Synopsis
Directors Hetherington and Junger spend a year with the 2nd Battalion of the United States Army located in one of Afghanistan's most dangerous valleys. The documentary provides insight and empathy on how to win the battle through hard work, deadly gunfights and mutual friendships while the unit must push back the Taliban.
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Cast
- Juan "Doc" RestrepoHimself
- Dan KearneyHimself
- LaMonta CaldwellHimself
- Aron HijarHimself
Recommendations
- 100
Wall Street Journal
This movie will stir your heart and open your mind. It's a group portrait of practicing patriots. - 91
The A.V. Club
Restrepo can be tedious at times and nerve-racking at others, but why shouldn't it be? That's exactly what Junger and Hetherington saw on the front lines, so that's what they show, with very little filter. - 90
New York Magazine (Vulture)
The film is a nearly unrelenting nightmare. Even interviews shot with the survivors after the fact have a current of dread. - 85
Movieline
The low-key quality of the filmmaking in Restrepo only intensifies the reality of how much these kids are risking. - 80
Village Voice
For a movie that's both a study and a product of blood, sweat, and tears, an oft-cited mid-'60s quote from film and combat vet Samuel Fuller seems to apply: "Film is a battlefield," Fuller said in Jean-Luc Godard's Pierrot le fou. "There's love, hate, action, violence, death. In a word: emotions." - 80
Time Out
Stripped to a minimum of editorializing (but, like "The Hurt Locker," flush with sympathy), this Afghanistan-shot war documentary takes its cues from the unblinking style of cinema verité. - 75
Observer
A documentary so real and unflinching (and at times deeply frightening) that it's hard to watch, but it is one of those film experiences that you'll feel glad about getting through. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
In-depth account of Army deployment in an Afghanistan hotspot shows soldiering at its most rugged.
