Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Nicole I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

bob the moo Constructed entirely of footage shot on the ground in Iraq after the fall of Saddam, this film is structured in three separate parts. Part one follows the child Mohammed at work and at school. Part two focuses on the south of the country with Muqtada al Sadr's radical Shia movement. The third and final part of the film focuses on life in springtime in the rural north of Iraq where the Kurds are dominant. The effect is not strong and flawed in equal measures but in different regards.I'm normally accused of over-thinking things when I write and more often, being negative in picking up small things to criticise so I will be positive and focus on the good here. First and very much foremost is the footage captured by Longley. It is unbelievable to think that he has had the guts to go into these places with his white skin and film them; being embedded with US forces is one thing but cutting out and around is by far another. He gets us right into the heart of the people's lives and it is impacting to be riding in a car and see helicopters all around in the sky – very much different from the world that many of us will be used to. In this regard the film is worth seeing but I gotta say that there are plenty of films and such with really good footage of Iraq – even if some moments of this film are more than a match for them.What makes for a strong documentary then is the whole package, not just the footage and I'm afraid that for Iraq in Fragments it is a case of "close but no cigar". The reason I say this is that Longley doesn't produce convincing stories or manage to pull everything together in such a way that he takes his viewer with him. There is something to be said for letting the viewer "experience" Iraq but even if you take this as the whole, I didn't think that the characters were strong enough to make a solid frame for this experience and the impact is lessened apart from some great specific moments. Longley doesn't help matters by utilising quite arty shots and montages as well – maybe increasing the flair and style of the film but the technique contrasts badly with the majority of the film, which has its feet firmly on the ground. It is a shame because the film constantly reminds you that this level of access is impressive but the film just seems to be all about the fact that the viewer gets this access – not producing a point, making an impact, informing or challenging.I'm not sure if Longley just didn't get footage that he could work with or if it all just failed to come together in the editing room but one way or another it just isn't as good as it should be. Overall then it is impressive for its footage and its "experience" value but outside of this it is not that good and there are other documentaries that tackle the subject of life in Iraq under US rule with much better overall packages than this film delivered. Good but not good enough.

proptwistr The most important thing lacking in my understanding of the problems in the Middle East and Iraq in particular is knowledge about the people and their beliefs. This film provides a tiny peephole into what drives Iraqis and what they feel is important. A very revealing aspect of the film is how Muslim religious leaders are able to get followers to exact justice upon those who don't agree with their religious beliefs. An incident where market vendors who are accused of selling alcohol are abused and kidnapped makes is easy to see how Iraqis, driven by religious zealots, can perpetrate such atrocities. Overall, this piece of work is amazing for its ability to get close to the everyday Iraqi and to give the viewer an unbiased glimpse of what life is like for them.

janbanke most docu films I see are less than exceptional in terms of cinema style. this is an exception. in Iraq in Fragments you get both the revelation of Iraq's reality from within society and also the eye of a true filmmaker. exceptional, beautiful work of cinema art and a very important documentary film. i think this film will be a landmark work in future years. this film is returning to something like the time when images were more important than text/language. in other words, this is a film that uses CINEMA language to speak with. it is truly unusual this way, not like any documentary in i saw in a long long time. maybe this is a new direction for documentary film. i hope so.

rainingwaffles My opinion in a nutshell: it was definitely worth seeing. Lots of great shots inside three incredibly different regions of Iraq, and the film captures many normal Iraqi citizens discussing US occupation and various daily matters. Not surprisingly, there are practically no women shown in the movie.There is no narrative, and, for better or worse, no insight into the differences between the Sunni, Shia, and Kurds.It's nice to see the real people of Iraq, as opposed to the terrorist caricatures created by sensationalist news snippets.In terms of the footage, it appeared to be a mix of film and DV, with good quality the most part with some soft and muddy shots here and there. For the situations captured, the quality of the footage actually seems quite good.Check it out if you get the chance...