The gritty truth about Iraq

[PMedMoe]

‘Generation Kill’ is a shocking peek into marine life

War is never clean and HBO’s seven-part mini-series Generation Kill (airing on The Movie Network and Movie Cantral in Canada) doesn’t aim to change that fact. As it follows the First Recon Marines of Bravo Company, we’re introduced to the raw and dirty lives of U.S. marines during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The series is based on a 2004 book of the same name written by Evan Wright, who was embedded with Bravo Company as it entered Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. It was a spot on the frontlines that Wright pestered the colonel for.

“I harassed him with emails, told him I’d travel light and I could go anywhere, and I wouldn’t be filing everyday so I wouldn’t have to carry tons of equipment. And so they put me with this battalion that was going to go behind enemy lines,” says Wright, who upon reaching base camp convinced First Recon’s commanding officer to let him sit in the lead vehicle of Bravo Company.

From that seat Wright was able to witness the good and bad. He says that though the marines with whom he was stationed could be vulgar, arrogant and rude in their free time, they could also be human and civil.

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The third instalment of Generation Kill airs Sun., July 27 at 9 p.m. ET on The Movie Network and 8 p.m. PT on Movie Central. The remaining episodes air on subsequent Sundays.

 

[justin.c]

So far I think this is an excellent show. After watching the first two episodes I was prompted to pick up the book. It was a really good read, and reccommend it to anyone who has enjoyed the show.

 

[daftandbarmy]

The Sgt Major's the best. Accurate right down to the profuse spittle release whilst chewing out the line doggies.

 

[aesop081]

Hour of my life i'll never get back.......urghh

 

[traviss-g]

Yea, I have watched the first two episodes so far, I missed the newest one I was out rock climbing in new york. One of the characters, sgt. Rudy Reyes, is played by the actual marine sergeant Rudy Reyes.

 

[1feral1]

Hello and greetings to fellow harmonious members and guests.

This sounds like a good mini series, and I await it to air in Australia on FOXTEL.

I enjoyed 'Over There', as much as it was quite ficticious and there was lots of inaccuracies, I did identify with it for some silly reason, so much, when in Iraq, I bought a pirate copy of the box set.

Cheers,

OWDU

 

[justin.c]

In additon to Sgt. Rudy Reyes playing himself, the real Sgt. Kocher appears in Generation Kill. However, he does not play as himself like Reyes. He plays the role of Sgt. Barrat and also serves as a consultant to the miniseries. Why he plays a character other than himself is beyond me; it must be strange to see someone else on set playing your real person.

Also, Lt. Col. Shoup, a USMC NFO FAC who was attached to 1st Recon Battalion during the push to Baghdad, recently posted his comments on "Generation Kill" (the book). It's quite an interesting read:

http://commentaryongenerationkill.blogspot.com/2008/06/comments-on-generation-kill.html

As per almost every TV/movie adaptation, the book is 99% of the time better, so I suggest reading that. Lt. Fick (The young looking officer) also wrote a book about his time with the marines called One Bullet Away which is also an outstanding read. 

 

[Dirt Digger]

For those that have missed the first episodes, if you're not able to pick them up through a torrent or usenet, you might find them with the free On Demand section of your cable box.  I have Cogeco, which offers pretty much the same selection as Rogers, and it's under HBO series.

 

[TheHead]

I'm really enjoying this series.  It's far better than that crap "Over There"  which wasn't believable at all. I read Generation Kill ( I loved the book) and the show is doing it justice I believe.  The actors are doing a great job portraying some of the characters you do indeed find in the Infantry. Just the way some of these guys talk/act brought back a lot of good memories from my time in Afghanistan. From being "sleep fucked" to just shooting the shit together while on sentry Generation Kill does a good job at showing what life as a grunt is like while on operation.

I recommend it.

 

[Fusaki]

One of the characters, sgt. Rudy Reyes, is played by the actual marine sergeant Rudy Reyes.

Was Rudy Reyes not also featured in Nathanial Fick's Book One Bullet Away?

It's been awhile, but IIRC he was noted as being PT machine...