ON THE FRONT LINES FX'S 'OVER THERE' AIMS TO BREAK GROUND IN DEPICTING THE REALISM AND IMMEDIACY OF THE IRAQ WAR.

Byline: Stories by Valerie Kuklenski Staff Writer

On a dusty northwest San Fernando Valley location, the new FX drama ``Over There'' is trying to bring to light the harsh realities of the Iraq war.

While shows set in wartime are nothing new, ``Over There'' is the first fictional series in television history to depict a real war while that war is still raging. The acclaimed series ``M*A*S*H,'' which was broadcast during the last years of war in Vietnam, was actually set during the Korean War.

Ten-time Emmy winner Steven Bochco says although he perceived cable network FX as open-minded and fearless with in-your-face shows like ``The Shield,''``Rescue Me'' and ``Nip/Tuck,'' he initially resisted its invitation to create a drama series about the Iraq war. He was concerned it might be viewed as a political statement.

``The second I take a political position (in a series), I'm alienating half my audience,'' he said. ``And I'm not doing the very thing a good drama's supposed to do in my estimation, which is to not provide answers but to ask provocative questions.''

He and writer-director Chris Gerolmo (``Mississippi Burning'') instead elected to home in on recent recruits (``the guys who carry out the orders'') and the family members they've left behind rather than on the war's policy-makers. And the pair's unflinching look at what happens on the front lines is likely to make ``Over There'' the most graphic depiction of the death and devastation of war ever shown in a television series.

Gerolmo says he is energized by writing about young adults who will grow and evolve because of their situation.

``In most television (shows), that doesn't happen. You have a hit, and the characters are going to stay exactly as they are for the next five years,'' he said. ``In our show, that's just not going to be true. These kids are 19 and 20 and 21 for the most part, and these kids haven't yet decided who they are - or, if they have, they're wrong.

``What we want to do is tell compelling stories about young people in circumstances in which they have to make split-second decisions that are literally matters of life and death.''

``Over There'' follows a unit in Iraq led by Chris ``Sgt. Scream'' Silas (Erik Palladino from ``ER''), who is angry that his yearlong tour has been extended and he has been given a unit of ``virgins,'' recruits fresh from basic training.

The series has a lot more action than real troops experience. Aside from that heightened reality for dramatic purposes, Bochco and Gerolmo are determined to keep the production as accurate as possible, from the handling of the weapons to the dialogue.

Before filming the pilot in the spring, the whole company went through a mock boot camp with the series' technical adviser, Sean Bunch, a Marine staff sergeant who took part in the Iraq invasion and now works full time with Gunmetalgroup, which consults with film and television productions on military matters.

``I've never done more than two push-ups in my life, and in my first 10 minutes in boot camp we had to do 20,'' actress Lizette Carrion recalled. ``We had to do these exercises where we ran with all our gear and our weapons and dropped face down and got up and ran uphill for half a mile.''

The experience not only groomed them for playing soldiers, it also braced them for enduring the July heat wave as they have been filming in full gear at Hidden Creeks Ranch north of Chatsworth. On one 102-degree afternoon, actors were repeatedly misted to create the beads of sweat that Mother Nature evaporated too quickly. Adding to the heat, the special-effects crew created an impressive explosion with eight charges, a pile of crumbled cork, a load of peat moss and mulch and, for that extra punch, 2 gallons of gasoline. Then they set three stuntmen on fire. Shortly after that, makeup artist and ``blood and guts'' guy Bill Myer was strewing foam body parts in the vicinity of the blast.

``I don't think any show on TV has this type of dramatic action,'' said stunt coordinator Ron Stein. ``This is definitely feature (film) stuff.''

For his part, Bunch says that one thing he's trying to do is show the writers that ``there is more of a camaraderie and a brotherhood today than there was during the Vietnam War when you had a bunch of draftees, a lot of guys who didn't want to be there.''

While ``Over There'' is already garnering positive reviews, the most important responses may be those of the men and women on duty in Iraq and their families back home.

