Regret to Inform
Directed by Barbara Sonneborn.
US, 1999, 35mm, color, 72 min.
US, 1999, 35mm, color, 72 min.
More than twenty years after her husband was killed in combat, writer/director Barbara Sonneborn travels to Vietnam and around the United States documenting the anguish and torment of war widows on both sides of the conflict, all of whom have suffered tremendous loss. As the agent of her own catharsis, Sonneborn visits the site of her husband’s death and listens to Vietnamese women who lost not only their husbands, but their children, homes, and identities. The filmmaker strikes a delicate balance in presenting both sides of the story. That it is the same tragic story from all perspectives may in fact be the most enlightening aspect of this film.