WHAT I’VE BEEN WATCHING: Generation Kill

I just finished watching David Simon’s look at the Iraq War, based on Evan Wright’s account of his time with the Marine Corps’ First Reconnaissance Batallion, and declare it supra-good.  Much like The Wire, Generation Kill is an unflinching look at a world that the most of its viewers would never experience, and it’s just as immersive with an admirable level of craft across the board.  Simon had Wright’s accounts of the actual soldiers to use as a base, but the performances really bring them to life in a way that becomes almost documentarian when combined with the handheld camera work and high production values with carefully nuanced audio production that uses some of the same techniques from The Wire (overlapping background dialogue, no background score) to good effect.  Just as interesting as the main series (seven one-hour-and-change episodes) are the interviews with the marines portrayed, including Rudy Reyes, who played himself in the miniseries.  Amazon has the series for $26.99 for a limited time and I can easily think of six dozen worse ways to spend your money.