The last year has welcomed a host of military-themed movies. No doubt, it is our post 9-11 culture has spun countless tales of soldiers braving the battlefields abroad and at home. I spent the last month catching up on some of the most talked about films with military themes and reviewed them here so you will know what to rent and what to skip at your local Redbox.
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Dear John ☆☆★★★
This movie, based on the Nicholas Sparks novel of the same name is the only movie on my list worthy of the “chick flick” status. The first half of the film oozes warmth and romance, much like The Notebook, thanks to the tender performances of Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum. Unfortunately I have to take issue with the story. Unlike The Notebook, the story behind what rips these lovers apart and brings them back together again, is to me, unrealistic, overdramatic and nonsensical. That doesn’t take away from the fact that this is an excellent popcorn flick if you’re celebrating girls night in. Just be sure to have tissues handy.
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Brothers ☆☆★★★
Jim Sheridan’s drama about a captured soldier and the family he leaves behind is, in typical style from this director, utterly gut-wrenching. While it’s not my favorite military-themed film to debut in the last year, I found it to be the most emotional, thanks to Natalie Portman’s, Jake Gyllenhal’s and Tobey Maguire’s brave performances. Unfortunately this is the kind of movie that was probably half an hour too long. It spends much of the time expertly setting up the evolution of Portman and Gyllenhal’s relationship, which leaves less time for Maguire’s character to truly unravel onscreen. What results is the climax of the film, which in my opinion, came an hour too late. If anything, this film stands for the importance of recognizing symptoms of PTSD and shows tragically how if untreated, it can tear a family apart.
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Hurt Locker ☆★★★★
Hurt Locker is a marvel to watch. You don’t want to take your eyes off the screen. Your heart races right along with the characters in Bravo company whose job it is to diffuse IEDs in Iraq. This gritty and very real portrayal will leave you on the edge of your seat, and the slivers of emotion that director Kathryn Bigelow infuses in her story, will bring you back down to earth. I think Hurt Locker has been the most successful portrayal of modern warfare in a full-length feature film to date, managing to convey in a whisper, what a film like Jarhead did in a scream.
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The Messenger ★★★★★
The Messenger was my favorite military- themed movie within the last year, primarily due to the tour de force performance by Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster. I originally thought this movie was about Army casualty notification officers and their unusual and unenviable job of notifying next of kin when there’s been a death. The movie is indeed about that, but it’s also about so much more. It’s about assimilating back to life after returning from war, when everyone you love has moved on without you. It’s about missed chances, living with regrets and desperately trying to keep your personal demons at bay. It’s about how to wake up the next day and keep living, when all that you have to live for is no longer there. This film is so multidimensional and its characters so rich, that it leaps off the screen – far more than Avatar did in 3D.
Photo by: RoOoNa
