Diksha Sundriyal
Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s war drama film, ‘Warfare,’ presents a visceral side of war that doesn’t romanticise its characters or their struggles. It paints a highly realistic portrait of what happens in a highly-charged situation such as this. The film is incredibly impactful because it is a picture painted from the memory of the soldiers who were actually in that situation. It begins with a Navy SEAL team setting up camp in a building in war-torn Iraq to surveil it for the next day, when the troops are supposed to cross it. However, their surveillance mission turns awry when the enemy attacks them, and they must fight for survival. One of the men who received the worst brunt of the situation was Joe Hildebrand, who is named Sam in the movie.
Joe Hildebrand Survived and Persevered Against All Odds
Growing up in a small town in Arkansas, Joe Hildebrand knew he was meant for bigger things, which is why he decided to join the military services to put his energies to good use. He had always been an athletic person and believed that the military would know how to use his talents. He was proven right when he became a Navy SEAL. He started as a Seabee, but quickly rose through the ranks and served as Command Master Chief by the time he was to be retired. Through his 26 years in service, he served with SEAL Teams ONE, THREE, and FIVE through some of their deadliest and high-risk missions, including but not limited to the Battle of Ramadi.
During the mission in November 2006, Joe received serious injuries when an IED blew up right as his team was making their way out of the building where they knew they would be trapped soon enough. Due to his proximity to the blast, he sustained the wounds that seemed fatal at first glance. He had bilateral tibia and fibula fractures and experienced extensive soft tissue damage. The injuries were so severe that one of his fibulas remains broken even now. His condition was so bad that the doctors told him that he might never be able to walk again. However, Joe was nothing if not a fighter.
He did not pay attention to the limitations being put on him. It took multiple rounds of reconstructive surgery, which included fitting his legs with nails and rods and borrowing muscle and mass from one part of his body to heal another. But at the end of the day, things worked out so well that Joe was back on his feet soon enough. Even after the surgeries, full recovery was a long way ahead, but he was not deterred by the challenge. He did whatever was necessary to stay steady on his road to recovery. Eventually, not only did he stand, but he could also run. Being back on his feet was not enough; he wanted to go back to the service, and he was welcomed with open arms, serving as a BUD/S instructor and demolition platoon chief, to begin with.
Joe Hildebrand Enjoys Being a Family Man Today
As of writing, Joe Hildebrand lives in Imperial Beach in San Diego County, California, with his wife, Cara Lee, and their two children. He has three other children from his first marriage. After giving more than two and a half decades of his life to the service, he retired from the Navy in 2021 as Command Master Chief. Since then, he has worked in defense technology, but he is also interested in exploring new avenues. Apart from this, he is working on a memoir, titled ‘Alone in the Platoon Space,’ in which he talks in-depth about his experience as a Navy SEAL, his injuries, and most importantly, his road to recovery, which required all of his resilience and patience.
Speaking of the tragic incident that left a permanent mark on him and his friends and colleagues, Joe revealed that all of them had internalised the feelings about the incident. These feelings only came out when they started working on ‘Warfare,’ where he and the others served as consultants, especially when it came to sharing their own perspectives and memories of the day, which is the core pillar of the film. He described it as a cathartic experience that has allowed him to finally heal. Apart from the movie, Joe has talked about his experience on several podcasts and other public appearances over the years.
While he is a busy, laser-focused person on the public and professional front, he is more easygoing when it comes to his private life. Away from the chaos of his work, he likes to spend time with his wife and children. He enjoys taking his younger ones to the beach, where they often spend the entire day together, walking around and having fun. Joe has also stayed in touch with his athletic side. He proved wrong the doctors who believed he could never walk again. He likes to run and keeps himself in as good shape as possible. He also keeps expanding his horizons by learning new things and harbours a love for travelling to far and wide places.
Read More: Elliott Tribute on Warfare: Where is He Now?