``This is an edgy show on an edgy network. It's definitely going to be more controversial than a show like 'JAG,' which was endorsed (by the Department of Defense) for most of the episodes,'' said Bunch, who has consulted on ``JAG'' and ``NCIS.'' ``This show is definitely going to hit some nerves.''

That may start with the premiere episode, in which one core character is seriously wounded.

``It's war,'' Bochco said, explaining that decision. ``People get maimed, people get killed. The fact that you may love them doesn't insulate them from harm's way.''

Palladino says some will object to a series set in the midst of the war. ``Well, is it inappropriate because they are uncomfortable with people remembering we are still at war? Is that a bad thing?''

Bunch predicted that the soldiers in Iraq, who have plenty of downtime, will be anxious to see the series from the moment the first episode is available on DVD. It is being released in that format on Tuesday.

``If I knew a show was coming out about what I was doing in Iraq, I'm sure I would want to see it,'' he said. ``There's a big bootleg industry over there, and I'm sure this DVD will be bootlegged over there, too.''

If the United States' involvement in Iraq were to end next year, Bochco says that should not affect the future of the series.

``We've been there long enough that it would seem to me the only real difference would be that, instead of doing a show about a war that's ongoing, you'd be doing a show about a war that is gone.

``But I have to tell you, if the price for everybody coming home tomorrow is that we couldn't make this show anymore, where do I sign?''

Valerie Kuklenski, [phone]

valerie.kuklenski(at)dailynews.com

A song in his heart led to 'Over There'

On March 19, 2003, screenwriter and musician Chris Gerolmo was inspired to write a ballad about the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the fears of young soldiers and their families.

He took the title from its refrain, ``Over There,'' which is the beginning and end of its parallel to the upbeat march-tempo George M. Cohan tune from World War I.

A year and a half later, Gerolmo and Steven Bochco were bouncing around ideas for a proposed FX drama series about Army privates and noncommissioned officers in Iraq.

``I turned to him at one point and said, 'Can we call the show ``Over There''?' And he said, 'Yeah, that sounds great.' And I said, 'I wrote this song, and it could be really good.' And he said, 'That's nice.' ''

`` 'And I want to sing it.' And he just laughed.'' Bochco consented to let Mike Post, perhaps TV's best-known composer, pass judgment on Gerolmo's song, which bears influences of Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen. He presented a rough demo to Post, who he says ``blanched'' when Gerolmo said he hoped to record it himself for the theme. But Gerolmo laid it down with his acoustic guitar, and Post added a couple of other musicians' tracks. The result makes its TV debut tonight.

Gerolmo is but one of several members of the ``Over There'' company with a musical bent, and he hopes to exploit those talents.

``We used one of (rapper/actor Kirk 'Sticky' Jones') songs in the pilot,'' Gerolmo said. ``Erik Palladino has a raucous heavy-metal band, and we're going to use one of his cues, too.'' He hopes to incorporate recordings by actors Keith Robinson and Josh Henderson as well, and maybe Luke Macfarlane's cello.

For now, Gerolmo seems to be enjoying his music success as much as his high hopes for the series.

``You get involved with Steven Bochco and Mike Post, and suddenly all your dreams are coming true.''

OVER THERE

What: Drama about the Iraq war from the perspective of the troops on the ground and the families they've left behind.

Where: FX.

When: 10 tonight.

CAPTION(S):

4 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) SOLDIERS' STORY

Shot in the Valley, FX's `Over There' brings Iraq war home

(2 -- color) On the Chatsworth set of ``Over There,'' actors playing soldiers check out the aftermath of a suicide bombing.

(3 -- color) ``Over There'' offers graphic depictions of combat and other perils faced by soldiers, such as this scene featuring a suicide bomber.

(4 -- color) A stuntman playing an Iraqi soldier is launched through the air for a shot in ``Over There,'' which relies on a high number of stunts for an episodic TV series.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer

Box:

A song in his heart led to `Over There' (see text)