THE STORY – Oscar winners Vasarhelyi and Chin follow photographer Lynsey Addario capturing the Ukraine war while reflecting on her Pulitzer-winning career.
THE CAST – N/A
THE TEAM – Chai Vasarhelyi & Jimmy Chin (Directors)
THE RUNNING TIME – 95 mins
Dating back to the mid-1800s when glass plates captured the butchery of the American Civil War battlefields, photography has been central to capturing the history and ramifications of armed conflict. Over the decades, the profession soon developed into an integral aspect of journalism, first from these series of stills, and soon to the moving image to capture within the narrow frame a slice of the chaos of battle. In our modern age, with the ubiquity of cell phones or action cams that shoot 8K video in the hands of accredited journalists and civilians alike, flying around the world to capture these images for the world media feels somewhat like a dying art. Yet the cliché rings true for a reason, and the isolation of a single frame by a skilled photographer does often speak louder than the copy attached, making the headline still image above the fold as impactful as ever.
There have been numerous films that capture the skills and dangers of photojournalism, from 2010’s “Restreppo” by Tim Hetherington, to Mstyslav Chernov’s “20 Days in Mariupol” and “2000 Meters to Adriivka.” 2023 the TIFF premiere of the biopic “Lee” about the legendary lenser Lee Miller, played by Kate Winslet. Films ranging from “Salvador” to “Apocalypse Now” and “The Killing Fields” have centered photographers in key roles.
What sets Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s deft portrait of Pulitzer Prize–winning photographer Lynsey Addario apart is how they navigate not only the often harrowing circumstances in which her remarkable images are captured, but the very real, universal challenges of forming a work-life balance. As a wife, a mother, and a professional driven to amplify stories from around the world, this is a powerful and profound examination of the compromises and considerations required to work at this level and to grab these images for people around the globe.
“Love+War” is very much about these two sides of Addario’s life, and the film works at its best when we see that there’s nothing magical or superheroic about achieving as best as possible a middle ground between concerns for family and the drive that’s required for her profession. Addario’s tenacity is remarkable, if occasionally bordering on the hubristic, demanding to always go closer to the frontlines where the reality intersects with danger.
This isn’t the portrait of some adrenaline junkie, but instead we are witness to one who over years of accomplishments still puts herself in danger to tell the truth of a situation. Her biggest complaints throughout occur when moments feel staged or false, her anger about civilian casualties mirrored in her frustration when the actuality of the situation is masked by the easy shot from behind the front lines.
This is a full portrait of a woman who is usually behind the lens, her byline speaking volumes about her skill but next to nothing about her own feelings or proclivities. Her older sisters provide the gentle ribbing required, saying their childhood bullying helped toughen up the youngest for her life of wild adventure. Addario’s husband gave up a job of a world travelling journalist to raise their kids, the flip of many such professional and personal entanglements, and the marital and familial challenges of this situation are never sugar coated.
Addario’s drive is laudable, of course, and the film makes an exceptional case for why her work matters so significantly. A photospread about childbirth mortality resulted in real policy changes, with thousands saved thanks to being informed by the journalistic work she accomplished.
There’s a lingering sense that in these days when budgets are shrinking and the audience for the news is fragmented into smaller and smaller slices that silo themselves off from information that doesn’t fit their own proclivities, that the type of major outlet reporter like Addario feels on the precipice of extinction. The need for an outsider to fly across the planet to capture key images may be diminishing when everyone has a camera in their pocket. Vasarhelyi and Chin’s film quietly, if never explicitly, provides a counterargument to this. There’s skill, of course, in following the story and being steady in the face of danger. But there’s also artistry behind Addario’s lensing, an ephemeral but no less powerful ability to frame with a keen eye that a more simple, surveillance mode of capturing simply does not convey the same narrative weight about a given situation. It’s this aspect that requires a human touch, as we see not only what’s within the frame, but can feel the presence of the person there to witness on our behalf.
Vasarhelyi and Chin have spent years following adventurers around the world, their climbing movies such as the Oscar-winning “Free Solo” championed for their vicarious and vertiginous thrills. And yet, what sets them apart as filmmakers is how they delve deeply into their subject’s inner lives, beyond the spectacle of the activity for which they are led to become the focus of a given film. That’s never been more evident than with this, the filmmaker’s most subtle and perhaps most engaging film. Yes, this has the trappings of living through a person navigating danger, but it’s the other, personal attributes of this three dimensional person, complete with foibles, fears and failures, that makes “Love+War” truly special. It’s a film that’s emotional, exhilarating, and essential, photographers capturing a photographer, game recognizing game, with highly skilled filmmakers finding another perfect subject in this internationally renowned photographer.
