Movie #3596 "Armed Only with/a Camera: the Life & Death of Brent Renaud" (theater) This was the third oscar-nominated doc short 2026, and I thought it was the best. I had heard of the Renaud brothers on MSNBC, brothers who were war journalists, and of the death of brother Brent, and this movie shed more light on the situations he stepped into while covering various wars in the years he lived. He was a documentary filmmaker for 20 years, and they took the footage he had taken and made a final documentary in tribute to all his work covering Iraq, Ukraine (where he got shot in the face, illegal to do that to a journalist - supposed to be shot in the journalist's vest) Somalia, Palestine, Haiti, hurricanes, Chicago, and the list goes on --- I couldn't write down all the places he covered. He always showed how the civilians have been caught in the middle of all of these wars --- the way the film was edited, it followed his life growing up, how he started in Arkansas force, and worked his way up, and then ends on his funeral and all the eulogies made about him --- the film would cut from a eulogy and show you how he would talk to the oppressed and injured . One man lying on a cot being treated for his wounds turned to Brent and said: "I can tell you care about what you do --- the way you hold the camera, you can change the world. " That line got me --- very powerful, and put into words what the film was trying to say. Here this guy (who was autistic) put his life on the line so these stories would be told --- and now he's dead, but his stories still need to be told over and over until we listen and make changes. This film got me --- had several moments I will always remember. I would give the award to this one - but I usually don't pick the winner. But I still would give this one a 5. (maybe on HBO Max)
"ARMED ONLY W/ A CAMERA: THE LIFE & DEATH OF BRENT RENAUD" 37 MINS, 2025
an intimate chronicle about documentary filmmaker Brent Renaud, the first American journalist killed while reporting on the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Directors: Brent Renaud, Craig Renaud
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