WarMovieBlog

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Personal statement: I'm 30-something, not a veteran, but choose to show my respect by watching war movies and sharing my thoughts with folks like you! I Hope you find my info useful.

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Interested in:Action, Education, Epic, Historical Film, History, Science Fiction, Spy Film, War

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84 Charlie Mopic

84 Charlie MoPic (1989)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"84 Charlie MoPic (1989) IMDB Well, I finally managed to, um, find a way to watch this in its entirety, and quite frankly its not quite as good as I remembered. But 84 Charlie MoPic is still a decent, little-known (and incredibly hard to come by) film about a squad during the Vietnam war, being "documented" by an army cameraman as they go on patrol in the jungle....First off, I just have to say this: Brian DePalma should have used this as a reference for his similar but just-plain-awful faux-documentary Redacted. If you're going to do it, do it right. That being said, there really isn't anything all that spectacular about 84C. The acting is not terrible, but not particularly wonderful either. The only familiar face I recognized was that of a younger Glenn Morshower (Pierce from "24").... Yet despite that shortcoming, somehow this film manages to keep you engaged, and you're able to connect with the characters and feel what they're feeling. And yeah, the "short ... " [More]

Johnny Got His Gun

Johnny Got His Gun (1971)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"Johnny Got His Gun (1971) IMDB Johnny Got His Gun is a mostly little-known movie, which would be even more obscure if it weren't for Metallica's "One" music video back in the day. But forget about that for a minute.What you get here is a surreal trip into one man's nightmare after suffering extensive injuries on the battlefields of World War I... and a biting anti-war film to boot. "Johnny" is really Joe Bonham, who does his civic duty and goes off to Europe to fight in the trenches. He literally blown to bits by an inbound shell, losing his arms, legs, and face, losing all senses except touch. He survives, and becomes a medical curiosity to the upper brass. He's kept alive, and in his sensory-deprived state, we get to go on some rather odd journeys down memory lane, among others.Really I don't want to spoil too much of it, because I think you really have to experience it for yourself. Between his remembrances of his father, who apparently loved his fishing pol ... " [More]

No Man Is an Island

No Man is an Island
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"No Man is an Island IMDB Anyone who thinks the Hollywood "Formula" picture is a new or recent creation is fooling themselves. No Man is and Island is a direct ancestor of todays average fare, and unfortunately it just ain't that good.As the Japanese rout the Allies from the South Pacific in the early days of WWII, George Tweed (Geoffrey Hunter) managed to escape the invading Empire on Guam, and was able to hide out until the Allies eventually returned.What could have been a harrowing tale of survival ends up being, well, just meh. From the greatly exaggerated stereotypes of the natives and the Japanese, to the incredibly forced love story between Tweed and one of the natives.... There isn't much to do but sit back and roll your eyes waiting for something really interesting to happen.The actual invasion scenes aren't very well executed. His initial escapees are all eliminated save for George, but not very compellingly... I don't think I'll go on.You might give N ... " [More]

The Children of Huang Shi

The Children of Huang Shi (2008)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"The Children of Huang Shi (2008) IMDB OK, lets take a bit of a different take on events in Asia during the early part of World War II....The Japanese are rolling through China and Manchuria in 1937, and to top it off, China itself has its own problems between the Communists and the Partisans....Caught in the middle are a group of children holed up in an orphanage. By a twist of fate, they and their part-time attendant Ms. Pearson (Radha Mitchell) are brought together with an English journalist, George Hogg (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) and Chinese partisan Chen Hansheng (Chow Yun-Fat).As Hogg is thrust into the role of taking care of these children, it becomes clear that they must abandon their orphanage and head for neutral territory. But this means marching on foot across some rather difficult terrain, and through Japanese and hostile Chinese outposts. The journey, as they say, is more than the destination, and this film proves it spectactularly.OK, so maybe its not a ... " [More]

The Wind That Shakes the Barley

The Wind That Shakes The Barley ...
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"The Wind That Shakes The Barley (2007) IMDB There are war movies that make you cringe. Either because of the violence or the atrocities portrayed, or the sheer evil that is shown.... and then there are films like The Wind That Shakes The Barley, which make you cringe for some of the above reasons, but for other reasons a little less obvious.The most obvious of which is that a country that we 'mercans hold in such high regard, namely the UK, could exact such a toll on such a nearby and similar neighbor, namely Ireland. Yeah you could draw a similar (but not identical) parallel to the US Civil War, and I'll get to that, but there's just something about the way the situation in Ireland is brought to life in this film that leaves you asking yourself some questions. Of course, this film explores the war between the Irish and the British during the 1920's. Namely the Irish want the Brits out, and want independence. Of course the Brits won't have it, and a band of men ... " [More]

The Purple Heart

The Purple Heart (1944)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"The Purple Heart (1944) IMDB The Purple Heart is of course the medal given to servicemen wounded in the line of duty. The movie of the same name, really doesn't seem to have anything to do with the medal. At least not what I could tell.What it is, though is a perfect example of a World War II "propaganda" movie, again, for lack of a better term.A Bomber crew is taken captive by the Japanese after they crash land in China after the infamous Doolittle raid. What follows in this film is their "trial" by the Japanese, witnessed by a group of international journalists. But the entire thing is just plain ridiculous to watch. I can't think of a good way to say it. Everyone is caricatured in blazing stereotypes so thick you'd need an axe to get through it. From the Japanese, to the Chinese governor and his son, to the German reporters covering the trial (who seem to be there just to cement the fact that we're dealing with Axis powers, not simply Japanese ones....) th ... " [More]

