Powerful, tense, beautifully made war film

Rating: 9/10 (22 July 2012)

While set in Iraq, this is not a political film, it examines the psychology of men in danger, and how some men become addicted to it.
Mostly critically lionized, but attacked by many, especially soldiers for being inaccurate.
I didn't take the film that literally, or think of it as documentary realism, but more a stylized almost poetic look at the insanity of wars and those caught up in them, much like 'Full Metal Jacket'. This felt real on a meta level, not a literal one.
There were a few logic lapses that bugged me, and the impact emotionally is (by choice I felt) muted. It's more a disturbing picture than a moving one.
But it made me think and made my heart race, and images and moments have stayed with me for a long time.