Band of Brothers - Part II

Band of Brothers

Director: David Leland (Part 6), David Frankel (Part 7), Tony To (Part 8), 

David Frankel (Part 9) and Mikael Salomon (Part 10)

Year: 2001

Starring: Damian Lewis, Ron Livingston, Donnie Wahlberg, Scott Grimes, Matthew Settle and Neal McDonough

     The series continues with Part 6, Bastogne, as Easy Company is ordered to defend the Bastogne forest in Belgium. This was an infamous battle during the war, as the soldiers had been ordered to defend with little to no ammo, no winter clothing, and no supplies of any kind. The strain of fighting non-stop since jumping on D-Day is starting to take it's toll on the soldiers. They look tired, and worn out, and most have grown beards (this could be due to the fact they had no facilities to actually shave their face, but it helps give the impression that these characters are just worn out). The episode is also told from the point of view of the character Doc Roe, which is interesting because he hasn't really had any time to shine. The only downside, is he really doesn't make much of an appearance after this episode. 

     Episode 7, The Breaking Point, finishes the campaign in Bastogne, and Winters, having been given command of the entire regiment, now has to watch terribly inexperienced officer Norman Dyke try and lead these soldiers. The combat scenes in this episode are fantastic, and it's a turning point for Norman Dyke as a character. Throughout the entire episode, Norman Dyke is portrayed as someone everybody hates because of his pretentious attitude and inexperience as an officer. As a viewer, you really want this guy to fail hard, and he finally cracks under pressure, leaving Ronald Spears to take over the mission, and ultimately, the entire company. This episode is mostly told from Carwood Lipton's perspective, much like the previous episode. 

     The eighth episode is narrated by David Webster, who's been absent for a few episodes. He's re-integrated into the unit, and having missed the entire Bastogne campaign, is faced with hostility. We're introduced to a new 2nd Lt., Lt. Jones (played by Tom Hanks' real life son Colin), who leads in what turns out to be Easy Company's last patrol (hence the title of the episode). The War isn't over yet, but the combat is very limited, and the rest of the series doesn't feature any fighting. It sounds dull, given what this mini-series is about, but it still has a lot to offer. 

     The ninth episode of the series, Why We Fight, is one of the most shocking episode, and it reminds you of the other horrors the war had besides the conflict. In the episode, Easy Company comes across a Jewish Concentration Camp. The way the camp is depicted is very effective. In fact, for most of the time the characters are exploring the camp to see what they can do, there is very little dialogue. It's effective enough that it speaks for itself. The reactions of the character's faces is enough, and it's another moment where the casting really paid off. The majority of the episode deals with this camp, and the relief the military offers. It leaves an impression, and even more so when you are reminded that something like this was real. 

     The series' swan song episode, Points, wraps up any story left, and it leaves the show with a bang. At this point, the war with Europe is over, so most of the time the characters are doing very standard, almost clerical duties. They slowly earn points, which will give them an opportunity to finally go home, and the dialogue is what keeps the episode going. It does get a little slow at times, but given the circumstances, and the nature of the episode, there wasn't much for the characters to do. The episode slowly sends off every major character that's been with the series since the beginning. It's a nice little touch, because we've been with most of these characters for a while, and to give them a proper goodbye was the right thing to do. The end of the episode shows Major Winters announcing that the war with Japan is over. The war is finally done, and it's been a long haul. Winters narrates the ending, explaining what happened to each major character after the war, and it gives the viewer some closure. Each episode opened with actual veterans giving their interpretations of the events, but their identities remained anonymous. The final episode broke that tradition and saved it for the end, where they are finally revealed who they are. It's a nice, last loose end to tie up, and it's always nice to know that these people were real, and did the fighting for us. 

     Band of Brothers is nothing short of a masterpiece. Every second has been carefully planned, and to be quite frank, they didn't fuck around with this one. It's got a great balance of combat, character, locations, and overall storytelling that gives you a unique, and exciting, experience from beginning to end. 

