Saints & Soldiers (1 Viewer)
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OzDigger
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This movie includes a far more accurate depiction of the Malmedy Massacre than the big budget small brained "The Battle of the Bulge", the later I still watch on a regular basis btw 
I have Saint & Soldiers on DVD but I feel the movie is overlooked by many because it had a relatively low budget and wasn't widely advertised. The accuracy of the vehicles and equipment is very good, as is the plot and acting. The winter scenery is also interesting, well it is if you've only seen snow once in your life. It's a shame it's so cold
I have Saint & Soldiers on DVD but I feel the movie is overlooked by many because it had a relatively low budget and wasn't widely advertised. The accuracy of the vehicles and equipment is very good, as is the plot and acting. The winter scenery is also interesting, well it is if you've only seen snow once in your life. It's a shame it's so cold
Rob
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I have the film on dvd too.I enjoyed it.As Oz says it shows a more realistic depiction of events in my view.Its a shame it didn't get more publicity because its worth watching.I also have The Battle of the Bulge dvd,and althought its riddled with mistakes etc its strangely enjoyable.Perhaps its because it was always on as i grew up and its familiar.
Rob
Rob
Tony Neville
Command Sergeant Major
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Just watched this one and liked the way the story is told and plays out.
Good one if you like uniforms and vehicles
Tony
Good one if you like uniforms and vehicles
Tony
Harrytheheid
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The Templar
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Yep! Seens it several times!
It´s quite a nice movie - you might call it a biblical "Band of Brothers". And it have a realy good sound too - it you have the hardware to handle it!
And I do agree - the uniforms etc. are "thums up"!
Peter Reuss
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Just watched this (if you have Netflix, it's an option for streaming). Not bad and worth a look.
maddadicus
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It is a well done movie that has been overlooked by most. Agree with all the positives about this one. Michael
Rob
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Al,am reading this from my copy of the dvd!
December 1944.The German army rampages through the frozen wastes of Belgium's Ardennes Forest.
Among the many allied prisoners taken en route,a small band of American soldiers manages to escape.Without weapons and without food and ravaged by the cold the men are determined to make it back to their own frontline...but as their perilous journey takes its toll loyalties become divided and lives hang in the balance.
Stars; Corbin Allred,Alexander Niver,Kirby Heybourne,Lawrence Bagby and Peter Holden.
Directed by Ryan Little.
Quite a good film and pretty enjoyable.
Rob
Al,apologies if any of this info is wrong but the writing on the dvd is very small and my eyes are not as good as once they were!
December 1944.The German army rampages through the frozen wastes of Belgium's Ardennes Forest.
Among the many allied prisoners taken en route,a small band of American soldiers manages to escape.Without weapons and without food and ravaged by the cold the men are determined to make it back to their own frontline...but as their perilous journey takes its toll loyalties become divided and lives hang in the balance.
Stars; Corbin Allred,Alexander Niver,Kirby Heybourne,Lawrence Bagby and Peter Holden.
Directed by Ryan Little.
Quite a good film and pretty enjoyable.
Rob
Al,apologies if any of this info is wrong but the writing on the dvd is very small and my eyes are not as good as once they were!
BLReed
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saints_and_Soldiers
It's available in the UK on blu-ray as well as DVD. I didn't particularily care for it much.
Produced in Utah by a Mormon film company for the faithful.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excel_Entertainment_Group
Peter Reuss
2nd Lieutenant
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It definitely has a religious theme running through it, but it flows with the storyline.
If your looking for large battle scenes, this is not the movie. However, in following a few soldiers, it's pretty good.
I think I read that the whole thing was done for under $1 million - pretty small budget by today's standards.
If your looking for large battle scenes, this is not the movie. However, in following a few soldiers, it's pretty good.
I think I read that the whole thing was done for under $1 million - pretty small budget by today's standards.
Peter Reuss
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A review from the NY Times:
War is heck in the clean-scrubbed world of "Saints and Soldiers," the best low-budget, Mormon World War II epic you'll see this year. If that sounds like faint praise, consider the 14 awards the film has garnered at festivals across the country, including seven prizes for audience choice. As the tag line "There is a time for heroes" suggests, this is an old-fashioned, crowd-pleasing war picture, unambivalent in its portrait of war as a necessity and the heroism of self-sacrifice. At a time when the country is divided over these very issues, it should find an enthusiastic, if limited, audience.
