Band of Brothers
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Movie Reviews of Band of Brothers
Movie Review: An exceptional series about a remarkable group of men
Summary: 5 Stars
By any standard, this is easily one of the finest things ever done about World War II, or for that matter about any war. The series details the adventures of Easy Company of the 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne from their training in Georgia through D-Day and action in Belgium and into Germany. The reason that this mini-series is so successful is not hard to determine: no effort to make it as accurate and as good as possible was spared. In every detail, the show is as close to perfect as is possible.Who to praise first? One could easily start with the actors. The cast is absolutely first rate, and they not only are extraordinarily fine as actors, they also bear an amazing physical resemblance to the real life individuals whom they portray. If you look at the photos in the Stephen Ambrose book upon which the series was based or watch the documentary WE STAND ALONE TOGETHER, which featured interviews with the survivors of Easy Company, the likenesses are striking. Although the entire cast is superb, Damian Lewis pretty much steals the whole show as Winters. I love the quiet competence and confident leadership he projects in all his scenes. If I were to go to war myself, I would very much like to serve under someone like Winters. Unbelievably, Damian Lewis is English, which seems scarcely possible his accent is so natural. Ron Livingston is a wonderful surprise as Capt. Nixon. I had previously seen him in purely comic roles in SWINGERS and then in OFFICE SPACE, and while he definitely brings a mildly comic tone to this series, it isn't in the end a role that brings nothing but smiles. Eion Bailey is memorable in his role as Pvt. Webster, the Harvard educated noncom who wants to become a writer. He also is the character who allowed me to keep alive a boast I make to a friend that I can connect almost any movie or television show to Buffy the Vampire Slayer in one way or another (he appeared as one of the students who took on hyena-like qualities in the episode "The Pack" from the first season). The rest of the cast is always at least very good.
The technical aspects of the film are just off the chart. The film always looks and sounds great. Much like SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, many of the battle scenes have an almost tactile feel to them. Some feel so real that I as a viewer felt physically vulnerable. In a large number of the episodes I had that same sensation of almost being pulled into the film. In a large number of the battle scenes they employed handheld cameras, and that helped induce a "you were there" kind of experience. One of the greatest achievements was giving the illusion of the film being shot on location, while in fact nearly the entire film was shot on a huge lot in England. During filming it was remade constantly to recreate the various locations that were needed. There were some scenes filmed on location, but far fewer than one would have imagined.
All of this excellence meshes together to tell in superb fashion the tales of real human beings. Throughout one gets the sense that these are ordinary human beings who are called upon by the demands of history to do extraordinary things. All in all, this is a remarkable achievement, a landmark both of television and of filmmaking about World War Two. I can't imagine anyone seeing it finding it is any sense a disappointment.
Movie Review: Lessons of War in Finest Mini-Series Ever
Summary: 5 Stars
"Band of Brothers" is the most in-depth attempt by a film to depict the experience of a infantry rifleman in sustained modern combat. It faithfully follows Stephen Ambroses' wonderful book of the same title, tracing a company of paratroopers from the training camp at Toccoa to the end of the war at Hitler's mountain retreat in the Bavarian Alps. It benefits from an impeccable cast, modern post-Private Ryan battle effects, and incredible attention to detail. This is a grognard's must-have. And, like its soulmate "Private Ryan", due to its realism it renders most earlier and less-sophisticated WW2 films nearly unwatchable.
Company E (Easy), 506th Airborne Regiment participated in the three pivotal battles of the Western European Campaign in World War II: D-Day, Market Garden (the failed attempt to seize the Rhine River crossing in Holland), and at the siege of Bastogne during Hitler's December 1944 Ardennes Offensive. Because of their status as elite troops, the paratroopers were cold-bloodedly employed longer in battle, and against greater odds, than most equivalent units. A point made repeatedly in the film is the enormous turnover caused by casualties, as more and more of the long-term characters we become comfortable with are wounded, killed, or incapacitated by combat stress. Yet these troops were consistently thrown into the breach because of their reliability and lethal commitment to survive.
