Full Battle Rattle

2008

1h 32m

Documentary

List

77%

Tomatometer

31 Reviews

84%

Audience Score

100+ Ratings

American soldiers train in a mock Iraqi village in California's Mojave Desert.

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Critics Consensus

Full Battle Rattle is an insightful, eye-opening account of the preparations soldiers must make for their service in Iraq.

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David Fear

Time Out

Rated: 3/5

Nov 16, 2011

Full Review

Ben Kenigsberg

Time Out

Rated: 3/5

Nov 16, 2011

Full Review

Eddie Cockrell

Variety

A so-so pic on an incendiary subject.

Oct 18, 2008

Full Review

Steve Erickson

Gay City News

One wonders what attracted the filmmakers to a subject about which they have so little to say.

Mar 9, 2018

Full Review

Stuart Klawans

The Nation

Like any documentary about putting on a show, Full Battle Rattle abounds with mirth-provoking incongruities between the effect aimed for and the means used to achieve it.

Nov 4, 2013

Full Review

Jennifer Merin

About.com

Somewhere in the Mohave Desert, the U.S. military maintains a large rural compound that contains several fake Iraqi towns. It's Disneyland for war games

Rated: 4.5/5

Jun 27, 2009

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Audience Member

Fascinating and revolting but suffers a little from the same divided loyalties as its subjects.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

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Audience Member

supposedly funny but i didn't laugh

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

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Audience Member

I had no idea such a thing existed so this... documentary? was pretty interesting.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A rather wild look at the training camp set up in the Mojave desert to mimic the conditions of Iraq for the purposes of training soldiers for deployment. The film follows both the military men as well as the character actors within the 'village' who are given scripted prompts and elaborate back stories to work with to develop their characters and how they feel about the occupying U.S. forces. At turns disturbing, funny and downright depressing, this film is well worth a look. Recommended.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

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Audience Member

An interesting look at the thought processes of both sides of the equation.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

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Audience Member

An extremely engaging documentary.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/08/23

Full Review

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Tony Gerber

Director

Jesse Moss

Director

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Synopsis

American soldiers train in a mock Iraqi village in California's Mojave Desert.

Director: Tony Gerber, Jesse Moss
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 23, 2017
Runtime: 1h 32m