I watched the movie 1917 the other night. It’s about two soldiers in World War I and their unbelievable mission. From the standpoint of an artistic achievement, it’s like nothing I’d previously seen. If you are interested in cinematography, this is one that you can’t miss. If you are just looking for a good war movie, however, you have a few other choices.
I’m sure there has been a great deal written about why wars make for such compelling movies, but it certainly is true. There are almost too many to count and everyone has their favorites: Glory, Patton, Saving Private Ryan, Bridge on the River Kwai, Black Hawk Down, Gallipoli and on and on. You can’t go wrong with any of them.
My favorite, however, is a strangely underrated classic called A Bridge Too Far. It tells the story of the Allied airborne mission known as Operation Market Garden, designed to drop British and American paratroopers deep into Holland in an effort to break the German lines. It is a fantastic movie in every respect. It displays the heroism of the soldiers involved without sugarcoating their human faults or the arrogance of their commanders. I don’t want to ruin the plot and, in any case, I think the cast speaks for itself. A Bridge Too Far features James Caan, Michael Caine, Sean Connery, Elliott Gould, Gene Hackman, Anthony Hopkins, Laurence Olivier, Ryan O'Neal and Robert Redford.
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