Absolutely incredible, BEST WAR MOVIE EVER

Rating: Null/10 (21 February 2002)

We Were Soldiers (10 out of 10 stars) By C.J. Cauley
"We Were Soldiers" is a truly remarkable, epic motion picture about love and war. Mel Gibson was the perfect pick for the lead role of Lieutenant Colonel Hal Moore. He is absolutely arresting. This is the best movie of Gibson's distinguished career. This time next year, I have no doubt that "We Were Soldiers" will have a steady stream of awards under its belt and more than a handful of Academy Award nominations to boast about.
The screenplay, written by director Randall Wallace, is based on the best selling book "We Were Soldiers Once...and Young" by Hal Moore and Joe Galloway. Together they recorded the story of 400 brave Americans who faced down an army of 2,000 North Vietnamese soldiers in the Ia Drang Valley. Not only does it tell the story of the soldiers themselves, but also of the families they left behind, particularly the military wives. It even touches on the Vietnamese soldiers' stories.
On November 14, 1965, Lt. Col. Moore led the air calvary into the Ia Drang Valley in the central highlands of Vietnam. It would later become known as the valley of death. These young husbands, fathers and sons bond as brothers on the battle field while their wives hold down the fort back home. There is savage realism in the battle scenes, it is not for the faint of heart or stomach. It is quite possibly the most realistic war movie ever made.
Moore is a valiant leader who repeatedly refuses to leave his men in the heat of battle. He vows to be the first one on the battle field and the last one to leave it and to never leave a man behind, alive or dead. His nobility is second only to his courage. These young men were military minions just doing their job when America was thrust into the Vietnam war. They had to go. There were no choices. They were heroes but they were treated as anything but when they returned to the country who had sent them to fight. This does not go unnoticed in "We Were Soldiers."
The story is so completely well rounded, in fact, that it covers everything from the racial tensions in the southern U.S. at the time to the perils of being a soldier and a father to the struggles the military wives faced back home. Madeleine Stowe leads the ladies' charge as Julie Moore. Keri Russell plays Barbara Geoghegan, wife of Second Lieutenant Jack Geoghegan, played by Chris Klein. While Jack follows Moore's lead thousands of miles away in Vietnam, Barbara does the same with Mrs. Moore back home, organizing the women and trying to keep their spirits up.
There is death and loss, honor and bravery and even a few candid moments of comic relief. A lot of the funnier lines come from the most stoic of the group, Moore's right hand man, Sergeant Major Basil Plumley, played by Sam Elliott. Like Moore, Plumley is a Korean War vet with years of service under his belt. He is both a leader and a comrade to his young underlings. Greg Kinnear also gets a few laughs as Major Bruce Crandall, one of the helicopter pilots dropping off the soldiers at Landing Zone X-ray in the Ia Drang Valley. Both should also be commended for their dramatic performances.
Barry Pepper is civilian war corespondent Joe Galloway. Shortly after the fighting begins, he joins the soldiers on the battle field to document their struggle. He soon finds himself just as much a soldier as a journalist. Galloway would later receive the only combat award of valor given to any civilian in the Vietnam War. He would also later marry the daughter of one of Moore's fallen men. Moore and Galloway form a bond that has obviously lasted a lifetime.
Mel Gibson's emotional resonance is astounding as is the rest of the cast's. The groups of soldiers and wives seemed to have a genuine kinship. The result is an incredibly beautiful and at the same time terribly horrific and gripping tale of uncommon valor. "We Were Soldiers" is a startling film with a terrific cast of characters and excellent direction by Randall Wallace who also directed "The Man in the Iron Mask" and wrote the screenplay for "Braveheart." The Wallace/Gibson duo is a team that cannot be beat.
Beyond direction and performance is phenomenal cinematography by Dean Semler. An Academy Award winner for Best Cinematography for "Dances With Wolves," Semler brings valued experience to the project. Semler photographed "We Were Soldiers" in a "cinema verite" style which brings the battle scenes right to you. It's almost like a documentary, bringing all of the action right to the forefront. The detail is incredible, right down to the increasing pupil size of a dying man.
The majesty of "We Were Soldiers" is hard to put into words. When you become completely oblivious to the method in which you are viewing a story, the cinematography and direction are at the highest most level of perfection. When a stellar cast is brought together to deliver the story with both undeniable elegance and sobering sincerity, the actors become real. When you have all of these elements, you have a genuine masterpiece called "We Were Soldiers." Mel Gibson is to Vietnam what Tom Hanks is to World War II.
Bottom Line: GO SEE THIS MOVIE! (And bring a hankie!)