The ICE documentary as chilling as a horror movie: ‘We’re trying to put the audience in a position of terror’
Film-makers Laura Poitras and Rachel Lauren Mueller’s new short is an unvarnished portrait of ICE-occupied Minneapolis
TL;DR
- The documentary 'They're Here' by Laura Poitras and Rachel Lauren Mueller employs horror tropes to examine the ICE surge in Minneapolis.
- The film covers the 'Operation Metro Surge' campaign aimed at removing the Somali immigrant population and destabilizing progressive politics.
- It features dashcam footage, counter-surveillance, and crowdsourced video to show residents evading and resisting ICE agents.
- The documentary captures moments of violence, including agents using gas masks and smoke bombs, and physically assaulting protesters.
- Personal testimonies, like that of Edén Villa, are central to breaking the operation out of the news cycle into art.
- The film highlights the history of resistance in Minneapolis, linking it to past movements and the uprising after George Floyd's murder.