War Machine (2017) review

What happens when the man who refuses to quit is given an impossible war? One must believe it is achievable to actually achieve the goal and finish the job. If I had been a general, I might have been the same. Dedicated, no distractions, systematic, and won’t stop until it’s done. Like a box that needs to be ticked at the back of my head, or an itch waiting to be scratched. And this review is through the lens of the military men in the film, politics and governance aside. Same as Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016), just when you think the whole world cares, it turns out that it is just a few good men who believe in the fight. Even the president doesn’t. The president! The one who is supposed to command this whole thing seems not to care. As Gen. McMahon said to President Karzai, “You need to behave like a leader.” To which he replied, “But I’m behaving like a leader. I am unavailable. I am as unavailable to you as your own president.” That really is a slap in the face. McMahon was left with an impossible job, a job no one really believes is winnable. And what really hurts is the thought that the very same people you want to help don’t want any of the help you are giving. LaKeith Stanfield stole the show in the third act. I was shocked by what happened with the missed grenade launcher shots. The ending is nice, asking a lot of thought provoking questions. Why do we always want to be in a war, like the question in The Thin Red Line (1998)? Does counterinsurgency just create more enemies? Watched on Netflix.