Better in 1977

Rating: 8/10 (21 November 2002)

When I first saw this, in the summer of 1977, it was the Greatest War Picture of All Time -- except for Patton, of course, which isn't even in the same class. It is grotesquely dated now, although I think it's all the fault of the music.
Ironically, I own the soundtrack on LP and was a big fan of it at the time -- perhaps that's why I'm so sensitive to it now. But today it strikes me as bombastic, and a throwback to the kind of music you'd find in a 40's WW2 extravaganza.
Disregarding the music, it's a good film. The explosions, as was the style until Saving Private Ryan, are way too flashy -- bright orange blossoms of pyrotechnic orgasm punctuate every battle scene. Aside from those and the music, a fine fine film.
It's a faithful version of Cornelius Ryan's epic account of Operation Market-Garden and the Battle of Arnhem, directed with gusto and honesty by Richard Attenborough, whom I believe is a veteran of the battle. The casting is brilliant, except maybe for Ryan O'Neal, who plays the boyish Jim Gavin, well, *too* boyishly. (O'Neal was 37 during filming, and Gavin was the same age during the battle, but Gavin had two years of battle-hardening under his belt -- his boyishness was relative to older soldiers, not to Hollywood stars!)
And aside from the clunky repro German tanks, and the over-obvious use of roll bars on the Kubelwagens, the machinery assembled has rarely been exceeded. Look at all those Shermans! See the beautiful C-47s! (Even though it's fairly obvious not that many of them were airworthy, after repeated viewings.) Watch the Dutch Air Force parachute into their own country, standing in for the British 1st Airborne Division, its Polish contingent, and the American 101st and 82nd Airbornes! Technically, everything looks great.
But the jarring music takes away the versimilitude on a regular basis. Turn it down!
Maybe a Special Edition DVD could be produced, separating the music and offering a version sans music, in addition to the 5.1 vs. 2.0 soundtracks... or maybe just a version with the damn music a little quieter.

Lots of maybes. With those improvements, this would be an eight, but as is, I rate it a 6 on the 10-scale.