Band of Brothers - Part I

Band of Brothers

Director: Phil Alden Robinson (Part 1), Richard Loncraine (Part 2), Mikael Salomon (Part 3), David Nutter (Part 4) and Tom Hanks (Part 5)

Year: 2001

Starring: Damian Lewis, Ron Livingston, Donnie Wahlberg, Scott Grimes, Matthew Settle and 

Neal McDonough

     There is literally nothing I can say about Band of Brothers that hasn't been said before. It is literally one of the finest war movies ever made. Yes it's actually a 10 part miniseries, but I've always seen it as a 10 hour movie. It technically doesn't fit the criteria for this list, but this production is just too epic to not be included. 

     The mini-series is based off the book of the same name by Stephen E. Ambrose, and it's about the exploits of "Easy Company" of the 101st Airborne. Easy Comany was one of the most prolific regiments in the European campaign. Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg's (although most of the work was actually done by Hanks and Erik Jenderson, with Spielberg basically just attaching his name to the title) true colours are shown in this production, because it's evident right from the start how much time and energy they spent adapting the novel. The put it simply, they didn't fuck around with this one. 

     The first episode starts with the introduction of all the major characters we'll see through most, if not all, the episodes of the series. Acting as a framing character in every episode, Damian Lewis plays Richard Winters, the (after episode 2 Day of Days) commanding officer of Easy Company. Lewis gives what I would regard as his greatest performance, and his defining role. He's known these days in an equally awesome (but drastically different) role on Homeland. Several episodes actually focus on him, but his involvement in each can change, and it lets other characters have their moment. 

     That's one of the best elements of this series: the characters. We get to know so many different members of Easy Company, especially during the first episode when they are at the training grounds. The first is actually played by David Schwimmer (yeah, Ross from Friends). Herbert Sobel was Easy's original commanding officer, who was quickly replaced before the D-Day invasion. Schwimmer actually does a decent job, but after this episode, you're relieved he only shows up in small cameos in later episodes. Ron Livingston plays Lewis Nixon, another Easy Company commander, and Winter's confidant. He doesn't take part in the actual combat, preferring to stay behind the scenes so to speak. The chemistry between Lewis and Livingston feels really natural, and you get a sense that these two are really friends. They have their moments, and a lot of the humor actually come from these two character's exchanges. 

     The second episode begins with the D-Day invasion, and it's easily one of the most memorable moments from the entire series. The episode follows Winters' jump, and rendevous with men from his unit. From there they proceed to find others, and accomplish their various missions. Andrew Scott has a small role in this episode, and he would achieve greater fame for playing Jim Moriarty on Sherlock. The episode ends with Easy Company taking out a battery of German Artillery. 

     Episode 3, titled Carentan, is about the capture of the French town of the same name. Carentan was a strategic military stronghold, and if the allies had control of it, it would create a seamless link between Utah and Omaha beach. Easy Company captures the town. This episode centers heavily on a soldier named Albert Blithe, and it tells both stories simultaneously. In the end he is shot in the neck and taken out of commission. The series incorrectly states he dies in 1948, but research revealed that he actually survived and died almost 20 years later. Inconsistencies were bound to happen, but the Blu - Ray release has a new documentary explaining, including Blythe's death, the various inconsistencies. 

     Episode 4, Replacements, is where the writing really starts to hit you. After all the events of Carentan, Easy Company has had expected casualties. Familiar characters have died, and new soldiers are brought in to join the ranks. The veterans of D-Day are initially hostile towards these soldiers, and as a viewer, you find yourself not taking too kindly to these characters as well. It shows how well you got to know the characters, and like Easy Company, you felt like you were a part of this brotherhood. This episode also takes the soldiers out of Normandy and beings the failed Operation Market Garden. James McAvoy has a small role in this episode, but sadly perishes as quickly as he arrives. 

