Pretty good and quite original

Rating: 8/10 (20 March 2000)

That's what I call an original movie! The director chose to split the movie into 3 separate sections (before/during/after the war) and the result is very interresting to watch. Actually the 'during' part may disappoint some people, because it almost does not contain any fighting scenes (if you're one of those "action-movie" fanatics, go watch Saving Private Ryan instead). The movie's originality comes from the fact that it's not focusing on the war itself, but rather on the effect it has on some ordinary people.
The russian-roulette scenes will remain in your memory for a long time and will produce some interesting thoughts about the very definition of war.
Overall it's a good movie with incredible performances by DeNiro and Walken. However I think it would have benefited from some editing - its 3-hours length has some hollow moments and I believe that shortening it by at least 15 minutes would have been quite nice for the spectator's sake.
I rate it 8/10 and highly recommend it along with such classics as Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket and The Thin Red Line.