Served Like a Girl

Served Like a Girl was extremely well-received during its world premiere at Austin's SXSW Film Festival. It is a beautifully directed and edited film describing the compelling experiences of four women veterans who compete in the Ms. Veteran America contest. The contest is held each year to raise money for homeless women veterans. Their stories are compelling and patriotic. The film is a wonderful statement about the need to treat women as equals in society in general and in the military in particular. It also points out despite the policy under which until recently many women were not officially serving in combat, many actually served in virtually the identical combat roles as men. This is a compelling and powerful film about an under reported subject. They also faced additional traumas such as sexual abuse in a male dominated environment. Despite the heaviness of much of the narrative, the first time director managed to make the film remarkably humorous by finding the funny stories from their lives. It makes the film much easier and much more human than it would have otherwise been. I hope this film is widely distributed, because these important stories deserve a wider audience.

I just had the honor and pleasure of seeing Served like a girl at SXSW festival. What a gift to be invited to attend and I am so glad that I did. The ladies featured in the film were present and afterwards there was one of the longest standing ovations with plenty of tears - of support - for these ladies. What I appreciated was the demonstration of commitment to our country and sheer strength but also the vulnerability expressed by each of these women. Reliving some of the scenes were hard for them as we watched the film and once you see it you will understand. This is not just a film about female veterans. It is a film about tough choices, life's challenges and how you choose to react and respond. Creating awareness about the struggles that women in the military face is one of the themes but more importantly once women have completed their service - they are oftentimes without a home, without support from our own government and struggling to not only make ends meet, or get proper healthcare but to also simply experience the dignity that they deserve. I would recommend this movie for any American and I dare you not to be only inspired but want to immediately support a Veteran today.

This is a beautiful movie that clearly articulates the reality these women have endured and continue to endure as a result of their service. They are all amazingly brave and thoughtful people and deserve support. Many are blessed with supportive families.

These ladies are strong, independent and intelligent.

Why is their service reduced to a beauty contest model? I would like to think that these are not little girls playing dress up. Life is serious. Talent and beauty is not something you can display for a panel of judges. Miss Veteran America is much much greater than this. We have new and different metrics. Isnt it time to let go of the shallow metrics of a beauty and talent competition?

This is a beautifully directed film by a talented first time filmmaker, and has one of the best soundtracks of any documentary ever produced (courtesy of the stellar songwriter Linda Perry). I cannot recall a film that had me tearing up at so many points with honest heartbreaking emotions. Many of the women portrayed in the film have dealt with seeing their comrades die in battle, and yet, they continue to soldier on, even to the point of competing in a sort of a "beauty pageant" towards the second half of the film.

What makes the film so extraordinary is the way that the women expose their raw inner feelings directly in complete honesty towards the camera. How a first-time filmmaker was able to connect so completely with her subjects is beyond comprehension.

At first glance, the poster and the title suggest a downer of a film. Nothing could be further from the truth, as the film is uplifting beyond comparison. In the current political climate, where so much blame is targeted towards foreign nationalities in the Middle East, this small band of women makes the best out of their devastating situations (several returning women vets are left homeless with children to raise) and they never seem to have a complaint, nor do they blame it on any foreign race, religion, or dogma. There are moments that seem surreal in the way their lives have taken such hard knocks, but the fact that they continue to face difficulty with brave smiles and positive attitudes shows how unbelievably strong women soldiers can be.

This film should be on everyone's list come Oscar time. I don't understand how lesser projects seem to attract more attention than one with so much heart as this is. Probably connections have something to do with that, but if everyone would suspend their prejudice towards documentaries and watch this film, you will not be disappointed. You will be uplifted.

Candid and Raw interviews. Emotional and Inspiring stories... are just a few words that come to mind to describe this movie. This documentary follows different women throughout their different lives, but the one thing they have in common is that they're women that served our country and they're heroes and should be treated as such. You get a glimpse into the real life traumas - both physical and mental - that these ladies suffer through on a daily basis. I want to and I need to see this movie again, so that I'm able to better understand the challenges these ladies, aka heroes, deal with daily. This movie will make you laugh, cry, angry, and feel for each person. The filming team did an amazing job capturing the true emotion and essence of each lady. This is a must see movie hands down.