BFI London Film Festival: A Private War

London, , GB

Directed by Matthew Heineman, A Private War tells the true story of fearless war correspondent Marie Colvin as she throws herself into war zones to record and document the human cost and suffering of conflicts.

Portrayed by Rosamund Pike, the film follows Marie on the frontline where she wins Foreign Correspondent Of The Year, interviews dictators, loses an eye to RPG fire and tricks checkpoint guards into believing she's an aid worker with photographer Paul Conroy (played by Jamie Dornan) so they can tell the stories that no-one else can.

With a "fear of growing old and dying young", Marie feels more comfortable in a war zone than the real world where she battles mental illness and alcoholism, throwing herself back into the field to get away from her cheating husband. Featuring horrific scenes of ruined cities and mass graves being unearthed as families watch on, the film gives a realistic view into the life of a war correspondent and the PTSD that follows.

After writing her own obituary, her death and the finale are inevitable, as she broadcasts live from Syria during the worst conflict she's ever seen where 28,000 civilians are trapped asking "why have we been abandoned" with up to 47 explosions a minute. Dramatic, powerful and emotional - this film will have you on the edge of your seat!