First let me say the beginning sequences were shot almost perfectly. I was really into the first 20-25 minutes of the movie. I was engaged and thinking about how I was going to tell my sons that if they get a chance to go watch it in the theater. The cinematography and music were gripping.
Then..... as the 2 main characters (solider A and soldier B) get through the initial German traps, and enter into an open field with a cow, a barn, and a pale of fresh milk, the movie goes down hill fast. I was literally laughing at the ridiculousness of the plot and situations. A & B, whose duty it is to transport a message to (2) battalions, warning the battalions are falling into a German trap. Soldier A, has an older brother who is possibly going to be slaughtered in the trap.
With the cow and milk pale in the background, A & B find themselves helping a German airplane pilot out of his burning plane after witnessing an aerial dog fight. This is right after they go through hundreds of yards of seeing their dead countrymen. This is also after they almost get blown up (should have been into 1000 pieces) from booty traps (goonies reference). They help the German guy? Help him? Well, the German guy proceeds to knife Soldier A and kill him. That sequence made me almost leave the theater. I should have because the remaining parts of the movie just got worse. Soldier B still had a message to deliver. B proceeded to get picked up by a convoy of English Soldiers in trucks, who showed up a split second after the cow, milk, plane sequence. As if the trucks showing up was not ridiculous enough, the truck B was in got stuck in the mud moments later. B then convinces 15 or so other soldiers to help him push it out of the mud. Well, they miraculously do this, only to find that they can drive another few hundred yards.
Our message delivering solider B leaves them and then now has to make it past the storm trooper German snipers. I call them storm troopers, because just like storm troopers, they are unable to hit their target. On one of the first sniper situations, the sniper gets hit by a bullet, so B thinks. However, when B goes to check to see if he shot the sniper, he opens the door full swing with his entire body facing the wounded sniper. B then takes a bullet? Or something happens where he gets knocked back down a small flight of stairs. After he wakes, he evades some more storm troopers, then kicks open a small horizontal door to find a woman and a baby, along with a beautiful fire. Thankfully B had fresh milk.
B then leaves as it is getting close to morning. He evades a couple storm troopers only to find a younger storm trooper that he tries to shush. B actually puts his finger up to the storm trooper to shush him? Huh? Was this part of Jedi training? When that doesn't work he chokes him instead. Much to B's surprise, the choking worked better than the shushing. Go figure?
B then runs and runs evading lots of lots of laser guns. Oops sorry, bullets. Then he jumps into a raging river where he smashes his head. Thankfully he has a hard head.
If that is not silly enough, the rivers puts him exactly where he needs to be. Right up to a Battalion sitting in a large circle, listening to a guy singing. UGH, that was so bad.
B still needs to get his dry message that was soaked in the river to the commander. He proceeds to evade lots of bombs from enemy fire to do this. But thankfully B makes it. A cameo by Benedict Cumberbatch as the commander cannot save this flop.
B saves the second wave. B meets A's brother, even though he was in the first wave that was already deployed and supposed to be slaughtered.
I just have to say why? Why do we need to accept these movies and call them Oscar winners? Yes, the cinematography should get an award possibly. Maybe the score. But the overall movie was just plain terrible.
I just have to say why? Why do we need to accept these movies and call them Oscar winners? Yes, the cinematography should get an award possibly. Maybe the score. But the overall movie was just plain terrible.