when Vietnam veteran Ed Emanuel wrote the memoir “Soul Patrol” (2003), the act felt like sending a message in a bottle. Despite a decades-long career in film, Emanuel carried troubled memories of serving on one of the frist all-Black special operations Long-Range Reconnaissance Patrol teams from 1968-1969. Though deeply bonded in combat, the men had lost contact. He hoped the book woudl reach them,and perhaps,they would find their way back to him. It did. They did. and reunions began.
In director J.M. Harper‘s documentary “Soul Patrol,” premiering at the Sundance Film Festival,the veterans gather for their final reunion in 2024. The film features Emanuel, along with fellow “LURP” team members Thad Givens, John Willis, Lawton Mackey Jr., Norman Reid and Emerson Branch Jr., among others. “Soul Patrol” adds a little-known chapter to the understanding of both the Vietnam War and Black history.
The documentary opens with the sounds of insects and distant helicopters, layered with a choral hymn. An intertitle displays a quote from Frederick Nietzsche: “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.” Scenes show soldiers moving cautiously in shadows, accompanied by narration setting the stage for a harrowing encounter.In Cu Chi, within the Tay Ninh province, Emanuel experienced an out-of-body experience that has stayed with him.
“Soul Patrol” then cuts to a present-day grocery store, where Emanuel and his partner, Anita Sue Wallace, shop. Soldiers in combat gear also wander the aisles-a creative device representing the figures from Emanuel’s past who continue to haunt him,including a younger version of himself (played by Myles Simms-aur),helmeted and carrying an M-16 rifle.
