Coming to HBO2 this Wednesday, May 18: BURMA SOLDIER
Director Nic Dunlop, with co-directors Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg, premiered this portrait of a now repentant Burmese military oppressor turned democracy activist at Sheffield last fall. I included the film in my coverage of IDFA for indieWIRE a few weeks later, saying:
Focused on Myo Myint, a former Burmese soldier, the film offers powerful first-hand testimony about the abusive totalitarian system seen in films like BURMA VJ, but from the unique perspective of a man who was one of the abusers. After he turned against the oppressive regime he once supported, Myint spent 15 years in prison, enduring torture, before finally seeking asylum in Thailand. As perhaps suggested by having three directors, the film isn’t as focused as it could be – despite this, it’s worthwhile for its remarkable access to its courageous subject. At IDFA, producer Julie leBrocguy noted that, through the help of underground activists, the film is being smuggled into Burma so that it can be shown to the Burmese people and perhaps help motivate them to fight back against their oppression.
what (not) to doc 