I Wanted to be a Man with a Gun: three american soldiers in wWII
I Wanted To Be A Man With A Gun is a feature documentary profiling three American soldiers in WWII, as they recount their experiences from the perspective of their 90-year old selves, revealing the shocking secrets of revenge on enemy prisoners, the consequences of which still inform their lives.
Each soldier represents a unique and sometimes disturbing perspective in their experience of war - and how they respond to the challenges of surviving combat. Harold Kozloff, a brazen Jewish soldier in the infantry, hated the Germans and killed them with impunity. On the surface, Harold killed without conscience, yet the brutality of WWII touched his life forever.
Leo Litwak was a reluctant Jewish soldier who became a medic in the infantry. While he hated Nazism, he saw the German soldiers as victims of circumstance. Following the orders of the Geneva Convention he treated their wounds with the same consideration he practiced while working on American G.I.’s, but not without consequence.
Paul Mico, a Catholic Squad Sergeant in the 29th infantry, reluctantly takes enemy lives, and gives the film historical context from the Normandy invasion to the German surrender. His soft-spoken musings soon become shocking as he reveals how his squad killed unarmed prisoners. After the massacre at Malmedy, Belgium, where the Germans machine-gunned 84 American prisoners, Sergeant Mico and his men began a killing spree - the impact of which indelibly changed his life.
The soldiers do not censor themselves in telling their stories, including how they reacted to the Anti-Semitism of their fellow G.I.’s; their rage unleashed against the Germans directly involved in the persecution of their religious brethren; and the horrific consequences of the war to their lives. This powerful and poetic film employs a haunting original score integrated with rare archival footage, ultimately revealing that even in a justifiable war no soldier escapes the trauma of the requirement to “kill or be killed.”
Director’s Statement: As the director, I approached this film with a sense of responsibility to portray the psychological truths of war while honoring the courage and sacrifice of those who have lived through the experience of combat. My hope is that this film will encourage the public to reconsider its view of war, and provide a new more significant understanding of the soldier’s dilemma; being asked to do their duty and kill the enemy, inevitably leads to an emotional wound that never fully heals, the consequences of which has had a profound impact on society for generations.
A film by William Farley.
Fiscal Sponsorship by Filmmakers Collaborative SF
