Armadillo (2010)

In February 2009 a group of Danish soldiers accompanied by documentary filmmaker Janus Metz arrived at Armadillo, an army base in the southern Afghan province of Helmand. Metz and cameraman... See full summary »

Director:

Janus Metz Pedersen

Writer:

Kasper Torsting (idea)

7 wins & 6 nominations.

Storyline

In February 2009 a group of Danish soldiers accompanied by documentary filmmaker Janus Metz arrived at Armadillo, an army base in the southern Afghan province of Helmand. Metz and cameraman Lars Skree spent six months following the lives of young soldiers situated less than a kilometer away from Taliban positions. The outcome of their work is a gripping and highly authentic war drama that was justly awarded the Grand Prix de la Semaine de la Critique at this year's Cannes film festival. But it also provoked furious debate in Denmark concerning the controversial behavior of certain Danish soldiers during a shootout with Taliban fighters. The filmmakers repeatedly risked their lives shooting this tense, brilliantly edited, and visually sophisticated probe into the psychology of young men in the midst of a senseless war whose victims are primarily local villagers. Yet more disturbing than scenes in which Taliban bullets whiz past their cameras is the footage of the young soldiers as each...

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Plot Keywords:

soldier | taliban | danish soldier | denmark | bullet wound | 

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Taglines:

For you it's a movie, for them it's reality

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Genres:

Documentary | War

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [jp]

Country:

Denmark

Language:

Danish

Release Date:

27 May 2010 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

Armadillo - wojna jest w nas

Filming Locations:

Helmand Province, Afghanistan

Box Office

Budget:

$1,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$3,958 (USA) (15 April 2011)

Gross:

$10,347 (USA) (3 June 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fridthjof Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally part of a six episode TV series called "Vores krig" by Kasper Torsting.

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Connections

Edited into P.O.V.: Armadillo (2011)

User Reviews

Best military documentary in a long time

As a former soldier, I was biased before seeing this movie. It is seldom that a documentary captures the reality soldiers goes through. Armadillo captured it, not perfectly because it is only a movie, but a close as any documentaries I have seen.

It follows the Danish Soldiers stationed in Forward Operating Base (FOB) "Armadillo" (now named Budwan), which lies in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. A province known for its Taliban presence and its high yield of opium. We follow the young soldiers as they go through their 6 months period, through their high and lows.

It is a movie for both proponent and opponents of the presents of international troops in Afghanistan.