Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain’s Journey (2024) Film Review
Are you willing to make that kind of sacrifice?
Chaplain Jeff Struecker
A question that encompasses all the themes explored in the documentary Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain’s Journey, a riveting film experience that reveals the roles of the courageous members of the army who are deployed to war with a different intention. Chaplains are supposed to help their brothers in arms accept the unacceptable and confront the inevitable, all while staying strong for the next soldier that needs help. It’s an outstanding piece that offers a profound dive into a side of war that’s not often observed outside the Hollywood dramatization circuit.
Narrated from one of the chaplains himself, the documentary is framed under his personal perspective about the several experiences he had as he performed chaplain duties. This is the breaking point of the film: it could be a piece of propaganda, highlighting the role of the U.S. Military in conflicts that don’t have much to do with American politics. But on the contrary, Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain’s Journey is a personal film that comments on the harrowing realities of modern war. It also shows the darker and inevitably resonant side of conflict: the emotional remains of those who were at some point American soldiers.
Right at the beginning of Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain’s Journey, there’s a very important question that fortunately gets answered quickly and correctly. Freedom of religion is one of the milestones of a free world. This, of course, doesn’t regard orthodox views or practices, and that’s something for a whole other conversation. However, when it comes to belief and faith, the film does tackle an important subject: there isn’t just one religion, and chaplains are supposed to be able to follow the lines of many different religions, depending on the soldier they’re trying to help.
This is important because the film could be accused of being a religious piece backed by one controversial side of the Christian faith. Directors Richard Hull and Justin D. Roberts cleverly disregard any doubt that their film could bring to viewers who can’t objectively see the real message behind the film. Sometimes it’s not about religious values, but about something more primal that runs in our blood: the natural human drive to be kind. This should be the basis of all religions.
It’s also during this discussion that I find it essential to make something clear. Fighting Spirit: A Combat Chaplain’s Journey isn’t an anti-war documentary. It doesn’t question the existence of violent conflict as other documentaries do. Instead, it explores the very origins of military chaplaincy, offering a fascinating history lesson that expands not only on the honor that should be associated with chaplains. It also dives into the sacrifice that’s very common when these brave men must act during conflict. What’s more beautiful about the human soul than finding kindness in the midst of madness? What’s more heartwarming than the legacy of these brave soldiers whose mission never ended because their partners never stopped needing support?
Hollywood has romanticized the work of chaplains as the priest-like figures that offer redemption to dying soldiers, but like this film will teach you. It’s not about the words that a chaplain will use. It’s about the undying companionship of the most important moment of your life, and having the right partner by your side. The human soul is fragile, but as these chaplains will show, a faithful partner will make you stronger.
