Harrison Ford signs for Iraq war film

Guardian ^ | 12/16/04 | Guardian

[Pikamax]

Harrison Ford signs for Iraq war film

Staff and agencies Thursday December 16, 2004

Harrison Ford: Commissioned. Photo: PA

Harrison Ford is to star in what will be Hollywood's first feature about the current Iraq war. Producers Michael Shamberg and Stacey Sher have bought the option for No True Glory: The Battle for Fallujah, a non-fiction written by Slate reporter Bing West.

The book is due to be published in May and tells the story of an assault on Iraqi insurgents in Falluja, from the perspective of US marines.

Variety reports that Ford is already attached to play General Jim Mattis, in charge of the attack. Shamberg and Sher's production company Double Feature has already been working with Ford on the medical drama For His Sick Kid, based on the novel by Geeta Anand.

It is probable that the film will strike a different tone to the only major feature about the US's previous war in Iraq, 1999's Three Kings, which told the story of a group of cynical, self-serving US soldiers. West's coverage of the war has tended to side with US troops.

[Jon Alvarez]

we're all human...I just think Hollywood, thru it's portrayals and lies, have done a disservice to those who sacrifice so much for us...

I just happen to feel that they deserve our admiration, as well as the trappings that spoiled, anti-American Hollyweird celebs enjoy...and athletes. To disparage them in any way is insulting. Yes, they are human. But they deserve our utmost respect

[Sprite518]

Do you mean the "movies" are conservative, or the Directors/producers? Either case they both have a lib bias.

Case in point, "Dances With Wolves". Good flick, but it plays to the White Man is evil, Native American are the good guys. "Titanic". Good flick, but it plays on class warfare.

[Borges]

I meant the films. Don't know or care about the artists' politics. You can find little things like what you mentioned in just about everything from Dickens novels to sitcoms. Class warfare was a staple of every other movie made in 1930s. Frank Carpa movies were liberal? :-) And since Titanic was set in 1912 England (or in the shadow of it anyway) class tension is a valid subtext. Moreso then it would be today anyway. 'Dances With Wolves' was inevitable after several decades of Indian shoot-em-ups. It appealed to such a wide audience that obviously conservatives liked it for the most part.

[Borges]

Art is all lies! :-) If you were to look at portrayals of soldiers as individuals I think most portryals are positive. What tends to be negative is the portait of war as a concept. It's treated at the very least as a tragedy. Artists tend to be anti-war and have been for centuries.