     Episode 5 Crossroads deals with Operation Pegasus, a rescue mission involving the Canadian Engineers. It's actually over pretty fast, and the majority of the episode, actually told in a flashback as Winters writes a report, is about fighting the remaining German resistance. It's pretty exciting, and creates a moment that starts to define Winters. He constantly  has flashbacks after shooting a German teenage soldier at the beginning of the episode, and it's something that becomes a recurring character trait in the rest of the series. Winters has to deal with his actions, and enhances his character even more, creating a lot more depth for him.

Be sure to check out Part II on the last day of our Month of Remembrance

Beau Geste

Beau Geste

Director: William A. Wellman

Year: 1939

Starring: Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston, Brian Donlevy and Broderick Crawford

     I've stated before that I thought there weren't many war movies about the French Foreign Legion. Turns out, I was wrong. In fact, the novel this film was based on was adapted four times over a period of 57 years. This version is actually the second adaptation, the first being a silent film released in 1926. This has become the most famous version, as Gary Cooper became a huge star, winning an Academy Award not long after the release of this film. 

     The film is about three brothers, Beau (Cooper), Digby (Robert Preston) and John Geste (Ray Milland) as they run off and join the Legion to escape consequence for stealing their adoptive aunt's sapphire called "The Blue Water". The sapphire itself becomes a MacGuffin, because the entire film revolves around this particular gem. It's never clear who took it, or why, and it remains a mystery until the very end of the film. 

     While the majority of the film is set at a fort in the Morrocan desert, the film's primary emphasis is on the Geste brothers, particularly Beau, the title character. The film actually begins near the end of the film, and a string of unexplained events occur, culminating with the fort burning down. It's interesting because nothing is explained, but you want to know why. It then skips to 15 years into the past as we meet the three brothers as children. It's here we are introduced to the idea of the characters joining the Legion, and it gives us an idea who these characters are, and what role they will play later in the film.
     The film follows the brothers as they train, and become, soldiers of the Legion. Word gets out that one of the brothers is a diamond thief, and they face a lot of hostile characters. As time goes on, the soldiers plan a mutiny against their commanding officer, but the penalties are put on hold as the fort is attacked by the locals. In an enduring struggle, they hold off a very large army, and the fort starts to become familiar looking.
     At this point, it's clear that the fort seen at the beginning of the film is the same one the Geste brothers occupy. Dead soldiers are put up to look like they are still fighting, and more and more soldiers perish in the continuing battle. Finally, at the end only a few remain, and the army we saw at the beginning of the film (which contains the third of the Geste brothers, Digby, who was separated and appointed to a new unit halfway through the film), and the unexplained events finally start to make sense, and the film wraps up the rest of the story, giving it a solid, and somewhat uplifting, end.
     Beau Geste is one of the finest films about the French Foreign Legion ever made. The combat scenes, while they take a while to show up, pay off as it's as exciting as a modern war movie like Saving Private Ryan. Gary Cooper is as bad ass as he always is, and gives a remarkable performance. The film's success, and many adaptations later actually led to a parody film appropriately titled The Last Remake of Beau Geste (although the novel would be adapted one more time following this film) directed by and starring Marty Feldman in 1977. Beau Geste remains one of Gary Cooper's best roles, and a classic of the genre.

