Fort Bliss (2014) - Claudia Myers

Maggie Swann, a decorated U.S. Army sergeant and medic, has returned home from an extended tour of duty in Afghanistan.  Incredibly eager to see her five-year-old son, Maggie arrives home to find that her son barely recognizes her, confused by his mother's long time away.  Maggie's life after deployment is a constant struggle, made more difficult by her traumatic memories of Afganastan as she attempts to reclaim her son's affection.  When working at the base on Fort Bliss, Maggie learns of another deployment that threatens to sever the posititve strides she has started to make with her young son.  Claudia Myer's Fort Bliss is a touching and poigant character study about a woman torn between her duties as a soldier and her obligations of a mother.  Straight forward in narrative approach, Fort Bliss is a film that is uneven at times but definitely gripping as Maggie struggles with her allegiances.  This is not a film that attempts to shine a negative light on the U.S. Military nor sing its praises, it's a film solely interested in exploring a personal struggle to live up to all responsibilities.  Michelle Monahan gives the performance of her career in Fort Bliss, balancing both Maggie's sensitivity and strength, in creating a powerful portrait of one woman torn between two sides of her life.  While I wish Fort Bliss could dove deeper into the psychological realities of many soliders who serve, itwithout question captures the personal sacrifies many soliders make for their country, doing so without any type of agenda that so many films of its ilk fall victim to.

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