About Face! Reenacting in a Time of War explores the cultural politics of commemorating American national history in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Told from the perspective of the filmmaker who learns how to portray an 18th century British Redcoat soldier in the course of making the film, About Face! ruminates on what it means to play “violent brutes” in reenactment events like the Battle of Lexington, whilst echoing in the role the position of contemporary American military professionals sent far from home. It turns out, ironically, that many American service members who become Revolutionary War reenactors choose to play Redcoats and Hessians than members of the “ragtag” colonial militias, which lacked the sense of military discipline that these contemporary men find comforting in their hobby. The film focuses on the intersection between the memories of war of such reenactors, and the experiences of war reenactment as a means of communicating about war across the veteran-civilian divide, all set against the backdrop of the media-saturated, anxiety inducing “War on Terror” that marked the years after the 9/11 attacks.
Click here to watch the film. Please comment! The filmmaker would love to hear your thoughts.
Click here for Andy Rice’s YouTube page.
