'Citizen Soldier' Follows Troops on the Ground in Afghanistan

Citizen Soldier is documentary that follows soldiers from Oklahoma Army National Guard's 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team during a deployment to Afghanistan at the height of the surge. The film features multiple camera angles, including some compelling helmet cam footage that gives a sense of the action and danger the soldiers faced. The movie is out now on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD and available as a VOD rental.

The movie was directed by David Salzberg and Christian Tureaud, whose previous credits include The Hornet's Nest, a documentary they pieced together from footage shot by war correspondents Mike and Carlos Boettcher (The directors spoke with Military.com about the film in 2014). That film told a father/son story in the context of war, Citizen Soldier concentrates on the Army National Guard troops. We've got a clip from the film below.

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The documentary concentrates on the unit's experiences on the ground and stays away from broader context and debates about the Afghanistan conflict. The Thunderbirds (as the outfit has been known since WWII) are in the thick of the conflict and they suffer casualties during their 96-day deployment.

The film is getting a level of promotion we haven't seen before for a military documentary. It's just been announced as the entitlement sponsor for the first elimination race in the 16-driver 2016 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship playoffs. The Citizen Soldier 400 will take place at Dover International Speedway on Sunday, Oct. 2 at 2pm and will air on the NBCSN cable network.