Synopsis

This raw, uncompromising investigation into the war in Iraq follows an elite unit of the 101st Airborne Division through fourteen months at home and at war. It shows the full cycle of a combat tour and documents the profound changes that take place in the lives of the soldiers.

Before they leave Fort Campbell, hundreds of men shout “Hoo-ah” in response to their brigade commander's dramatic war speech in which he instructs them to "look like a killer" at all times in Iraq. The film begins by demonstrating the lethal force of America’s best-trained and most aggressive soldiers. After tearful farewells with their loved ones, they leave for Iraq determined to carry out America's mission in the war and succeed on the battlefields of Baghdad, Samarra and other places. But that is not how the rest of the story unfolds.

The ninety-two soldiers of Charlie Troop find it increasingly difficult to carry out their mission in an extremely hostile environment, full of instant danger, destruction and death. A carefully-planned attempt to destroy a team of insurgents who are firing rockets and mortars at them is sabotaged by the overprotective actions of a unit from another division. Other frustrations come into play. Despite their vigilant surveillance work, superior weapons and training, and all the energy of their warrior natures, the soldiers of Charlie Troop find themselves thrown into an impossible mission with no master plan to prevail.

This is a film about young men and their commanders who prepare in earnest for their duty, how they understand what they are meant to do in Iraq, and how events there cause dramatic changes in their perspectives.

It is about a soldier who fights for his life when his humvee is attacked and destroyed by insurgents. It is about a specialist who shoots up an approaching car full of people that turn out to be civilians. It is about mothers and young wives, gathered at a military funeral for the soldiers killed in action in Iraq, mourning their lost sons and husbands. Most of all, it is about the courage it takes to cope with the stresses of constant danger and carry on with their duty, far from home.

This is their story, told entirely by the soldiers and their families. It provides the most revealing, in-depth look inside the U.S. Army at war ever produced.