Category Archives: Movie

by

The Brylcreem Boys (1998): A WWII Comedy, Drama and Romance in Ireland

The least I can say about this movie is that it is total fun. I did certainly never expect to laugh during a POW movie but that actually happened repeatedly. Admittedly it is not the most refined humor, it’s rather of the burlesque, slapstick kind. But it is never overdone. The movie is just sprinkled with it here and there. The overall tone is often quite serious. Still it is one of the very rare movies you could probably watch with  children (although planes and people get shot down at the beginning and there is some fist fighting as well).

Ireland having lost many of its young men during the Civil War had decided to stay strictly neutral during WWII. This was not much appreciated by the allies. Unlike Switzerland Ireland insisted that every soldier encountered on Irish soil was to be taken prisoner. What was not universally known however was the fact that they put all the prisoners, French, British, American, Canadian and German into the same camp.

The Brylcreem Boys is not based on a true story but on true facts that have been carefully assembled and put together to tell a convincing story. Two fighter pilots, the Canadian Miles Keogh  (Bill Campbell) and the German Rudolph von Stegenbeck (Angus Macfadyen),  shoot each other down over Ireland and are both taken prisoners and brought to the same camp. While on leave they  fall in love with the same girl, the strong-willed Mattie (Jean Butler),  which adds a bit of romance to the whole story. Their rivalry and mutual dislike is very intense in the beginning but over the course of the movie and during many incidents they realize that they are not that different despite being on different sides.

Much of the funny elements of the movie stem from contrasting the Germans and their rigid discipline and total lack of sense of humour with the  more easy-going other prisoners. (Unfortunately there aren’t any German actors in the movie and some of the accents that the cast adopted are a bit laughable.)

Even though they are far away from the war itself, one of the prisoners sort of brings it back with him when he returns from London from his futile attempt at escaping the camp.  His account from his stay in the British capital makes the tragedy of the constant bombing during the Blitz  utterly palpable.

I am a big fan of the Irish actor Gabriel Byrne whose character is the commanding officer of the camp. He also co-produced this movie. Seeing how much fun he exudes playing this role one can easily assume that this was a movie that was very close to his heart.

I am very glad the directors felt compelled to tell this story of this quite exotic camp. It provides an interesting insight into Irish history for which I am glad.

Since this is really a feel good movie but far from being stupid entertainment you might really  enjoy watching it.

by

Vietnam War Movie Quotes Film Quiz 5

Here we go once more. Let´s test your Vietnam War Movie knowledge. This time I tried to find lesser known movies. Not all high quality, I agree. However one of them is a real insider´s tip. Here is your list in random order: Tigerland, Coming Home, Rambo First Blood, Green Berets, The Boys in Company C, Off Limits. The solution, as always, just below the movie.

“The reason why I’m here is because a buddy of mine who’d been in ‘Nam took his own life today. This is kind of a funeral service. And I’m here because I’m trying to tell people, man, if we want to commit suicide, we have plenty of reasons to do it right here at home. We don’t have to go to Vietnam to find reasons to kill ourselves. I just don’t think we should be over there.”

Solution 1

“It’s strange that we’ve never read of this in the newspapers.”
“Well… that’s newspapers for you, ma’am. You could fill volumes with what you don’t read in them.”

Solution 2

“You’re floatin’ in a big sea of shit and instead of just stayin’ in the boat, no, you reach out and you pick up this one little turd and you say “This turd, well THIS turd pisses me off. I’m gonna do somethin’ about THIS turd!”

Solution 3

“Hey goddamnit! You with the pretty face! What the hell are you spitting on the ground for, what is that shit in your mouth?”
“Chewing tobacco sir.”
“Its what?”
“Chewing tobacco sir!”
“What the hell are you chewing tobacco for!”
“I chew when I play baseball sir!”
“Does this look like a baseball stadium to you!”
“No Sir it doesn’t.”
“Then what the hell are you chewing tobacco for? Did you get on the wrong fucking train, or did they draft you!”
“I enlisted Sir!”
“You did what?”
“I enlisted in the Marines Sir!”
“What the hell would you do a crazy thing like that for?”
“…..”
“Answer me goddamn it!”
“I want to fight for my country sir.”
“Fucking TURD!”

Solution 4

“Are you telling me that 200 of our men against your boy is a no-win situation for us?”
“You send that many, don’t forget one thing.”
“What?”
“A good supply of body bags.”

Solution 5

“If I told you there was a bunch of people around here who could get us to Mexico, away from the war, would you go?”
“No… no I wouldn’t. I enlisted, so there is a place for me… and if I don’t go, somebody is gonna take that place. And if they die, they’re dying for me.”

Solution 6

by

Warlords (2007): So much better than expected

Warlords is a great movie. Far, far better than I expected. Not the usual at all. A wonderful example of Chinese cinema.

Gorgeous opulent pictures, a heartbreaking, thoughtful story, epic battle scenes, amazing landscapes, a very special atmosphere, poetical in tone, complex relationships and an excellent cast. Jet Li surprised me completely. I would never have expected him to be capable of such nuanced acting. Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro are superb as well and so is Jinglei Xu as Lian.

Set in 19th century China during the Taiping rebellion Warlords follows the destiny of General Pang (Jet Li). He is the only survivor of his unit ( thanks to a shameful act). All the others have been massacred. He finds refuge in the mountains among bandits and convinces their chief and his brother to follow him and become soldiers. The three men  who feel a very close bond early on take an oath to live and die for one another.