The most valuable aspect of the film, which is not peopled by big-name actors, is in portraying the plight of line infantrymen. The American method of waging war whether in World War II, Korea and especially Vietnam, imposed the burden of ground combat on a minority of units and individual soldiers at any given time. What happens to these soldiers is the stuff of Band of Brothers - and if this is the fate of elite troops, one can only imagine how more standard units filled with a mix of draftees and enlisted men fared. Ambroses's book and the movie follow the progression from the gung-ho D-Day battles to the first setback at Einhoven, and the frozen, starved soldiers torn apart by German artillery at Bastogne. Ultimately, some of these soldiers crack, and company commanders finally refuse to take risks pre-empting higher authority.
The book and film are both a "Greatest Generation" tribute and a lesson, in a way, a powerful anti-war statement of their own. Ambrose's moral is that every soldier, no matter how well trained or elite, has a "breaking point" beyond which he or she should not be expected to endure. The realties of modern war are such that unless the combat experience is in the context of a "splendid little war" such as Panama or the 1991 Gulf War, human beings were not meant to be exposed to a constant lethal environment for months on end. Seemingly this lesson has to be re-learned in every sustained war, including the one we are now in.
Must Read: Stepehn Ambrose's "Band of Brothers" and related titles. Other great related films: "Private Ryan" (of course), the German films "Das Boot" and "Stalingrad", and (a possible surprise here) "Memphis Belle."
Movie Review: Profoundly Moving
Summary: 5 Stars
I would have never thought I would be compelled to write a review for any movie at a website. This mini-series "Band of Brothers" moved me in such a profound way that I feel the need to express my gratitude to the filmmakers who brought this extraordinary masterpiece to television and DVD. Please, do yourself a service and buy/watch this DVD and have an experience. But, it's not for the faint of heart.The story follows the story of a group of soldiers (Easy Company, 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division) from boot camp in Georgia to Hitler's mountain palace at Berchtesgaden during WWII. The casualties are high. The pain is real. This is a true story that transcends being a mere film. You feel like you were allowed to go back in time and witness history in the making on a human level.
I was a television/film major in college, so I am familiar with filmmaking techniques. "Band of Brothers" is perhaps the best war film ever made in this country (or anywhere) period. It has the advantage of being a series - so it can go into depth like no 2-hour movie can. The main characters can be fully developed and are. The attention to detail is outstanding. The filmmakers even created the series with a washed-out color quality like an old color photograph, which gives the viewer a psychological sense of the 1940's.
You can feel the tension of the paratroopers approaching Normandy before the anti-aircraft fire. You feel the panic to escape the aircraft before it is hit. Many planes had to fly too low and too fast because of the clouds and the anti-aircraft fire. The first-person camera shot of one soldier leaving the aircraft was very well done.
An example of the wonderful attention to detail is a scene where the defeated German soldiers march down the middle of autobahn as the Americans drove into Germany. That shot exactly matched a WWII photograph I saw in a history book.
The acting is exceptional. You really feel that you know these people personally after a couple of hours. When somebody is wounded or dies, you feel the loss and the pain. When Lt. Winters shoots a young German soldier at close range, his pain comes through. You know he will be haunted by this image the rest of his life (he later sees the same face on a young Frenchman on the train in Paris).
I am not going to presume that I could ever know how it feels to be in a foxhole freezing with enemy shells tearing down trees all around me, or the shear terror of rushing a village with friends falling all around me and bullets wheezing by my ears, but this is as close as a film can take me. "Saving Private Ryan" was the only other war film that accomplished battle sights and sounds as real as "Band of Brothers".
This is a true tribute to Easy Company and all who died and sacrificed for our freedom. Every American should watch this series and the documentary at some time in their life. WWII was a long time ago, but we should not be quick to forget the real people that suffered, fought and died. Watch and learn. I had many a night in deep thought after watching every part of "Band of Brothers".
Movie Review: Almost Perfect
Summary: 5 Stars
The DVD release of "Band of Brothers" is an exceptionally high-quality home video product. For anyone interested in World War II or epic filmmaking, this is a must have.The set consists of six DVDs, five of which contain two episodes each. At first you may wonder where the audio and language options are when the main menu for each DVD appears. These menus appear once an episode title has been selected. The menu for each episode includes chapter selection, an episode summary, a variety of audio options, and in the package's only real failing, the option to have only Spanish subtitles or none at all. No English subtitles are available, so the hard-of-hearing or the script geeks (like me) who like to follow the text on the screen, will need to have TVs with built-in closed captioning.