The Dam Busters

The Dam Busters (1955)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"The Dam Busters (1955) IMDB You'd think that a film about developing a one-off weapon that defies all logic would be incredibly un-interesting, right? Wrong!! The Dam Busters takes a look at one of the more ingenious weapons devised and implemented during World War II, and then follow the men who had to deploy the thing in action.... Alright, so it does start off a little bit dull. Doctor Wallis (Michael Redgrave) has come up with a weapon that will destroy the incredibly fortified dams which power the Ruhr valley in Germany, the heart of the war machine's industry. The problem is how to make the bloody thing work. He devises a series of tests and experiments, which culminate in another series of "live" tests, until his concept is proven.In proving this concept we also get a fairly accurate look at how testing and experiments should be done. Not so much of the usual Hollywood shenanigans here, I actually believed it here. And the rest of the delivery mechanics ... " [More]

Little Dieter Needs to Fly

Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997) IMDB 2006's Rescue Dawn was the story of US Navy pilot Dieter Dengler, as he was shot down over Vietnam, and his successful escape from the POW camp, the only person ever to achieve such a feat.Little Dieter Needs to Fly is a documentary of that same story, told from the man himself, Dieter Dengler. And if there was ever a more engaging, interesting, and just plain curious documentary, or individual, for that matter, I think I've yet to see it. Told entirely by Mr. Dengler, he revisits the locations involved in his story, and with amazing clarity and presence of mind, recounts the story in great detail. To be quite honest, I was simply amazed at his ability to put himself back into those situations, back into shackles, and walking through the jungle. All this while (at least for the camera) maintaining a bizarre and seemingly out-of-place sense of humor about the whole thing.In fact, in my review of Rescue Dawn, I noted that the ... " [More]

Valkyrie

Valkyrie (2008, Blu-Ray)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"Valkyrie (2008, Blu-Ray) IMDB In 1944, a segment of the German Army was fed up with what Hitler was doing to the country, and put into motion a series of events that nearly resulted in success. Nearly.Valkyrie is a telling of that story. Revolving around Col. Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) we see the events unfold from his days in North Africa, until his execution (spoilers? you know how it ended!) after the failed attempt on Hitler's life in the "Wolf's Lair" bunker.... Alright, so Valkyrie really isn't a "war movie" per-se, lets just get that over with right now. I'd classify it more along the lines of "mystery/thriller/docudrama" more than anything. If you're looking for action and scenes of combat, this isn't it. The story is intriguing, and this telling really is engaging, but the truth is, we know how its going to end, so its like watching someone build a model or put together a puzzle that we know what the end result will be.Performance wise I have to say tha ... " [More]

Heaven & Earth

Heaven & Earth (1993)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"Heaven & Earth (1993) IMDB Heaven & Earth is Oliver Stone's final entry in his Vietnam Trilogy, and likely the most controversial of the three. Following the trials of a Vietnamese girl, Le Ly (Bussaro Sanruck) from a young girl at the outset of the war, all the way through to far after. Le grows up in a small village in rural Vietnam, far from the politics the rest of the world. Honestly, I'm sitting here trying to think about how to summarize the first part of this film in a nice neat package, and there just isn't a good way. It's just that complex, taking Le from the village, to fighting for the VC, to being the VC's enemy, to having a her rich boss' baby... And much more inbetween. This is the best part of the film, showing how she copes with life during the war, trying to make the best of a bad situation. The relationships with all of her family members, including her mother (Joan Chen) and father (Haing Ngor) are complex, sad, and wonderful.And then she ... " [More]

The Painting

Soldiers of Change, aka The Pai ...
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"Soldiers of Change, aka The Painting (2002?) IMDB Alright, lets just get this out in the open right bloody now. Soldiers of Change is not a war movie per se. Despite the cover image, and the descriptions. But its still a good, yet little known movie. What it is though, is a thoughful look at racism and overcoming it during the late 1960's. Atlanta rich white boy Randy Barrington (Heath Freeman) falls for the niece of his father's driver (Clifton Davis), one Hallie Gilmore (Stacey Dash). He's got to overcome prejudices on both sides before either side will accept this relationship, and ultimately he ends up going to Vietnam to escape his father's disapproval. He's killed, and its not until his father (Charles Shaughnessy) meets his grandson does he overcome it.So yes, there is a brief foray into Vietnam, but its by no means the central aspect of the movie. The war is at home here. Since it's not really a war movie I won't even attempt to explain it in great d ... " [More]

Born on the Fourth of July

Born on the Fourth of July (1989)
By WarMovieBlog in WarMovieBlog Blog
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"Born on the Fourth of July (1989) IMDB Born on the Fourth of July is Oliver Stone's second entry in his "Vietnam Trilogy" (Platoon, Heavan and Earth) and in my opinion, is the most powerful of the three. In fact, I would say it's even more relevant to today than any of them, and maybe that's why.While Platoon seems a bit cliche for my tastes (but still good), and Heaven and Earth is just too preachy (and other reasons, but also still good), Fourth of July makes a strong statement about the sacrifice the veterans of Vietnam made, and the struggles they endured after they came home. Ron Kovic (Tom Cruise) is your average all-american boy from Long Island, instilled with a strong sense of patriotism and a need to do what is right. It's this which drives him to enlist, and of course, is sent off to fight in Vietnam. He's critically injured, and winds up confined to a wheelchair. From there he has to come to terms with, well, everything. Everything from reconciling ... " [More]