These Terrible Replays of War

World War 2 video games have always bothered me. Not ludicrous games like Castle Wolfenstein 3D or any of the other Nazis-as-demons fantasies, but highly detailed games like Call of Duty and even Squad Leader felt like an exploitation of appalling pain and horrifying bravery. Then again I thought perhaps I should think of them as celebrations of that bravery, though it still seemed a frivolous way to do it. Reporting World War 2: Part Two American Journalism 1944-1946 has a short article by James Agee of The Nation, titled "These Terrible Records of War," in which he praises two newsreels about Iwo Jima, but goes on to say something that felt just like what I had incoherently tried to work out:

Very uneasily, I am beginning to believe that, for all that may be said in favor of our seeing these terrible records of war, we have no business seeing this sort of experience except through our presence and participation.... Since I am reviewing and in ways recommending that others see one of the best and most terrible of war films [the Paramount Iwo Jima newsreel], I cannot avoid mentioning my perplexity.... If at an incurable distance from participation, hopelessly incapable of reactions adequate to the event, we watch men killing each other, we may be quite as profoundly degrading ourselves and, in the process, betraying and separating ourselves the farther from those we are trying to identify ourselves with; none the less because we tell ourselves sincerely that we sit in comfort and watch carnage in order to nurture our patriotism, our conscience, our understanding, and our sympathies.

The newsreel after all would then be followed by some comedy or melodrama. And if that is a problem, surely playing out the war's worst battles hundreds of times is far more of a problem.

Since he recommended it, I looked it up. The corny newsreel voice and music add a very unfortunate silliness to it, though it is still interesting to see that with its tank-slit view, aerial views, frequent lack of music, and tanker intercom recordings it anticipates the modern style of war reporting. At other times the old-timey style increased the sense of distance so it was hard to remember these men really were killing and dying, but the sight of dead soldiers did prompt the familiar helpless confusion of conscience. I wonder how often civilians' hatred of the enemy is an attempt to feel something, anything simple and complete in such confusion.