Returned: Child Soldiers of Nepal's Maoist Army

Nepal's decade-long civil war (1996–2006) barely registered with the American public, a fact that makes Robert Koenig's documentary all the more disturbing. The insurgent Maoist People's Liberation Army was helped (in large part) by the influx of adolescents and teenagers from Nepal's poverty-afflicted villages, children who—whether willingly or through coercion—became combatants in a brutal military conflict that resulted in the overthrow of the country's feudal monarchy. But once the combat was over, the young fighters (particularly the females) found themselves in a new struggle—returning to communities where they were viewed with hostility by their families and neighbors. Koenig interweaves archival and contemporary footage in order to provide context for the heartbreaking first-person accounts, with commentary from others (including military leaders from both sides) rounding out the narratives. The youthful Maoist veterans are uncommonly eloquent in detailing their pre- and postwar circumstances, although mostly evasive in offering details on what transpired while they were in uniform. Returned is a bit hazy on how the Maoist movement maintained power over the years—the U.S. viewed it as a terrorist group, while the Chinese government was never supportive of its goals—but ultimately this fine production is really about Nepal's children, some of the biggest losers in the long and terrible war. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)