And I remember Bo Kyi saying, ‘someone should make a film about his life.’ I liked Myo Myint immediately,” said Dunlop, a photographer and author of The Lost Executioner, a book about how he tracked down Khmer Rouge leader Comrade Duch.
Dunlop teamed up with filmmakers Sundberg and Stern, and producer Julie LeBrocquy, to create the documentary. Some narration in the English version was contributed by Colin Farrell, and the archive material included in the film serves as an educational tool for understanding the Burmese army through one soldier's personal story. Of necessity, some of the filming of the army and prisons had to be done using a long lens, but it includes some horrifying footage of Burmese soldiers abusing villagers in ethnic areas and on the battlefields.
The film does, however, have a partly happy ending. The final portion of the film follows Myo Myint to the US, where he was reunited with his brother and sister. He now lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which is home to the largest Burmese community in the United States.
But Myo Myint's struggle continues as he joins protests and campaigns in America. Although he accepts the fact that the regime may not fall soon, or even in his lifetime, he believes he has a responsibility to be a voice for the voiceless, serving as a representative for the many foot soldiers in the Burmese army.
In an article last year for the London-based Guardian newspaper, Myo Myint wrote: “I hope it [“Burma Soldier”] will make soldiers serving the regime think about their actions and their treatment of civilians. After watching it, they can ask themselves whether their behavior towards civilians is good or bad, just or unjust.”
Related Article: The Battle’s Not Over (Multimedia)
E-MAIL
PRINT
COMMENTS (3)