The film opens in December 1944 near Malmedy, Belgium, as advancing German troops open fire on unarmed American prisoners of war, killing 86 in an event that would become known as the Malmedy Massacre. The four men who manage to escape into the nearby Ardennes forest represent a conveniently diverse cross section of war-movie archetypes: the tough-talking sergeant (Peter Holden); the devout, soft-spoken sharpshooter (Corbin Allred); the wisecracking medic from Brooklyn (Alexander Niver); and the blundering Cajun country boy (Lawrence Bagby).
Trapped behind enemy lines with a single rifle among them, the soldiers strategize about how best to make their way to the nearest American Army camp. When a stranded R.A.F. pilot (Kirby Heyborne) drops in on them by parachute, the stakes are raised: the daffy Brit is in possession of German military intelligence that could save thousands of American lives. Together, the five men must overcome German snipers, frigid weather and long patches of expository dialogue to smuggle their precious cargo across enemy lines.
Thanks to an impressive cast of largely unknown actors, this small-scale, meticulously researched film tells its story with quiet conviction. The filmmaker's religious credo sneaks in so subtly that it's not until the closing credits that you realize that the "saints" of the title are of the Latter-day variety. A key exchange between the characters Gould, the atheist cynic, and Deacon, the tormented believer, poses the familiar question: Are the horrors of war proof of the universe's cruelty or a God-given opportunity to test our faith?
Unlike most war films of the last 30 years, this one plumps unapologetically for the latter option. Its strategy for dealing with the moral ambivalence of war — not to mention any parallels with contemporary conflicts — is to close its eyes, put down its head and charge. Darn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.
War is heck in the clean-scrubbed world of "Saints and Soldiers," the best low-budget, Mormon World War II epic you'll see this year. If that sounds like faint praise, consider the 14 awards the film has garnered at festivals across the country, including seven prizes for audience choice. As the tag line "There is a time for heroes" suggests, this is an old-fashioned, crowd-pleasing war picture, unambivalent in its portrait of war as a necessity and the heroism of self-sacrifice. At a time when the country is divided over these very issues, it should find an enthusiastic, if limited, audience.
The film opens in December 1944 near Malmedy, Belgium, as advancing German troops open fire on unarmed American prisoners of war, killing 86 in an event that would become known as the Malmedy Massacre. The four men who manage to escape into the nearby Ardennes forest represent a conveniently diverse cross section of war-movie archetypes: the tough-talking sergeant (Peter Holden); the devout, soft-spoken sharpshooter (Corbin Allred); the wisecracking medic from Brooklyn (Alexander Niver); and the blundering Cajun country boy (Lawrence Bagby).
Trapped behind enemy lines with a single rifle among them, the soldiers strategize about how best to make their way to the nearest American Army camp. When a stranded R.A.F. pilot (Kirby Heyborne) drops in on them by parachute, the stakes are raised: the daffy Brit is in possession of German military intelligence that could save thousands of American lives. Together, the five men must overcome German snipers, frigid weather and long patches of expository dialogue to smuggle their precious cargo across enemy lines.
Thanks to an impressive cast of largely unknown actors, this small-scale, meticulously researched film tells its story with quiet conviction. The filmmaker's religious credo sneaks in so subtly that it's not until the closing credits that you realize that the "saints" of the title are of the Latter-day variety. A key exchange between the characters Gould, the atheist cynic, and Deacon, the tormented believer, poses the familiar question: Are the horrors of war proof of the universe's cruelty or a God-given opportunity to test our faith?
Unlike most war films of the last 30 years, this one plumps unapologetically for the latter option. Its strategy for dealing with the moral ambivalence of war — not to mention any parallels with contemporary conflicts — is to close its eyes, put down its head and charge. Darn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.
Many thanks Rob, BLReed, and Peter for responding with the info. I don't see how I missed at least knowing of this film. It looks to be interesting and I will keep my eye out for it. Puts me in mind of another "trapped behind the lines during the Bulge" flick called Midnight Clear. This was a smallish film with quite a good cast and an interesting story line that sure didn't follow the usual men-at-war movie. -- Al
BLReed
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Scott
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Behind enemy lines movie....
Zone Troopers (1985)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092298/
I saw Saints and Soldiers and it's a good effort but not one of those movies I'd watch more than once.
Zone Troopers (1985)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092298/
I saw Saints and Soldiers and it's a good effort but not one of those movies I'd watch more than once.