We soon follow them from battlefield to battlefield. Pang seems to have the highest moral standards that he manages to keep up even though they are constantly at war. But the longer the war lasts, the more it gets difficult for him to live up to these standards. Finally, in order to do a greater good, as he says,  he is willing to commit what one of the brothers sees as a crime. What started as a close friendship turns into the opposite developing a destructive dynamic. The core message of this film seems to be: War is ultimately ugly and nothing good can come out of it.

Warlords is really a story of Shakespearian proportions. It did also remind me of Greek tragedies. Only much darker. And still it is a compellingly beautiful movie.

Large scale cinema at its very best. I will definitely watch it again.

by

African American Soldiers in War Movies

It is a fact that until recently African American actors were almost nonexistent in war movies. This is quite unfair since they were also fighting for their country. Even though they are not omnipresent in today´s war movies, they seem to get a fairer share.

The makers of Generation Kill faced quite some questioning as to the reasons why there was no African American cast in the series. As fishy as this may have seemed initially there was a very good explanation for this. Generation Kill is based on the true story of the First Recon Company, a highly specialized troop, in which there were actually no African American soldiers, or only one, as we can deduce from the group photo in Evan Wright´s book.

The questioning however was very justified since there is really no war movie on contemporary conflict in which there are no African American actors. Be it Battle for Haditha, Redacted, The Hurt Locker, Stop-Loss, Home of the Brave and many more. There are always African American actors and this is highly justified since many of the troops are of said origin.

How does the situation look regarding other wars? For example Vietnam? When it comes to combat movies – with the exception of We Were Soldiers – black soldiers are very often present. The best example is certainly Hamburger Hill that has a big African American cast. But they are not absent from Platoon or Full Metal Jacket either. Now what about We Were Soldiers? I honestly don´t know. Since it is based on a true story it might be possible that there were no African American soldiers in that company. If anyone knows the reason, tell me please.

WWII is another story altogether. Looking at the massive production of WWII movies it is incredible how absent African American actors are. Sure there are a few exceptions. A Soldier’s Story that I reviewed a while back is a good example. And then we have the Tuskegee Airmen based on the true story of the African-American 332nd Fighter Group of the Army Aircorps (see my movie review). This fine movie illustrates how unjustified the belief was that Blacks were not capable of flying modern fighters. But apart from these two examples? And what about Flags of our Fathers? It´sad to say that there were 900 black troops participating in the battle of Iwo Jima but not one of them is represented in Eastwood´s movie. He has been questioned many times and asked to clarify but he did not reply. This infuriated many people, among them the film director Spike Lee. I think his Miracle at St. Anna might be a direct response to Eastwood´s omission. It is actually incredible but the absence of African American actors in Flags of our Fathers makes Pearl Harbor look good in comparison. At least  Cuba Gooding Jr had quite an important role. Spike Lee´s just mentioned Miracle at St. Anna focuses on the 92nd Infantry Division that fought in Italy. This division was the result of the segregation of the times. It was a purely African-American division, also called Buffalo soldiers  (I must admit that I have not seen Miracle at St. Anna but read many reviews that did NOT appreciate it). I think we are still waiting for a truly good depiction of African American participation in WWII.

And WWI? I am lost. Have no clue if there ever was  a WWI movie with African Americans in it.

Let´s rewind some more: The Civil War. And yes here we finally find an outstanding movie with a largely African American cast. One of my Top 10. Yes, I am talking about Glory. If you haven´t seen it yet, watch it.

Looking at the whole picture again we can say, it is getting somewhat better, but a contemporary movie, based on a conflict younger than the civil war, with an African American main actor is still outstanding. Now, don´t mention Hotel Rwanda (Don Cheadle was actually also in Hamburger Hill). Although it is an impressive movie  there was really no chosing a white main actor. Not even Clint Eastwood would have had the insipidity to do so.

by

The Poet aka Hearts of War (2007) or Don’t Let the Movie’s Poster Trick You

The Poet is a flawed and a much despised movie. Set in Poland in 1939 the central theme is the love story between  a German officer and a Jewish girl. I read comments and reviews that would make me feel ashamed if I had been part of this production. Funny enough people either give it a 1 or 2 star rating or 5 stars. Odd, right? Are they really being fair? What infuriates them so much? That Roy Scheider has only a mini-role even though he is on the movie poster?  I was not enthused but I did not mind watching it. Sure there is  a lack of logic and actors who speak in heavy accents that are not their own is annoying. Still, it is nicely filmed and I found it shows  one of the most beautiful depictions of a mother/son relationship. That the mother on top of that is played by the  beautiful Daryl Hannah does help as well. These two people are really close. They have a very open relationship. Unlike the one they both have with the father, a German general and Nazi. Unlike her husband mother and son are totally opposed to the German politics of the time. The movie has furthermore  some tragic story elements, decent fighting scenes and a female Russian Resistance leader one would not want to mess with.

At the opening we see Oscar, the son, on his mission in Poland. He should infiltrate resistance groups. On a trip to the woods he finds an unconscious girl in the snow and rescues her. What Oscar finds out very soon is the core element for the melodrama that will follow namely the fact that Rachel is  Jewish.

They fall in love at the greatest speed I have ever seen people fall in love in a movie, even though Rachel is already engaged.

They are separated early on, as Rachel has to flee.

If you want to find out whether they will meet again and if so, under what circumstances, you might have to watch it.

Did I mention that Nina Dobrev stars as Rachel? That might actually lead to a more generous viewing of this movie as fans of the Vampire Diaries might want to check out what else the young actress has done before. She is actually quite good in The Poet.

Maybe it is all about the poster. People seem to have felt tricked into buying a movie with Daryl Hannah and Roy Scheider as the main protagonists when in truth they have only minor roles. We resent feeling tricked.