The feature-length documentary Aftermath: The Remnants of War demonstrates that against all odds a dedicated team of Canadian documentary veterans can still produce a work resplendent with humanity. It narrows the focus of what could have been a sprawling narrative and renders it an intimate epic instead.
The documentary expands our perception of war by focusing on the reverberations of four twentieth-century wars on the descendents of the fighters.
Aftermath travels first to France, where thousands of unexploded landmines from WWI still litter the countryside, an occupational hazard of farming.
Then on to Russia, where we meet a man who digs for the remains of WWII soldiers killed at the Battle of Stalingrad. In Vietnam, featuring by far the most horrific footage, we witness the crippling effects of Agent Orange on children. And finally we travel to Bosnia, where we encounter the psychologically debilitating effects wrought by the longest siege in modern history.
The film, adapted from a book by American Donovan Webster, “read like a documentary,” according to director Daniel Sekulich.
The filmmaker is more concerned with stories than stats, and it pays off. We have all experienced the complacence bred of forced marches through mind-numbing cinematic journeys into horror.
Sekulich was aware of this phenomenon and wanted to appeal to a broad television audience.
I can tell you I won’t ever forget the fact that more bombs were dropped on Vietnam than were dropped during all of WWII. And if any facts are important to remember, that’s probably one of them.
Aftermath doesn’t embark on heavy-handed explanation, but illustrates a complex idea through the narratives of key characters and the wars that have shaped their lives.
