Non Fighting Scenes Make the Movie

Rating: 7/10 (10 December 2015)

Simply stated, do not watch this motion picture for the fighting scenes.
The real magic of this film is delivered in the manner by which it imparts the paradox war. The characters in the film find themselves performing uncivil acts in the pursuit of civil goal. It weighs on them, of course. In a number of scenes we see the paradox express itself through both violence and civility. Brad Pitt's portrayal of Don, the tank - and later unit - commander, oscillates between the urbane and brutal in a sensitive and intelligent way.
As for the violence, view it as the pendulum that moves the characters to an extreme end of the paradox's spectrum and nothing more.