All Quiet on the Western Front

All Quiet on the Western Front

Director: Lewis Milestone

Year: 1930

Starring: Louis Wolheim, Lew Ayres, Ben Alexander and William Bakewell

     I've said before that films depicting the First World War are few and far between, but they were some of the earliest war movies made. All Quiet on the Western is one of the earliest, and one of the best. The film is also known for being produced by Carl Laemmle Jr, the man who one year later would launch the successful Universal Monster movies Dracula and Frankenstein, and would continue to do so for the rest of the decade. The film also holds the distinction of being the first film to win both the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Director in the same year. 
     As a war movie, it's fantastic. The film gives one of the most brutal, but realistic, depictions of the war. The combat scenes in the trenches are some of the best I've personally seen in film, and it makes you appreciate how at one time, everything that you saw happened on screen. The production value in these scenes is the film's high point, as the battlefields and trenches are recreated to the point where you feel like you yourself are in there with the characters.
     The characters themselves is another high point of the film. You are introduced to a small group of German students who all enlist together. As they endure training and the actual battles themselves, they are clearly affected by their surroundings. The film does a great balancing act in this way. It will show a shocking combat scene, and them the characters discuss the events and how they were affected. It doesn't sound too interesting, but it's effective because the filmmakers used this opportunity to develop how the characters slowly change as a result of the conflict. These characters go from naive, gun-ho students to hardened, almost lifeless soldiers over the course of the film.
     The film, even over 83 years later, is still shocking in how it represents the war. The film has an anti-war feel to it, much like Stanley Kubrick's Paths of Glory. The film keeps you hooked from beginning to end, and is still to this day one of the greatest portrayals of the horrors of war ever put to screen.
   

Platoon

Platoon

Director: Oliver Stone

Year: 1986

Starring: Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe and Tom Berenger

     Oliver Stone has had a very successful career, directing some of the most well-known and critically praised films over the last 2 and a half decades. Platoon would be the beginning of this era. It's actually a very personal film for Stone because the film is partly based on his own experiences in Vietnam, having been a veteran of the war himself. 

     Charlie Sheen steps into Oliver Stone's shoes as the character based on the director. Sheen gives a surprisingly good performance. He plays an inexperienced soldier who is doing his first tour of Vietnam. Appropriately, he's shocked, surprised, upset, and so on. He's got a bunch of mixed emotions about the actual conflict, and it's what makes him the most identifiable character in the film (Imagine that, Charlie Sheen playing a character YOU can identify with).

     Joining the cast is veteran bad ass Tom Berenger as Sgt. Bob Barnes, a gun-ho NCO with a knack for combat. His tough exterior, his experience in the field, and his facial scars make him an intimidating force to be reckoned with. He never lets up the entire film, and surprisingly, being the one character you'd think would make it, he doesn't survive until the end. What makes this performance stand out, is Berenger is playing a hardened soldier with a sense of emotional depth. You really feel like there's a reason for the way he is, and the way Berenger plays it, although he never shows any ounce of vulnerability, you know it's there. 

     Willem Dafoe gives an equally-praised performance as Sgt. Elias. Dafoe's character is at odds with Berenger's, and the two finally having a confrontation a little more than halfway through the film. Barnes shoots Elias, and tells the others he was killed by enemy infantry. It's after this scene that Elias emerges from the jungle, and as he's actually shot by the enemy, he raises his hands  as if he's shouting "WHY!", creating the most iconic image from the film. Dafoe's Elias is a direct polar opposite to Berenger's Barnes. Elias becomes Sheen's mentor and friend, while Barnes does nothing but harass and taunt the same character. It's an interesting look at two different views, effectively pulled off  by both the actors. Both Dafoe and Berenger were nominated for Academy Awards for their portrayals, but neither won. It's a rare feat when two actors from the same film are nominated for the same award, and it was deserved here. 

     The film is one of the Oliver Stone's best, and I would consider it one of the finest Vietnam war films ever made. It doesn't glamorize anything about the conflict, and it gives off a slight anti-war message, but it's effective. Apparently Stone wanted to make the film as a direct counter to John Wayne's The Green Berets, which he felt did nothing but showcase the glamour of conflict (and John Wayne of course). Watch out for Johnny Depp in an early role as Lerner, Forrest Whitaker as Big Harold, and Keith David as King in what is easily one of the best films from 1986. 

Casablanca

Casablanca

Director: Michael Curtiz

Year: 1942

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains, Conrad Veidt and Peter Lorre

     I've often said that romance has no place in war movies. Casablanca is an exception. To call this film a war movie is technically inaccurate. It's really a romance-drama that happens to take place during World War II, but the war plays a significant part. It could literally go either way. Nevertheless, it's got Humphrey Bogart, so it really doesn't matter if it's actually a war movie or not. 

