Taking Chance
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Movie Reviews of Taking Chance
Movie Review: When Fathers Bury their Sons
Summary: 5 Stars
Minimal dialogue and a minimal number of actors and you might begin to wonder how good it can be. The answer is very good.
Kevin Bacon plays Mike Strobl, a lieutenant colonel of marines who volunteers to take home the remains of marine Private First Class Chance Phelps. It is unusual for an officer to request or take such an assignment, but there is more reason than what the colonel gives, that both he and Phelps are from the same town.
As the journey begins we learn how Chance Phelps' body is treated from the time of his death. An honor guard renders honors as the flag-draped coffin is placed on a transport plane from Iraq and lands in Delaware. We see his watch removed from his lifeless hand caked with grime and blood. The blood on the watch and his St. Christopher medal that failed to guide him to safety is gently cleaned with a fine mist. His fingernails are brushed and cleaned, and a group of tailors create a new dress blue uniform that will fit him perfectly. His ribbons are arranged in proper order.
Colonel Strobl waits his turn "taking Chance." As each coffin leaves Dover AFB, the escorts form a line outside to render a salute to each passing hearse that will now bring its share of grief to various parts of the country. Finally, Mike Strobl is given specific instructions and carries the personal effects on his person at all times.
A reservations clerk has tears on her face as she upgrades the officer to first class. Stops in Philadelphia, Minnesota, and Wyoming show how much a single death moves a nation. Gardeners stop work and remove their hats. An airline attendant hands the marine a small crucifix. Ground crews on the tarmac gravitate toward the belly of the plane, stand straight, and place their hand over their hearts as the casket is removed. Passengers pass the conveyer belt with looks of grief and shock, suddenly aware of the cargo that was beneath them. A convoy of cars shines their bright headlights in the Wyoming and Montana daylight as they pass the hearse with the flag-draped coffin.
Equally poignant is the self-doubt that plagues the colonel and the sergeant who trained young Phelps. The sergeant wonders if he is responsible for posthumously promoted Chance Phelps' death. "Shouldn't I have done more to protect him?" he asks. Strobl questions his worthiness as a marine because he didn't volunteer for combat duty, wanting to come back to his family at the end of each day. Both marines suffer a common military affliction--guilt that they are among the living.
What makes this film work so well is its simplicity. It isn't a vulgar display of jingoism nor morbid, and it has only a hint of anti-war sentiment when you see a USA Today newspaper (if you are opposed to this war as I have been). Under superb direction, every part is low-keyed. The emotion is not overindulged; it is understated, but the viewer cannot help being touched by the quiet display of reverence and tribute. It might rouse your anger, but it will definitely touch your heart. That's what makes this a moving film that should not be missed.
It also brings home a central message. There is no glory in war; there is only grief.
L/Cpl. Chance Phelps (1984-2004) was just twenty years old. His mother and father buried him eight days after he was killed.
Movie Review: Best movie of the year, overwhelming
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a Marine veteran of the Iraq war who has done countless funeral honors details. This touched me so deeply. A detachment from my unit was assigned to mortuary affairs as well, so I couldn't stop seeing my friends' faces and hearing their stories as I watched this. For some reason it's easier to be the one doing these services for our fallen brothers than to watch someone else. My wife and I wept through the entire film.
I wept for my fallen brothers and for their families. I think she wept because she lives with the fear that I may be the one being escorted home, as well as for our friends and family who have been through this, and are going through this even as we speak.
This film hits hard through understatement. There is nothing exaggerated or overplayed in this movie. There are no politics, no jingoistic flag-waving. Just quietly respectful displays of support for our warriors and their families, our nation and her colors. Kevin Bacon displays phenomenal restraint in a role that could easily have been overacted. With Col Strobl as the military advisor, the attention to detail is impeccable with regards to Marine Corps customs and courtesies. I could believe that Bacon was actually a Marine as I watched this- and we're experts at identifying our fellow Marines vs. frauds.
