feature film (2011)
Severe Clear is based on the memoir by First Lieutenant Mike Scotti as well as video footage shot by him and other members of 1st Battalion, 4th Marines on the outset of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Directed by Kristian Fraga (“Anytown, USA”) and featuring a original score by Cliff Martinez (“Traffic”, “Narc”, “Solaris”) the film offers an unflinching look at the uncertainty, disorder and chaos of war from the remarkable perspective of one Marine. The film is released under the title “This is War” in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Severe Clear was awarded Special Mention for Cinematic Excellence at the 2009 International Rome Film Festival, the Jury Prize at the Salem Film Fest and the 2009 Barrymore Award. Severe Clear was also featured as part of the 2009 International Documentary Association’s DocuWeeks Showcase and was an official selection at the SXSW, Big Sky, Lone Star, Palm Beach, San Diego and St. Louis Film Festivals.
The film has been critically acclaimed by The New York Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter and IFC.com and recently featured on CNN, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, Newsweek, Men’s Journal, Interview Magazine, Filmmaker Magazine, indieWIRE, NBC and more.
AKA "This is War" Internationally
Theatrical Release Date: March 2010
Directed by: Kristian Fraga
Produced by: Marc J. Perez, Kristian Fraga
Executive Produced by: John L. Sikes, Benjamin Charbit
Distributed by: Inception Media/Sirk Productions (US), G2 Pictures/Koch Entertainment (UK/Ireland/Benelux/Scandinavia), 21st Century Pictures (Australia), YES (Israel), Family Films (All French Speaking Territories)
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“This visceral, gripping doc uses footage shot in Iraq to give us a clear-eyed, brutal, but decidedly unpoliticized look at the reality of war.”
“Visceral true-life portrait of the brutality and chaos of war. It offers a much needed personal perspective on a subject that is too often reduced to political arguments.”
“SEVERE CLEAR pungently evokes a heroic Marine Corps mystique.”