The sixth DVD includes the documentary that was aired on HBO about the real men of Easy company, as well as trailers for upcoming episodes. Additonal video features include the premiere of the series at Normandy, where the actual veterans of Easy Company were in attendance. It is great to see the actors together with men they portrayed.
One feature found on every DVD, which I found incredibly useful, is the Field Guide. This has definitions of every military term used in the series. For those who have wondered about military ranks, this field guide has the complete listing of each rank, along with the appropriate isignia. Take a look at this before viewing, and the appearance of characters' uniforms will be much more meaningful.
For those who saw HBO's Golden Globe/Emmy winning mini-series when it was telecast, this DVD will be a welcome way to revisit and savor this great depiction of a true story (or rather, multiple true stories). For those who have not seen it, this is the one HBO product to have. Forget "The Sopranos," forget "Sex and the City." These are quirky products which are vastly over-rated by the critics. "Band of Brothers," on the other hand, is a monumental achievement for television, rivaling the dramatic intensity of "Saving Private Ryan," and far surpassing every other war movie released since then except for "Blackhawk Down," another true story. If you think that, because it was made for television, it will pale in comparison to its megaplex brethren, think again. "Band of Brothers" stages some jaw-dropping battle sequences, and follows the lives of a cavalcade of characters with deft skill. Acting, direction, editing, special effects, music...all are top-notch.
A few riveting moments:
Episode 2: Easy Company assaults and captures a German gun position that was firing on the landing parties at Normandy. The episode's epilog points out that this assault has become THE textbook example of how to attack a fixed position, and is still taught at military academies today.
Episode 3: Easy Company holds the line against an armored assault by the Germans after the companies flanking them have fled the field.
Episode 9: On patrol in the woods of Germany, Easy Company stumbles upon one of the great horrors of this or any war, a concentration camp.
Movie Review: The real heroes are still over there......
Summary: 5 Stars
That modesty and that sentiment seems to be shared by all the survivors of Easy Company, 506th PRI, and many of them can't hold back the tears as they mumble it. One of the great benefits of this marvelous series was the closeup interviews of the real men portrayed, those wonderful old seamed faces, breaking at last with emotion as they recall their experiences and the love of their comrades and the pain of loss of other friends. It moves me greatly, and I'm glad the Extras in this set has an extended documentary re-tracing the time-frame of the film with these real veterans recalling the action we've seen re-created.Brought with loving care and fanatic attention to detail by producers Steven Spielberg & Tom Hanks and their carefully chosen band of producers, directors and actors, this is an unsentimental, near-documentary telling of the story of Easy Co. from training to D-Day, Hedge Row fighting, Operation Market Garden, Bastogne, into Germany, liberation of Death Camps, and the capture of Berchesgarden & Hitler's Eagle's Nest.
Throughout it all, the aim has been to tell it straight and get it right. They have done so in remarkable style. The truth HAS enough drama, and the various episodes reveal it. We get to know these men and care about them. We marvel at their endurance and the way they go about getting the job done, professionally, and with matter-of-fact, everyday courage. It is a true tribute to the Citizen Soldiers who won the war.
With 10 episodes and lots of extra goodies, presented within an exceptional package, there is just too much to review here. Some memorable moments: the harrowing jump into the explosive, tracer-lit night skies of Normandy; the assault on the 88's; Winter's killing the young German; the episode dedictated to the Medic; the monstrous artillery barrage on the men in the snowy forest of Bastogne; the shock of the farmer's wife on seeing the closeup hand-to-hand killing of the German by "Bull"; and finally, the incredibly moving scenes of the liberation of the Concentration Camp, and the final days of Easy at the War's end.
These last episodes are all the more powerful because we have followed Easy Co. and these men and have seen the death so random and arbitrary around and among them that a slow emotional tension has been built that we now realize with the intensity of anger/pity/horror at the Camps and the bittersweet joy and subsequent farewell of VE day.
I could cite great moments by each individual actor, and nicely played and effectively understated but powerfully emotional scenes but suffice it to say this is an ensemble piece with superb performances throughout. The quiet power of the different episodes underscores how wonderfully written the entire piece is, and with corresponding excellent direction and production values.
A one-of-a-kind production, having the time to tell the tale with detail and care, and with all involved doing honor to the men who lived it. And finally, there are those men, bringing it all back to the reality of real lives lived. Exceptional stuff.