"This documentary is the most authentic, ungussied-up, riveting depiction one could imagine of what soldiers endure in actual combat and how they bond to overcome their fears and stay alive. Every American should see it. By filming alongside a unit in Cambodia's jungle in 1970 and again with its successor unit in Iraq, Norman Lloyd, a brave CBS journalist working alone, has produced a seminal achievement. With this film story, he has taught us why we must always support our soldiers, even when we might not support the leadership or policy that sent them to war."
- Sydney Shanberg, Pulitzer Prize Winner
Spanning 35 years, this documentary film follows the experiences of troops from Bravo Company of the 5th Battalion 7th Cavalry regiment during the Vietnam War (1970) and the Iraq War (2005), through the lens of combat cameraman Norman Lloyd.
In 1970, Lloyd traveled to Cambodia and was embedded with troops in combat during the Cambodian incursion. Several decades later, Lloyd began a massive search to locate and re-interview the soldiers filmed in Cambodia. During this process, Lloyd served as a liaison, reuniting soldiers who had lost contact 30 years earlier.
In 2005, he journeyed to Iraq to document the recently re-activated 5th Battalion 7th Cavalry. The film takes audiences from the jungle of Cambodia to the desert of Iraq. Lloyd's footage from Cambodia is surreal, a first hand perspective of close combat in 1970. The audience is given a first row seat once again in Iraq, seeing a side of the war rarely shown in mainstream media, as Lloyd rides along on missions with soldiers seeking out insurgents and training Iraqi forces in 2005.
His footage sheds light on the daily life of the soldier, showing that in war, the only constant is the soldier and his commitment and sacrifice. The soldier is humanized through original and retrospective interviews that demonstrate the psychological impacts of combat. The interviews Lloyd collected represent a wide scope of soldiers, illustrating that bonds are unwavering at all levels. While providing historical context from two of America's most controversial wars, this film truly is the soldier's story.