The efforts of the Canadian Armed Forces, as well as the sacrifices of their loved ones, are celebrated in the film ‘Fallen Heroes: Their Journey Home’.
Director Robert Curtin said the documentary film, initially released in 2024, is “really about Canada’s experience in the war in Afghanistan, from a Canadian perspective”.
Curtin will be in Lethbridge along with producer Karen Storwick on Oct. 22 for a special screening and question-and-answer session at The Movie Mill. Prior to their appearance, interested viewers can also see a 4 p.m. matinee screening on Oct. 17.
Curtin said the project was the result of many years of hard work and interviews with multiple military members, of all ranks and positions, who served in Afghanistan.
“The unique thing about this documentary is that the only voices, the only people you see speaking about that experience, are the people who were actually there,” he said.
Curtin added that ‘Fallen Heroes: Their Journey Home’ features recreations of real-life events and stories, with some of the soldiers who were there portraying various roles.
“In some cases, we had soldiers who were playing their best friends, who had been killed during those actions, so it’s quite remarkable, and it’s tastefully done. We’re not trying to put violence in there for violence’s sake. It is simply the experience of our men and women in uniform during the war in Afghanistan,” the filmmaker explained.
Curtin said he and Storwick have been interviewing military members for different projects for over 20 years, which helped when asking members to be involved in this film.
“Over those years, I think we have garnered their trust and so, many of the soldiers who participated would then go to their fellow soldiers and say, ‘listen, you know, you may have some ghosts that you need to get out, that you need to talk about, and this is a way of doing it’, and invariably, almost every single one of those interviews conducted over many, many years ended with tears on both sides of the camera,” he remarked.
“We were thanked many times for giving soldiers the opportunity to take those things out that had been hidden for a long time, and look at them, think about them in a safe place.”
CANADIAN PRIDE
Curtin said it is important to recognize the efforts of current and past military members but also celebrate their loved ones and the pride shown across the country.
He cited the famed Highway of Heroes as a remarkable show of support for the Armed Forces by Canadian citizens.
“It started with a line of people along the fence line in Trenton Air Force Base, and by the end of the war, it led all the way to the 401 Highway and some 300 miles down to the coroner’s office in downtown Toronto, and that is remarkable,” Curtin said.
“Other nations saw what Canadians were doing and started to recreate it themselves.”
He said a prior screening of the film in Lethbridge sold out, and with the current state of the world, pride in the armed forces and between fellow Canadians should be a priority.
“I think we should be proud as a people that we stood up for our men and women in uniform, and we should be very proud of what they have achieved and unfortunately, with the way the world is going right now, it’s a message that we have to get through to all Canadians, and people around the world who can see what we have done, and maybe do their part to emulate it,” Curtin stated.
MISSION: AFGHANISTAN
Curtin said he and Storwick are 50-50 partners in the Combined Forces production collaborative. The duo is also behind ‘Mission: Afghanistan’, a touring exhibit highlighting the CAF’s involvement in the war in Afghanistan.
The exhibit is currently set up at the Lethbridge Military Museum, with stories on display at the site through Nov. 11.
READ MORE: Touring ‘Mission: Afghanistan’ exhibit opens at Lethbridge Military Museum
‘Fallen Heroes: Their Journey Home’ screens at The Movie Mill at 4 p.m. on Oct. 17, with the Q&A sessions featuring Curtin and Storwick at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 22.
Tickets can be purchased in-person or online through The Movie Mill website.
“We have played this film all over the country. It’s played on Parliament Hill, and we’ve gotten a tremendous response,” Curtin added.
“But we need to get it to every town across the country and help people understand, because I think if they are given an opportunity to understand that experience, they’ll feel much more positive about our military and the people who serve for us.”
A trailer for ‘Fallen Heroes: Their Journey Home’ can be viewed below.
