Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on March 2012

Firebrand director Ken Loach applies his social realism to the rampant use of private security contractors in Iraq. When one such ex-SAS mercenary hears about the death of a close buddy on Route Irish (the IED-infested stretch of road between Baghdad’s Green Zone and its airport), he immediately doubts the official explanation and opens his own investigation. His main clue is a cell phone his buddy found at the scene of the accidental killing of an Iraqi family and the images it holds. It’s all a bit dated, and the director is not quite at home in this genre, but a Loach film is always worth a look.