Fighting for Life (2008) Reviews

• Outstanding movie

  jeffaguthrie2008-01-21

  This is a must see! No scripts, no sets, no second takes, no lighting, everything in the movie is as it was seen live by the producer Terry Sanders. If you want to know the reality of what medicine in the Army is like and how soldiers wounded in Iraq are cared for, don't listen to all the media hype about the Walter Reed scandal, go see this movie. It intertwines 3 stories about Army medical care. First, it follows the saga of soldiers wounded in Iraq and their journey home through hospitals in Iraq, then Germany and finally Walter Reed in Washington D.C. Second, it chronicles the stories of the doctors, nurses and medics that care for the wounded. Finally, it follows students training to be military doctors at the "West Point" of military medicine, the Uniformed Services University at the Naval Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland.

• Docs in the Military -- Not a Sitcom

  barnesgene2008-03-18

  Military medicine -- it's a breed apart from most other medical practice in gore, urgency, and sheer intensity. That's the message this film conveys. That and the need to train up doctors and nurses who are ready, willing, and able to deal with the stress. Do your Harvard doctors train to handle a mass casualty event in the dark of night, under fire? Thought not. As a movie, the documentary succeeds (obviously) in holding your interest throughout. You will find yourself very often having to wipe away tears so you can keep watching. I took one star off because the movie doesn't build to some kind of climactic visionary ending that lifts you out of your seat. But maybe that's the point: These docs perform like this day in and day out, and the only release worth talking about is the release of the wounded soldier back into a society that we only hope will appropriately honor him or her for their sacrifice. Veteran Director Sanders' sure hand in constructing this documentary is evident in every frame.

• Everyone should see this film...

  RHOdesigns-12008-08-05

  My husband and I just saw this at a special screening in Salt Lake City. We hear every time there is a milestone in the number of deaths in Iraq but when was the last time we heard about the number of casualties? It's amazing to me what these brave people are going through everyday. It's amazing how how much medical care is being provided generously by the personnel there, in Germany and the US. This is a film that should be shown in every high school and college. It shows what the reality is of this on-going war. My congratulations to the film makers and those medical and military personnel who participated in this endeavor. Thank you for all of your service.

• If you don't cry, you are not human

  imdb-95102008-06-18

  I am having difficulty expressing the emotions this film evoked in me. It's amazing. Sad as hell. I grieve for every one of those patients. But I am eternally grateful for the men and women who work their asses off and risk their lives to be there to protect and save them. I can't imagine a more difficult life to choose. USU is a truly amazing place, and produces absolutely incredible people. I wish from the bottom of my heart that every single American could see this film. You cannot see it and walk away the same inside. Make sure to bring tissue - I don't care who you are, you will cry. If you don't, something is very wrong with you. I just want to say thank you to everyone - not only the people shown in the film, but everyone they represent. The doctors, nurses, medics, teachers, the guys in the field, the everyday military guys who have a huge role in preparing these people for the horrors they will experience - everyone who takes part, in any small way, in making it possible to save lives, in making these people the heroes they truly are. I am deeply grateful for you all.

• I was there.

  doherty-62008-03-06

  Absolutely accurate , gritty, and heroic portrayal of our Heroes. Doesn't matter what your political orientation is, or how you feel about the war, your heartstrings will be plucked by this movie, and you will have a better understanding of people that make this Country so great. All of us have been touched by, or have a family member touched by, this war. This film helps us get a better understanding of them and through what they have gone. If you had any doubt about the future of humanity, and concern about it's modern decay, seeing the Heroes portrayed here will fix that in a minute. I was in Fallujah in 2006, and tremendously appreciate the huge risk that the filmmakers have taken to portray the indescribable spirit and courageousness that is displayed as an every minute occurrence there.