In Country

Although Civil War and even WWII re-enactor events are relatively familiar, filmmakers Mike Attie and Meghan O'Hara's In Country centers on a more unusual living-history troupe in Oregon who are bringing back to life a crusade that was not crowned in glory. The young men of Delta 2/5(R) venture into the woods wearing the uniforms and carrying the weapons of the 1960s American military, staging skirmishes and patrols from the Vietnam War. Coordinator Joel Kinney gives recruits (whose knowledge of the subject derives largely from movies like Platoon and Full Metal Jacket) classes in the unpopular conflict's field slang and cultural backdrop, and he respectfully hosts visits from vets who inspect the squad for authenticity. Throughout, news clips of actual Johnson/Nixon-era American soldiers, both gung-ho macho and dispirited, are edited into the film and sometimes the effect is eerily seamless (although some of the longer sequences feel gimmicky). Much of the drama here lies in the Oregonians' real lives: some are thrillseekers wanting to play soldier, while one is a Gulf War vet in a teetering marriage, re-enlisting for the healthcare benefits. The troupe even has as its prize member a Vietnamese-American immigrant who served in the South Vietnamese Army. Reliving the doomed campaign, he explains, recalls a time when he felt stronger. That no lasting or useful lessons from Vietnam have been learned seems to be the message here. Extras include interviews with the filmmakers, behind-the-scenes footage with the re-enactors, and outtakes. An uneven documentary that should nevertheless appeal to military history buffs, this is a strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)