Iraq War movies fizzling at the box office

LOS ANGELES , Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Some U.S. military personnel and veterans say they are disappointed with the lackluster box-office business Iraq War movies are generating this season.

Despite top-notch casts and generally favorable reviews, war-themed films like "Lions for Lambs," "In the Valley of Elah" and "Redacted" aren't attracting moviegoers, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Part of the problem is a nationwide decline in movie attendance, with last weekend declared the lowest-attended mid-November weekend since 1993, said Brandon Gray, publisher of Box Office Mojo.

"I thought that with the casts (of these films), at least a portion of America would go to see them," said Jabbar Magruder, an active duty Army National Guard sergeant who served 11 months in Iraq. "America doesn't want to deal with Iraq, period. There's just apathy. And that's what a lot of veterans, no matter what their position on the war, are finding when they come back home."

"Maybe there are some civilians who don't know how real it is," said Army Sgt. Selena Coppa, who served time with intelligence units in the Middle East.

"In the Valley of Elah," said Coppa, "got it right."

"Maybe if you haven't been through it, you wouldn't get it," she told the Chronicle.