     Bogart gives an excellent performance in what I would consider his career-defining role. He plays Rick Blaine, an American running a nightclub called "Rick's Café Américain" in Casablanca, Morocco. The club attracts many individuals, including the locals, fellow Americans, and even members of the German Army occupy the bar. It almost reminds you of the cantina scene in Star Wars, only without the many different aliens. 

     Rick is a complicated character, and Bogart's performance gives you that impression right off the bat. Without saying anything, you  have a feeling there is more to the character than he lets on, and the supporting characters make reference to this, albeit in casual passing, and it creates a mystery about him. It's not until Ingrid Bergman's Ilsa Lund character enters the bar, and it all makes sense. You know these two are connected somehow, and the film gradually explores their past, eventually using a flashback explaining their prior relationship. 

     Bergman and Bogart are easily the most memorable part of the entire film. Their chemistry is flowing, and the two play off each other really well. Casting can make or break a film, and there's something about Bergman and Bogart that just really works. You really start feeling for these characters. It's a shame that Ingrid Bergman was passed over that the Academy Awards, as she's just as effective as Bogart. 

     The film has become iconic, and a classic of Hollywood cinema. Mad Men's Don Draper is very similar to Bogart in this film, as they both play two characters torn between two different ideas (It helps that they look the same) and Bogart reminds you that you didn't need to be an 80s action star to look bad ass. The film has had a lasting impact, even today, as the memorable lines, the performances and the overall story will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. 

Zulu

Zulu

Director: Cy Endfield

Year: 1964

Starring: Michael Caine, Stanley Baker and Jack Hawkins

     When you watch a film like Zulu, you remember that war movies are not limited to World War I, World War II and Vietnam. It seems that way as those are the most popular subjects when it comes to this type of film. Zulu shows that war movies don't necessarily have to be about any iconic war, but just an iconic battle to be good. 

     The film dramatizes the events at the Battle of Rorke's Drift in January 1879. The British were at war with the Zulu people, and this battle is one of the most remembered events, as 150 British soldiers successfully held over 4000 Zulu warriors. It shares many similarities to the Battle of Thermopylae, where 300 Spartans held off the Persian army in the same fashion (and yes, it did form the basis for 300, which is not historically accurate, but it's still a damn fine film). 

     Among the cast is legendary actor Michael Caine in his big screen debut. He joins the ranks with veteran actors Stanley Baker and Jack Hawkins. While he didn't receive top billing because he was a new actor, DVD releases today use Caine's image to promote the film, even taking up over 50% of the DVD artwork. 

     The film's strength is not Michael Caine, however. The real stars are the Zulu extras themselves, who were real Zulu people. Everything they do in the film is authentic, and it gives the film even more credibility. Most Hollywood films would hire extras that resembled the Zulu people, but Cy Endfield chose to shoot the film in South Africa and use the locals. It gives you the opportunity to see some Zulu customs, such as dances and celebrations, but also their military strengths. 

     The film takes a little bit of time, but it gives all the major characters appropriate screen time, so we as an audience can get to know them better. Remember, there weren't very many of these people here, and most of them were wounded. It helps you identify with these people, and when the impressive number of Zulu people start closing in on their attack, you really feel for them, and you feel as helpless as the characters simply because there's nothing you can do. 

     That's another great element to the film. The battle scenes between the Zulus and the British are superb, and the contrast between the British guns and Zulu shields and spears is effective, because even though the Zulus are a lot more primitive, they come off a lot more intimidating. It really shows the strength of the Zulu people, and that modern technology isn't always better.

     The film ends with an epic climax that culminates in the end of the Battle of Rorke's Drift. Zulu demonstrates that any war, that is any famous battle, can make a good film, regardless of the time it was set. Cy Endfield even wrote and directed a prequel, Zulu Dawn, in 1979. Everything about the film, from the excellent score by John Barry (who helped compose the James Bond Theme), Cy Endfield's direction, and the unintentionally humorous dialogue by Nigel Green's Colour Sargent Frank Bourne, Zulu is a classic war film that will entertain, and help you appreciate the history behind it.