Could easily have been another 'Cold Mountain' but wasn't.

Rating: 9/10 (4 October 2006)

First of all, I would question the decision in Britain to rate this film a 15. I am not sure what more it could have done to become an 18, but if you reflect on films like 'Lock Stock' and 'Snatch,' which where classified 18, you wonder how this one slipped through the net. Nudity, giving birth, mutilation, amputation, braining and foul language are rife in this film.
That particular rant out of the way, this was a powerful film, in which you really empathised and cared for all the characters, despite the continuous violence and killing involved. Which brings me to the title of this review. In Cold Mountain, there was so much indiscriminant killing that after a period, you were no longer saddened or even affected by the plight of the performers.
There are moments in this film, for example when the warfare stops briefly, that are pure emotion, and stunning and lengthy camera shots which were a testament to all those involved in the films.
This film is seriously harrowing and not for the faint hearted. It is also very hard to pitch to the cinema going audience, but is a well written piece of drama and I would heartily recommend it to almost anyone.