A word of caution:
Several reviews have indicated that this may be good for children/families to watch. I would be very careful in making this assessment. It is probably just too much for the children of currently serving deployable servicemembers to digest. My children are all under age 10, and in the wake of my deployment and the fears they lived with, I don't believe it would be good to expose them to such detail. There are several somewhat graphic scenes of the handling of the fallen. Keep in mind, these are not gratuitous in the least, and are conveyed with the utmost respect and realism. The showing of the bodies' preparations and the blood-stained personal effects are images that will sear anyone's soul. The anonymity of it (no faces of the fallen are shown) preserves the non-exploitative purpose of the film, but also could allow an easy association for a child that "that could be my Mom/Dad/Uncle/Older Brother/Sister, etc." Discretion is advised.
On the other hand, I would recommend this for viewing by anyone over the age of 12 or 13. It is critical that every adult and soon-to-be adult fully understand the cost of war, and realize the consequences of our national policies, whether for good or for bad. Even in justifiable and politically agreeable military operations, the cost in life is deeper than the individual servicemember. For each one serving, there are countless family and friends, neighbors and fellow citizens living with love, concern, compassion and respect. This film portrays in the most honest and unadulterated, apolitical fashion the heart of the American spirit: Sacrifice, Courage and Respect.
It isn't possible to say enough good things about this movie. At the risk of cheapening this invaluable portrayal with a trite label, this is absolutely a must see.
Movie Review: QUITE A FILM...
Summary: 5 Stars
I stumbled across this very special film a few nights ago while flipping channels and I honestly can't recall a time when I felt so profoundly moved by a movie.
I used to watch the Sunday morning news program "This Week With George Stephanopoulos" and there was always a part in the show where they would do an "In Memoriam" segment and list the names / ages and homes of those service people who were killed in Iraq / Afghanistan the previous week. And I always found it to be a very sombre and sobering minute or so when you would see the names of these 19 and 20 year olds who lost their lives on some dusty road outside of Kandahar or Baghdad, for example.
I's hard to put into words what makes this film so special. Perhaps it's because so many of the film's most poignant moments did not require any dialogue - the scene where the baggage handlers on the tarmac pause, while Chance's casket is coming down the conveyor belt, to pay their respects. Or the young boy and girl at the airport looking down on his coffin and trying to make sense of what they're seeing. The landscaper in the distance who removes his cap and stops working for a moment as the casket becomes visible.
There's numerous moments like these throughout the film and it's very difficult to keep your emotions in check when you realize the countless times this scene has played out over the years. As other reviewers have so eloquently stated, these moments transcend politics when you realize the extent of the sacrifice these men and women have made so that people ike you and I can enjoy all of the freedoms we experience in our lives each and every day.
In Canada where I live now, there's a major highway - the 401 - that essentially runs the course of the country. It's recently been renamed the Highway of Hero's and whenever a fallen Canadian soldier returns to Canada after losing his / her life in Afghanistan, for example,thousands and thousands of people will line this highway and the overpasses to pay their respects as the vehicle carrying the soldier to his final resting place passes by. It really is a remarkable scene, particularily in view of the fact that 99.9% of the people did not have a personal relationship with the fallen soldier.
The final moments of this special film contain photographs and actual film footage of Chance Phelps as a young boy growing into manhood and it's so sad to watch him knowing that his life has ended so quickly and so suddenly.
Like so many others, I sometimes take for granted the incredible sacrifice these individuals make on my behalf.
After seeing this very moving film, I don't think I will ever adopt that mindset again.
A very special thanks to Lt. Col. Mike Strobl and the actors / film makers who allowed me to see this film and learn about Chance Phelps.
God bless you, Chance and rest in peace.!
Movie Review: I'll Watch Over Him" A simple but elequent tribute.
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a review of the DVD Taking Chance.
Taking Chance is the story of a Marine's last trip home and the people he touched whom he never knew nor who knew him. Even his escort, Lt. Col. Strobl, played by Kevin Bacon, didn't know Chance Phelps except by virtue of a shared home town. The movie is the dramatization of the colonel's after action report.
