Actor and filmmaker Jake Rademacher’s younger brother, Joe, who was an Army ranger sniper at the time, was dubious when Rademacher first told him that he planned to capture his and his brother Isaac’s deployment to Iraq in 2005.
According to Rademacher, “He did not get it, but he went along with it because he is my brother,”
Joe was anxious at the 2009 Brothers at War movie premiere. According to Rademacher, 49, “all his buddies from sniper school were in the audience, and it was a very personal look at him.” However, the movie was given a standing ovation. “It was a pivotal moment when he realized that they were acknowledging me rather than passing judgment on me.”
Gary Sinise was first invited on board as the film’s executive producer because of that kind of unadulterated insight—veterans sharing their stories and supporting other veterans. The actor, who has a lengthy history of reaching out to veterans, says of the Forrest Gump and CSI: NY film, “I was so taken by it and moved by it.” “It was the ideal visual representation of military family life.”
Joe was completely on board when Rademacher turned to his siblings once more for his upcoming documentary, “Brothers After the War,” which documents the difficulties they and other veterans have had after returning home from combat. And even his older brother was taken aback by the manner he opened up.
Joe, who has served nine deployments abroad, tells Rademacher that years before he returned home, he was in his garage with his finger on a gun’s trigger, preparing to commit suicide. This is one of the film’s most moving scenes. Many veterans are all too familiar with this situation: the suicide rate among veterans is double the national average, and over 6,000 veterans lose their lives to suicide each year.
Rademacher explains, “His story is at the very heart of this film,” referring to his brother, a 39-year-old banker who is married and has five children. “We have discovered that talking about your experiences is how you start to heal from them, and he really understood by opening up and telling me something he is never told me before. It is going to tell other veterans it is okay to be vulnerable and talk.”
According to Sinise, Joe’s tale and the lives of many other veterans Rademacher follows in Brothers After the War, which opens in select theaters across the country on February 28, teach us another lesson. Sinise, who also executive produced the second movie, says, “At the end of the film, you see he is a happy family guy.” “We want veterans to understand that. We want them to move on. Take stock of your war years, but do not let them define you in any way. You can move on and lead a fulfilling life.”
In order to support soldiers, first responders, and their families, Sinise established the Gary Sinise Foundation in 2011. The foundation has provided $150,000 worth of movie tickets. Sinise states, “I have carried the story of Lt. Dan since I played the part, and it is very positive.” The Foundation has also supported seminars that have conducted discussions with veterans and screened Brothers At War and Brothers After the War. “It is fantastic that Lt. Dan finds peace at the end, and we want that story for everyone who serves our country.
