Conflict has long been mediated by representations that justify horror and exaggerate accomplishment. For the performative to rule over the truth, powers have been employing custom made fictions to s(t)imulate emotions and generate symbols that can assure lasting illusions. Presenting the first chapter of her ongoing research on the military-entertainment complex, Badlands (the second time as a farce) explores archival material of the US Fort Irwin National Training Center. Known as The Box, Fort Irwin is a training centre where the US Army tests battle tactics and the readiness of troops before their deployment to real combat zones. Modelled on real life Afghan and Iraqi villages, with citizens from both countries employed to role play across the space. Interrupting the never-ending cycle of imagined conflicts that play out across its architectures, the centre opens its doors to the public twice a month for guided tours. Responding to this touristic turn, Mansour's film weaves into its narrative a speculative museum tour that guides viewers into the hell of images wrought by centuries of French colonialism.