The second film we watched in Animation Theory was Waltz with Bashir, an Israeli animated documentary released in 2008 following the story of a once young soldier, questioning old comrades about their actions in the 1982 Lebanon War, and any guilt they felt since. Ending with the massacre of Palestinians at the Sabra and Shatil refugee camps, carried out by Lebanese Phalangist militia, the same year.
I found the film rather shocking, especially the ending. With an animated film it is difficult to read the facial expression of characters, or respect the importance of certain events, by including real footage of the massacre at the end, the viewer is reminded that the events discussed and illustrated are reality and took place over 30 years ago, a reminder that the young and innocent are the true victims of war and fighting.
The film also showed the soldiers as cold hearted, who feel no remorse for the killing and brutality they committed during the course of the war. It breaks from the dominant ideology we are accustomed too, since when watching the film we know the things that are done are bad, and cause the deaths of innocent and destructions of homes, but they were told by their superiours that they were the 'good' guyes, what they were doing was justice and right, which allowed the soldiers to repress their memories from the war and continue after the war without guilt or remorse. An odd thing for those surrounded by another countries idelogies at a different time.
I felt the soundtrack also added to the films meaning. The tense music added to the suspense and atmosphere of emotional and deep moments of the film, while the pop music used reminds us that these soldiers were still really just children, who had no real idea what they were fighting for or why, but rather moulded into what they needed to be by superior powers.
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