“Baghdad ER” was simply harrowing. But, aside from being compelling for 60 minutes, the documentary left me reflecting on the nature of violence in film. That sounds a bit lofty, I know, but I found myself looking away from parts of “Baghdad ER.” I’m not squeamish by any means. I love horror films and have seen some pretty intense violence and gore portrayed on screen, but few things as disturbing as the carnage portrayed in “Baghdad ER.”
What’s that about? My first hypothesis is that graphic violence in fiction is of a different nature than violence in non-fiction. That is to say, a horror film has different goals and tone than a documentary. Strings and strings of gratuitously gory horror sequels don’t disturb me, rather, they often amuse or thrill me. What’s the difference? Why is it okay to see a man’s penis eaten off by pirahna’s but so much harder to see a medical amputation of an I.E.D. victim?
Because the events of “Baghdad ER” are real. I think it’s that simple. When I watch Freddy Krueger dice horny teenagers in “Nightmare of Elm Street” I know I’m watching deliberately moralizing fiction. Obviously, there really isn’t a man in a sweater and hat that haunts kids in their dreams and kills them. On the other hand, when an Iraqi civilian looses his leg because of battle, I’m watching something that really happens. This man is not a character in a film devised for my amusement. He is real. This violence interrupted his own life and his scarred for it.
The most disquieting part of “Baghdad ER” that really drives home my point is when an American soldier dies on camera. Again, in countless horror films or Bond films, the body counts are in the triple digits and no one thinks twice about it. But, when one real person dies on camera, one feels dirty or perverse for having seen it, because of the nature of television as a medium of entertainment.
With that said, I think the discernable difference between fiction and non-fiction films that can entirely warp the viewing experience is the nature the film is serving. Is it to enlighten, to inspire, to entertain? Or is it to document? The two exist within the same medium, making it at once dangerous and undeniably powerful.
