SAN DIEGO — In an unusually direct way, the Marine Corps is warning reservists and their families about the alienation and psychological pain that Marines can feel when returning to civilian life after duty in a war zone.
A video titled "Worlds Apart" made by a San Diego production company warns that even well-meaning civilians cannot be expected to understand what it is like to serve in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The story has actors portraying a returning enlisted Marine named Jeff; his wife, Eileen; and their friends and family members. At first, Jeff's return is joyous, but he soon becomes sullen and angry and begins drinking heavily and withdrawing emotionally from Eileen and their young son. Their marriage deteriorates.
Jeff tries college but thinks of quitting. He is particularly annoyed at comments by civilians who know about Iraq only from "reading blogs or watching freaking CNN."
The second half of the video has actual Marines and family members talking about their readjustment problems. After a short statement from a colonel, the screen shows several dozen Web addresses of military and civilian agencies offering mental health and other assistance.
"I thought it was pretty amazing that the Marine Corps was willing to take some risks with this project," said Brent Altomare, owner of the production company Groovy Like a Movie, whose other clients include San Diego's annual gay pride parade.
The 33-minute video was made under a $120,000 contract between Altomare's company and the Marine Corps Mobilization Command.
Based in Kansas City, Mo., the Mobilization Command is the "parent command" for what are called individual augmentees: Marines who were close to finishing their reserve obligation and were not part of a battalion or unit but were called to active duty to fill vacancies.
With manpower stretched by two wars, all the services are relying heavily on reservists. The Pentagon on Wednesday reported that 8,275 Marine reservists are on active duty.
Many do not live near Camp Pendleton, Twentynine Palms or another Marine base, so their families do not have easy access to the support systems that the Marine Corps has cobbled together to help stay- behind spouses during a deployment and then assist couples when the deployment is complete.
The video is part of a push by the Mobilization Command to fill that void.
