Don't make a remake!

Rating: 10/10 (15 September 2005)

There's a saying: "If it ain't broken, don't fix it." This saying is especially applicable to this movie. This movie is a timeless classic, which stands alone and cannot be replicated. I know that countless words have been written about this movie, so anything I say will probably be nothing new, but I'll say it anyway. This movie could have easily become some kind of corny and phony contrivance about some ex-patriot loser who is wallowing in self-pity because some woman led him on and then gave him the old "heave-ho." This movie could have easily become little more than just another World War Two movie, with the good guys vs the bad guys, with the latter getting everything they deserve. But this movie goes way beyond that, and is a work of art. Now this may sound like a cliché, but it isn't. This movie actually conveys a story that is both complex and compelling and contains some really great acting which transforms the script into something that the audience can actually listen to and follow without trying to figure out what's going on. Many of the characters in this movie are intrinsically unattractive and unlikable, but when mixed together, they emerge as some of the most memorable characters in the history of American cinema. I won't rehash this movie because anyone who knows cinema has undoubtedly already seen it. But suffice it to say, this movie is one-of-a-kind and should be treated as such.