Waltz with Bashir is a jarring and devastating animated documentary that explores the psychological trauma inflicted by warfare as well as any live-action war epic I’ve seen. Writer-director Ari Folman, who served in the Israeli army during the 1982 invasion of Lebanon, interviews fellow veterans to help fill in the mental blind spot he’s always had about the conflict. They share their memories, dreams and hallucinations – all brilliantly envisioned by animation director Yoni Goodman – which open a Pandora’s box of guilt and shame. The movie essentially amounts to a therapy session without any closure, especially when it cuts to actual news footage in its final moments and turns into a primal scream.
