Iraq in Fragments - 6

This film is a documentary about war-torn Iraq. James Longley has made a beautiful and jarring film that keep himself out of the way as he lets Iraqi's tell their own story. The film has three parts each focusing on one story from each of the groups in Iraq: Sunni, Shia, and Kurd's. The first segment follows a young boy who drops out of school constantly in order to work. He and his "boss" see America as making their everyday life harder and more fearful, they hated Saddam Hussein, but they the occupation seems worse; there is even less control over their own lives. The second segment follows Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army and the followers who pray to God for strength and participate in group self flagellation. The third segment follows an older man and his teenage son who want to see change, a democracy and an independent Kurdistan. They want to work through the political process but cynicism is starting to set in as war continues to stifle any chance at a voted in leader. "...Humpty Dumpty had a great fall./...And all the King's men/Couldn't put Humpty back together again." Iraq is in fragment, and I am not sure anyone knows the best way toward wholeness. This film is insightful about the everyday world in Iraq that the media rarely portrays.