best photography I've ever witnessed, and not only for a documentary. I find it hard to believe that the cameramen were always entirely safe during this. This Danish piece of non-fiction depicts six months at the Armadillo base in the Helmand province. We see the young men in various moods, a handful of them expected, others not. They entertain themselves and each other, they get bored, they express a desire to help in the war... and reveal their excitement at the idea of combat. Dark humor and porn are used to deal with what they go through. This is funny at times, but it also hits you quite hard. It is a commentary on, among other things, the human psyche. The choice of form could not be more perfect; this is immensely objective, and the facts speak for themselves. No one is painted as a monster. It would appear that, when someone expressed their emotions and it was captured, it was put in the film. The editing is spot-on. This has an always well-composed, effective and fitting score. They use lingo occasionally, and each time a new term is said, we get an explanation of it. Every word spoken that is not in Danish is either subtitled or translated by an interpreter. I think it takes a bit of empathy and maturity to understand this. There is a lot of violence and disturbing content, as well as a little strong language, nudity and sexuality in this. I recommend this to everyone old enough for it. 10/10

The war documentary Armadillo shows both the fragile and the hard side of the Danish soldiers in Afghanistan, and it shows how the Danish soldiers develop black humor in order to get a distance from the serious war. It is furthermore realistic and objective and it will certainly start an important social debate. It is striking how much this war looks like the Vietnam war. The movie also debates what a war hero is. Where shall we draw the line? Are you a hero if you shoot some Talebans? Apparently yes. It also shows that this war is very hard to the civilians, and that they are trapped between two sides. If they help the "intruders" aka the USA, Denmark and so on then Taleban will come after them, but if they help Taleban, then the "intruders" will come after them. Though the film is serious it also contains "epic" boyish fun so to speak, and that gives an extra facet to the movie. Armadillo is an utmost relevant movie, and therefore it is a must-see!

This is hands down the best war documentary I have ever seen. Most of it is beautifully filmed and put together, and it is showing how things are. I am a civilian, with a big interest in these things, and had my attention drawn to this movie because it seemed to get a thumbs up from people in the military. It sure shows controversial things, but balances them all the way, and show us both the civilian side with their troubles, and the danish soldiers side. Even at its controversial high point after a shootout it stays very neutral, and as such is a masterpiece of showing people the daily life of a soldier. My only gripe is that I had wished it a little longer, with more scenes that show the boredom that such a place must surely be, when nothing is happening.