Ho hum Hollywood Big battle Formula #1

Rating: 3/10 (31 July 2005)

Hollywood can bring anyone down. Even Wolfgang Petersen. Want evidence? Just watch his brilliant Das Boot, one of the most riveting war movies ever made and then watch this piece of Hollywood junk. Big Battle formula #1 calls for pretty faces, blizzard edits of slashing, no gory injuries (superficial slashes are better), wide angle shots of two huge armies running at each other, protagonists who will fight in the last "meaningful" scene. You've seen it before ad nauseam, here you see it again. Mix in numerous close up of anguished heroines watching the battle and that's about it for this picture. As opposed to Das Boot where the viewer actually comes to care about what is happening, Hollywood Big Battle Formula #1 ensures no more involvement than you would get from your video game. Not a coincidence, that's the audience they had in mind. Too bad the "creative people" in Hollywood are MBA's.