A couple of weeks ago, A.O. Scott of the New York Times wrote a fascinating piece about the latest crop of "current affairs" films to hit theatres that deal with timely topics, i.e. the "war on terror." It is a great piece worth reading because it wrestles with the often difficult reconciliation between art and real life.Another major issue he raises is whether or not the public will even go to see these films. The basic argument against making these types of movies is that people go to the movies to escape from real life, not to see it projected onto a huge screen. Unfortunately, however, for the majority of Americans, "real life" doesn't involve participating, debating, or even thinking about the current conflicts in Afghanistan or Iraq where young Americans face danger everyday. The "war on terror" is being fought by a tiny sliver of the American population while the rest of the country goes about its business.
William Quinn, a student at Georgetown University, and a veteran of the current Iraq war, wrote a powerful piece in this Sunday's Washington Post about his difficulties returning to civilian life after his experience in Iraq. Most disappointing was the attitude Georgetown students had towards his experience: "People on campus don't think about the war very much. It rarely comes up in coversation, either inside or outside the classroom...I find it frustrating that Facebook is a bigger part of most students' lives than the war." As an alum of Georgtown, I find this to be extremely disheartening. We can and should do better than this...
To read the A.O. Scott article, click here: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/28/movies/28scot.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
To read William Quinn's article, click here:
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