This isn't film with a particular theme, pro-war or anti-war, rather it is a film of a Marine who went to war and was killed fighing in that war. He was there with his squad and his friends and that is what was important.
The acting is superb throughout the film and doesn't hit a false note throughout it's length. From the mortuary driver who is at the start of the journey to the Marines at the VFW hall in Chance's home town, everyone does a superb job of acting. One particularly serious moment is when Lt. Col. Strobl finds that one of the escorts he was with at the mortuary at Dover Air Force Base is escorting his brother home. The interactions between the two men are simple but highly moving.
The special features of the film were all very informative and added to the value of the movie. However, if this movie should be released again, please include the cut scene of the Marine sergeant from his unit who is relieving Lt. Col. Strobl. "I'll watch over him" is perhaps the most important scene of the film and sums up the whole purpose of why there is an escort in the first place. This is a key point and I regret that it was felt necessary to cut it from the film. It is a short segment that needs to be back in the film.
As a former Marine and later a hospital corpsman assigned to Marine units, this was a particularly moving film for me.
Some critics felt that the movie was just a procedural movie on how a military funeral is conducted. To a degree there is some validity to this observation but look beyond the immediate event that is being depicted. Watch at Dover as the hearse is being loaded and the construction crew stops and pays thier respects as the hearse goes by. Watch again in Philadelphia as the cargo crew pays its respects to Chance and the colonel renders honors. Look at the two children watching from the window. Throughout the film there is a connection between PFC Phelps and people he never met nor had met him. Yet they are all participants in this final journey home. This movie is a procedural but it is also a story of how people's actions across the country make this tremendously sad and devastating event a bit more bearable simply by being able to share the grief of the family. It is not trite when the colonel says that PFC Phelps was honored across the country.
This is a movie that is well made and tells its simple message very well. I highly recommend it to everyone.
Movie Review: Escort service
Summary: 5 Stars
This film had one of the most unanimous receptions here in amazon, and I will not try to contradict the overwhelmingly positive verdict. As the amazon product text says, the film is unimpeachable by staying away from either pro- or anti-war propaganda. It is remotely about the current Iraq war, though really it is about the military subculture, its traditions and ceremonies when it comes to home base rituals. It shows with simple clarity how rituals are the agent that keeps us sane when we have no real reasons to be sane.
Kevin Bacon is a number-crunching senior Marine officer in home base during the war, an analyst. He was in the first gulf war, but didn't see much action even then. He feels bad about that, has his personal version of a midlife crisis and walks out on his lovely family for a queer mission: he has volunteered to escort the casket of a fallen Marine to the place where his parents live, in the Far North-West.
That is quite a trip and involves two flights including an over-night lay-over. We stay with Bacon and experience an endless stream of respectful behavior by air passengers, flight crews, luggage handlers and others. He arrives amid the funeral activities and has to hand over the personal effects to a split set of parents, each with a new spouse. There is a military sister with a military fiancé, there are pals from the dead man's unit, and veterans of all wars of the century. The previous one.
Some observations: Bacon is as brilliant as he usual is. For sure this is one of his best roles.
I watched the movie with my wife, and when it was over and she had dried her tears, we agreed that despite all respect, let's face it, it is war propaganda after all. What happens is that the military role in the world is accepted implicitly and unchallenged. We do what we do because it is our duty and when we die we do so without a question. The right to question does not even arise as a theoretical option. Whether the war is just, legitimate, right, worth the sacrifice, does not even grow up to be a registered question.
A eureka moment about this particular war: the family of the dead Marine has printed a card asking mourners not to give flowers but to donate money for a fund that provides flak jackets to the soldiers at the front.
How moving and how sick at the same time! The richest nation in the world relies on private donations to provide equipment to their men at the front? The US is running deep into debt but does not have the funds for basic safety equipment for their soldiers?
Maybe this movie is anti-war in a roundabout way after all?