How about a more accurate title like The Long, Long Red Line?

Rating: Null/10 (24 August 1999)

First of all, what's with the casting? The cameos by George Clooney and John Travolta added nothing to the movie. And what the hell was Woody Harrelson doing in this? One of my biggest problems with Saving Private Ryan & JFK was the gratuitous use of celebrities, such as Jack Lemmon & Ted Danson, to fill minor roles. All this does is distract from the story and remind the audience that they're watching a movie. My second big problem with the movie was the "reflective" narration. It added very little and became tired and annoying very quickly. "Who are you to take so many shapes?" the voice asks. I felt like yelling "who are you to talk over the movie?". Finally, the movie was way too long. I was expecting a climax about thirty minutes before it actually came and by then my butt was sore and I just wanted to leave. On the positive side, very good performances by Nick Nolte and Sean Penn. Nolte, in particular, comes on strong as the grizzled army officer, passed over for promotion, trying to secure the island. Jim Caviezel gave a solid performance as the reflective private Witt (though, as I've stated, the reflections should have been left to the dialog instead of the irritating narratives). The cinematography was stunning. I especially like the soldier's eye, view of the grass blowing in the wind when you know the Japs are close by. Decent I guess but an oscar contender? I think not. Could have been much, much better.