I watched the documentary “The Hornet’s Nest” on Amazon Prime and it was one of the most intense and profound documentaries I’ve ever seen. The film is shot from the perspective of ABC War Reporter Mike Boettcher and his son, Carlos, and is essentially what it would look like if Call of Duty was real.
The audience connects with Mike and Carlos, who are trying to repair a hole in their relationship like every father and son do: traveling with soldiers in combat zones in Afghanistan. Eventually, Carlos returns home and Mike is left alone with the group of soldiers, with whom he embarks on a dangerous mission.
However, the mission goes awry when the group, which received bad intel and reports, lands in the wrong place, and is surrounded by Taliban soldiers. A three-day mission becomes a nine-day mission, and multiple American troops are killed during the raid.
The audience grew with many of the soldiers and learned their personalities, only to find out they died days later. It is an unscripted and and unfiltered look at the horrors of war, and how young men and women cope with the incredible amounts of danger they expose themselves to. The film had a profound effect on me, and I sympathized with every soldier that straps up a pair of boots and puts on a helmet and travels in the most dangerous parts of the world. It put their sacrifices into perspective for me, and made me realize how lucky we are to live the lives we do. I recommend everyone watch “The Hornet’s Nest,” as it will open your eyes as to how high the price of freedom really is.