Foxhole takes a unique approach to examining the effects that wars have on the people that fight them. Instead of one stand-alone narrative, the movie utilizes three different vignettes across time to examine different themes. We start with the Civil War, move on to World War I, and conclude with the Iraq War. Each story has the same actors with the same character names, making it easier to track and relate to them through the different wars. 

Writer/director Jack Fessenden utilizes single setting locations to not only make the most of the budget he has to work with, but also to ratchet up the tension. Both the Civil War and World War I stories are confined to a trench, while the Iraq War updates the location to a humvee. The Civil War entry centers on a wounded buffalo soldier named Jackson (Motell Gyn Foster) finding his way to the trench where other Union soldiers are digging, waiting for the Confederate advance.

During the course of the Civil War segment, the other soldiers debate whether or not they should risk taking Jackson to the medical tent. Some want to stay put, citing the fact that leaving would be breaking orders, while others believe they should help Jackson. The conflict evolves into an examination of men attempting to hold on to their humanity in the fog of battle, while also trying to do the job they were ordered to do. 

In the World War I segment, a German soldier ends up in the trench with American soldiers. The conflict initially is whether the German soldier should be killed or kept as a prisoner. It’s more an examination of the human aspect in war, but this time, Fessenden adds another layer by bringing in questions of trust. The German soldier offers information about the oncoming enemy advance, but the American soldiers are split on whether to believe him or not.

The World War I story utilizes some nice plants and payoffs, as well as a stoic, hard-to-read performance from the German (Alex Breaux). Breaux’s stone-faced soldier really amps up the suspense, as the audience (and the American soldiers) aren’t entirely sure if he is telling the truth to save himself or giving them bad information. 

The final segment is in a modern foxhole this time, with the soldiers confined to a humvee in the Iraq War. We get a better sense of friendship and closeness among the soldiers this time, as they laugh and joke during their trek through the desert. This is quickly broken up by an enemy attack on the vehicle. Fessenden orchestrates a different kind of tension, with a full-on firefight taking place from inside the vehicle. It’s an intense, chaotic, thrilling sequence. Every bullet that hits metal, every time one of the soldiers opens the door to shoot, is a white knuckle moment. The action eventually opens to include the desert location, and again, Fessenden puts together a well-choreographed and directed series of action shots as the American soldiers quickly find themselves badly outnumbered.

Foxhole should be applauded for not only making great use of its limited resources to tell compelling and complex stories but also for the themes that it so boldly chooses to explore. Each story unspools like an excellent stage play, heavy on character and thematic exploration. While such ambitions can sometimes spiral beyond the scope and grasp of the director and the actors, everyone is up to the task here. 

8 out of 10