The seats were filled at Fort Stewart’s Woodruff Theater Wednesday night as soldiers and their families attended a special, invitation-only screening of the Samuel Goldwyn film “Brothers at War.”
The film was co-produced and directed by actor Jake Rademacher, the brother of two active-duty soldiers, Cpt. Isaac Rademacher and Sgt. Joseph Rademacher, serving in Iraq.
Both are assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division in Fayetteville, N.C.
A story about a band of brothers, with a narrative that played on the parallels of brotherhood in and outside Army life, the film depicted images of what Rademacher called “real-life,” “easy to relate to” issues service members and their loved ones face during numerous deployments to Iraq.
In the film, Rademacher is seen packing his bags and leaving for Iraq — not once, but twice — to capture his brothers’ respect and the truth about the men and women serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
“Did I have something to prove? Maybe, but I made this film because I wanted to find out for myself what it was like,” Rademacher told the audience. “I wanted to find out who my brothers were and who their brothers at arms were. As well as, why they do what they do.”
Rademacher uses his mother, father, three living brothers a deceased brother and two sisters to show what life growing up with the Rademacher boys was like, showcasing Isaac and Joseph’s, as well as his own, trials and tribulations as they sought military success.
“The best people to tell a story about military families are military families, right?” he said to the audience.
Following the childhood home video clips of soccer games and military graduations, Rademacher flips the script and focuses on those fighting the war.
In one scene, he shows a Ranger platoon sitting in the desert for five days while trying to gather intelligence information.
In the heat of the moment, the men talk with him about why they joined.
One soldier told him that when he figures out the answer, he would let him know. Another said he would sacrifice his life any day for his country.
In a later scene, two U.S. Army snipers are sitting on top of a roof eating M&Ms, joking about buying flowers and teddy bears as Christmas gifts for girlfriends while inadvertently discussing the thrill of the kill. As the men look through the scopes on their weapons in the movie, one Fort Stewart soldier seated in the audience got up to leave.
“I was shot by an [enemy] sniper, so there were some touchy subjects in there for me,” said Cpl. Joshua Sorrento, 21. “It’s definitely a very accurate depiction of what happened over there.”
At the completion of the screening, some were in tears. Others shouted, “Hooah,” and some filed to the front of the auditorium to shake Rademacher’s hand.
“Thank you for finally telling our story,” one soldier said.
Alexandria McBroom, wife of Spc. Dustin McBroom, said the movie made her appreciate her husband more.
“I got to see what he really went through,” she said. “It made me sad to know that he went through that. I am very glad and grateful for the experience.”
On March 27, “Brothers at War” will play at theaters in Savannah. For more information, go to www.brothersatwarmovie.com.
The film was co-produced and directed by actor Jake Rademacher, the brother of two active-duty soldiers, Cpt. Isaac Rademacher and Sgt. Joseph Rademacher, serving in Iraq.
Both are assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division in Fayetteville, N.C.
A story about a band of brothers, with a narrative that played on the parallels of brotherhood in and outside Army life, the film depicted images of what Rademacher called “real-life,” “easy to relate to” issues service members and their loved ones face during numerous deployments to Iraq.
In the film, Rademacher is seen packing his bags and leaving for Iraq — not once, but twice — to capture his brothers’ respect and the truth about the men and women serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
“Did I have something to prove? Maybe, but I made this film because I wanted to find out for myself what it was like,” Rademacher told the audience. “I wanted to find out who my brothers were and who their brothers at arms were. As well as, why they do what they do.”
Rademacher uses his mother, father, three living brothers a deceased brother and two sisters to show what life growing up with the Rademacher boys was like, showcasing Isaac and Joseph’s, as well as his own, trials and tribulations as they sought military success.
“The best people to tell a story about military families are military families, right?” he said to the audience.
Following the childhood home video clips of soccer games and military graduations, Rademacher flips the script and focuses on those fighting the war.
In one scene, he shows a Ranger platoon sitting in the desert for five days while trying to gather intelligence information.
In the heat of the moment, the men talk with him about why they joined.
One soldier told him that when he figures out the answer, he would let him know. Another said he would sacrifice his life any day for his country.
In a later scene, two U.S. Army snipers are sitting on top of a roof eating M&Ms, joking about buying flowers and teddy bears as Christmas gifts for girlfriends while inadvertently discussing the thrill of the kill. As the men look through the scopes on their weapons in the movie, one Fort Stewart soldier seated in the audience got up to leave.
“I was shot by an [enemy] sniper, so there were some touchy subjects in there for me,” said Cpl. Joshua Sorrento, 21. “It’s definitely a very accurate depiction of what happened over there.”
At the completion of the screening, some were in tears. Others shouted, “Hooah,” and some filed to the front of the auditorium to shake Rademacher’s hand.
“Thank you for finally telling our story,” one soldier said.
Alexandria McBroom, wife of Spc. Dustin McBroom, said the movie made her appreciate her husband more.
“I got to see what he really went through,” she said. “It made me sad to know that he went through that. I am very glad and grateful for the experience.”
On March 27, “Brothers at War” will play at theaters in Savannah. For more information, go to www.brothersatwarmovie.com.