| Of Men and War | |
| Director: | Laurent Bécue-Renard |
| Producer: | Laurent Bécue-Renard Isidore Bethel Heinz Dill Elisabeth Garbar Thierry Garrel |
| Music: | Kudsi Erguner |
| Cinematography: | Camille Cottagnoud |
| Editing: | Isidore Bethel Charlotte Boigeol Sophie Brunet |
| Studio: | Alice Films Télévision Suisse Romande |
| Distributor: | Why Not Productions Alice Films |
| Runtime: | 142 minutes |
| Country: | France Switzerland |
| Language: | English |
Of Men and War (French: '''Des hommes et de la guerre''') is a 2014 documentary film by Laurent Bécue-Renard. It explores the psychological legacy of war on a group of American veterans returning from conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The men are undergoing trauma therapy at The Pathway Home, a residential treatment program on the grounds of the Veterans Home in Yountville, CA until 2018.[1] [2] Over the course of five years, they participate in group therapy and one-on-one sessions and gradually transform their trauma into narratives of survival before returning home to their wives, children, and parents.[3] The film premiered in the Special Screenings section at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.[4] The film won the VPRO IDFA Award for Best Feature-Length Documentary at the 2014 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam.[5] It received a European Film Award for Best Documentary nomination at the 27th European Film Awards and screened at the Museum of Modern Art's Documentary Fortnight.[6] [7]
The Pathway Home suspended its operations indefinitely and placed its patients in other programs after a gunman killed three staff members in a 2018 murder-suicide.[8] [9]
The film was a coproduction between Alice Films in France and Louise Productions in Switzerland. The film had three editors, who worked on the film for years: Isidore Bethel (also associate producer), Sophie Brunet, and Charlotte Boigeol.[10] It exists in four versions: the original 142-minute festival and French theatrical cut,[11] [12] a 96-minute cut for Kino Lorber's United States release of the film,[13] a 90-minute version for POVs US broadcast of the film,[14] and a 102-minute cut for its French broadcast on France 2.[15]
Upon its world premiere, Of Men and War received glowing industry praise. The Hollywood Reporter called it "a rather unforgettable experience"[16] and Variety wrote that "Laurent Becue-Renard's rigorous war-trauma documentary provides vital testimony."[17] The film won the Cinematic Nonfiction Grand Jury Prize at the Little Rock Film Festival[18] and Special Recognition at the San Francisco International Film Festival, where the jury noted "Of Men and War makes us understand the horrors of war without ever showing us a single frame of battle, offering access to interior psychologies most viewers have never seen before in a tightly structured, beautifully edited, minimalist piece of nonfiction."[19] From there, it had theatrical releases in France and the United States and received overwhelming critical praise, including a score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.[20] The film is a New York Times Critic's Pick.[21]