Finnigan's War (2013)

Content by Tony Macklin. Originally published on February 7, 2014 @ tonymacklin.net.

Finnigan's War is a 21st century documentary about a 20th century war.

Begun in 2010 on the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War, Finnigan's War is director/writer/producer Conor Timmis' tribute to his grandfather and multicultural veterans of that conflict.

Finnigan's War is a very mixed bag. At its best, it's personal and moving. Other times, it's uneven and a bit pretentious.

In the credits there are "special thanks" to Jesus Christ. Jesus may have expected a better film.

The film also features some footage by Justin Case in the form of a graphic novel. This is inventive, but it also blunts the authenticity. The footage, with narration by Mark Hamill, in comic strip form shows action that represents the fighting that the soldiers experienced.

And, of course, the film includes the cliche that all the soldiers were "heroes."

The best qualities of Finnigan's War are when Timmis focuses on humanity.

Timmis interviews a man with a father he never knew. His father was a flyer who was MIA and eventually declared killed in action. The son is emotional about the fundamental loss in his life.

Timmis features the multicultural men in the war: the only all-black Ranger unit, a Hispanic unit, the first Chinese-American US Army officer, a Hungarian Jew who survived a Nazi concentration camp as a boy and also survived as a POW in Korea, and the Winnebago Indian from Wisconsin.

Perhaps the best decision that Timmis makes is to conclude his film with an articulate Korean-American woman clad in a bright red dress. She is an appealing figure who ends the movie with charisma as she expresses her thanks to the soldiers for their sacrifices.

She is a glowing reflection of gratitude and pride.

Finnigan's War ends with memorable feeling.