Be Warned

Rating: 6/10 (29 August 2009)

This is what happens when a director becomes more powerful than the studio. This movie is easily 45 minutes too long. The 70-80% subtitle reading becomes worklike in a movie 2:40 long.
That said, this is a fantastically acted movie. Most scenes keep you riveted to the screen awaiting (fearing) what is about to happen. I do feel that the subtitles detracted from the greatness of the acting and caused us to miss some of the nuances of their performances. The lead Nazi, Col. Hans, was beyond compare. His role was worth the price of admission. Brad Pitt was funny and understated, and I believe under-utilized.
The action sequences were blunt force trauma to the senses; beautifully simple and graphically accurate. Several of the more brutal scenes will be remembered forever.
Inspite of some other reviewers here, I enjoyed the fantastical rewriting of history.
Overall, this was an excellent movie with great acting and directing. It just needed to be shorter with less sub-titles.