‘In Waves and War’ Review: Moving Doc About Afghanistan Vets Treating PTSD With Hallucinogens Is an Odyssey of the Mind
Every American soldier has left Afghanistan, but that doesn’t mean Afghanistan has left them. Jon Shenk and Bonni Cohen’s heartfelt documentary gives new meaning to the term “forever war” by showing the lasting impact that multiple deployments have had on a trio of Navy SEALs still struggling to truly come home years after retiring from the military. “In Waves and War” — the title is taken from a passage in “The Odyssey” about moving on from suffering in order to embark on a new adventure — focuses on, and ultimately becomes part of, an emerging movement to treat post-traumatic stress disorder via two hallucinogens that have shown remarkable results when taken in tandem.
Those would be ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT. The former is derived from the bark root of the iboga tree in Gabon, while the latter is extracted from Sonoran Desert toads — an imposing cocktail to be sure, but one presented by the filmmakers as something of a miracle drug. The first phase lasts upwards of 12 hours and, as shown in artfully animated sequences, allows users to tap into long-buried memories and feelings in a way that’s as confrontational as it is cathartic. (One of the veterans who tries it finds himself on the set of “The Wonder Years,” a relatable childhood favorite that informed his idea of the ideal family unit — and one that couldn’t have resembled his own upbringing less.) A clinician describes ibogaine as “sandblasting” the psyche before “the toad” polishes it, ultimately helping the user feel whole again.
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As both substances are illegal stateside, however, those interested in trying them need to travel to Mexico to do so. And because some of the people who would most benefit from them are also the most loath to so nakedly, vulnerably confront such feelings in an admittedly woo-woo ritual, the gulf to going on the trip isn’t just physical.
“In Waves and War” is bookended by before-and-after interviews with veterans who undergo the treatment, some of whom express suicidal ideation prior to the experience and all of whom seem virtually transformed by it. This is hardly an infomercial, however. Shenk and Cohen previously co-directed “Athlete A” and “Audrie & Daisy,” documentaries that touch on equally difficult subjects and display the filmmakers’ interest in pressing social matters. Unsurprising, then, that the most wrenching sequences in their latest have nothing to do with the medicinal properties of hallucinogens but rather the lived experiences of three vets for whom every other treatment failed.
Marcus Capone, Matty Roberts and DJ Shipley all spent a significant amount of time in Afghanistan and bring to mind the quotation that opens “The Hurt Locker”: “The rush of battle is a potent and often lethal addiction, for war is a drug.” They all seem to have been born for military life, not that any amount of training or mental fortitude can truly prepare one for the horrors of war and its lingering aftereffects. Each of them lost several comrades and suffered injuries of their own, which is to say that not all of their scars are visible.
The filmmakers’ focus on these three men lends “In Waves and War” an intimate quality, though at times it seems as though they could have expanded their scope without losing sight of them. The film never delves into why ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT remain illegal or if there’s a significant push among proponents to reschedule them, nor do we hear much from the Stanford researchers studying the drugs.
Lucky, then, that the main trio are worthy of that level of focus. Hearing them talk about actively wanting to die makes “In Waves and War” a difficult sit, but the urge to hear the rest of their story is always stronger than the urge to turn away.
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