The latest entry in Stacey Stone’s documentary series on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; we review the hard-hitting Forever Under Siege.
Filmmaker Stacey Stone and producer Diane Mellen have already made a name for themselves around the Screen Critix offices for creating some of the most enthralling short documentaries we have had the pleasure in reviewing. Movies such as The Man Behind 55,000 Dresses, My Own War and Gander: America’s Hero Dog have been very well received, with the latter even winning the award for Best Documentary at this year’s Screen Critix Awards in July.
Now they return with Forever Under Siege – a thirty five-minute long documentary that once again takes a look at Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and the effect it has on war veterans. We are reunited with some familiar faces from Stone and Mellen’s previous efforts, alongside some new interviewees, all of which have experienced the horrors of war and have suffered immeasurably ever since.
Like all great documentaries, Forever Under Siege isn’t just talking heads answering questions, Stone wisely intercuts new interviews with harrowing images from past wars and shots of vets trying to live as normal a life as they possibly can whilst carrying the weight that has been placed upon them from witnessing the atrocities they once had. It’s heartbreaking to see so many men and women having to suffer and not receive the help and support necessary after giving their lives for their countries in wars that should never have happened. Soldiers whose job was to locate the dead in a war zone in Vietnam. Gunners who were lucky to survive dogfights in the air, with their plane being shot to pieces by the German forces in World War II. These are real stories and they hit home.
As with the aforementioned films by Stone and Mellen, Forever Under Siege is a thoroughly professional and slick looking piece of captivating art. We may have seen a few of the clips in the early My Own War documentary, but we can’t help but be impressed with how well presented Forever Under Siege is.
To finish up, Stacey Stone and Diane Mellen continue their winning form with yet another enthralling and well-made documentary.
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