Eli : ***1/2(out of 5)
When I first picked up this movie I was thinking “great, another war movie.” And I would have given it a low score if it was just another war movie, but it wasn’t. Saints and soldiers was a refreshing break from the typical WWII movie. Yes it had its action and suspense, but it went deeper than just killing and tragedy; it showed the human aspect of the war. Sure, Adolph Hitler was a bad man, but not every German fighting for the Nazi regime was like Hitler, or even thought like Hitler. They were men with families just like the Americans, Brits, and French. This movie is better than the average war film because it taps into that human element. You are shooting another man, not a Nazi pig. Men can be heroic not only on the battle field, but in regular life as well. And that’s the message of this movie.
As for those of you who don’t care about anything I just said, there is plenty of killing to go around for those of you who indulge in it. It isn’t overboard (you don’t see any intestine) and it’s pretty realistic, aside from a handful of war-film-clichés that the director falls into (just like every other war-film director), the movie is believable. Its up on the same level as Andersonville and the Dirty Dozen (war movies are that better: Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers. War movies that are worse: Apocalypse Now, and the Red Badge of Courage, but those are the worst war movies ever….)
It was a pretty good movie overall; not great, but good. I watched it twice. So you should at least see it once. I could watch this with my mom (or at least tell her I watched it, if nothing else). Oh one more thing, for the film junkies who can’t watch a movie unless it wins awards, it won best picture about 80 times at every film festival, so don’t take my word for it (!) see the spectacle for yourself… Take it away Bob (Jordan)!
Jordan: *** (of 5)
Well, Eli saw this movie first and told me it was pretty awesome, so I was really excited to see it. And it was good—I definitely recommend it.
We have all seen war movies, and after a while they all start to blend in with each other. You know pretty much before you sit down what is going to happen. There is going to be a tense scene where the good guys hold their breath and pray that the bad guys don’t find them. There is going to be a scene where the local woman comes out to kiss all the soldiers. And of course, there is going to be a scene where someone gets shot, falls to his knees, tries to stand up, gets shot again, shoots another bad guy, gets shot three more times, then falls to the ground and gives a speech—all in slow motion.
Saints and Soldiers does not disappoint on that front. Plot-wise, it’s Saving Private Ryan-lite. Theme-wise, it’s Band of Brothers-lite. What sets this movie apart is its constraint, and fair-mindedness. It isn’t a rated R bloodfest. There are gaping wounds, but the camera doesn’t zoom in on the cracked protruding bones. People die (a lot), but nobody’s head blows off. The weirdest thing was that every time a person died, I cringed. I don’t mean just the Americans—whenever a German soldier fell, it hurt just as much as watching the good guys die.
What kind of war movie does that? What kind of WWII movie portrays the Nazis’ humanity so well that I actually don’t want anybody to get shot? A different kind of war movie, and one well worth watching.
Saints and Soldiers
2004
PG-13 for violence and related images
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373283/
2 Comments
December 29, 2008 at 5:54 pm
Dear DangGoodMovies reviewers,
I think you should take a gander at this movie, because clearly it is awesome in the very worst of ways:
http://www.blackdynamite.com/trailer
Lisa
January 7, 2009 at 6:14 am
OK, you talked me into it ! I’m going to go check it out ! Another great review guys. You get the point across, with a clever touch of humor !!!