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| Lieutenant Elle Helmer in The Invisible War. |
By Miranda Inganni
The
Invisible War, the latest feature documentary by Kirby
Dick (Outrage, This Film Is Not Yet Rated),
exposes the harsh and disturbing reality of what many military women (and men)
face – sexual assault and the government’s reluctance to do anything about it. Through
honest, heart wrenching and tear-filled interviews, Dick tells the horror
stories of victims while shedding light on an overlooked and rampant problem.
The victims interviewed all have one thing in common: they
took great pride in their military duty. And they were all greatly debased, in
the most horrendous way. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other
long-term effects lay waste to lives of otherwise productive members of
society. But where is the justice?
A civilian rape victim has a police force and lawyers
who are (supposed to be) impartial when dealing with a crime, but military
personnel must turn to their commanders, usually a colleague or friend of the alleged
perpetrator or the criminal him/herself. Unfortunately, and unfairly, this,
more often than not, leads to retaliation at worst and long, drawn-out response
(usually not in the victim’s favor) at best. Careers, marriages and, too often,
lives are ended as a tragic result.
Dick is able to capture the pain and trauma the victims
have suffered, interview and expose the misogyny and hypocrisy of high-level
military personnel and members of the government and document the stories and
statistics of a grossly underreported problem.
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