"Every War Has Two Losers" tells the story of how one man, William Stafford (1914-1993), choose to answer the call to war. It is a story of confronting beliefs that swirl around war - Isn't war inevitable? Even necessary? What about the enemy? Stafford refused to fight in World War Two and served four years in camps for conscientious objectors.
--from the film's website.
On the same day I found a video online about poetry and war, The Stafford Archives posted a link to the newly released documentary on William Stafford's writings on war. The film is entitled "Every Was Has Two Losers," the same name as the book that collected WS's writings on peace and war.
The film is directed by Haydn Reiss. The website can be found at everywar.com.
Poets and writers featured in the film include Coleman Barks, Robert Bly, John Gorka, Maxine Hong Kingston, Michael Meade, M.S. Merwin, Naomi Shihab Nye, Kim Stafford, and Alice Walker. Even if you've never heard of William Stafford, it would be worth to see the film just for these great voices.
If the film is anything like the trailer, it should be pretty good. I'm hoping to get my hands on a copy of the dvd sometime, so check back to this blog in the next couple months for a review.
For now, here's the trailer.
