Tremendous disappointment

Rating: 5/10 (21 November 2002)

There was an opportunity here to tell a great story, an otherwise unknown story from WWII. Tragically, they took the easy way out and made an inaccurate, ugly, and messy war movie.
I really wanted to enjoy this, but I certainly didn't. It had an amateur feel to it that was almost laughable in spots. Every outcome was telegraphed from miles away, taking away any possibility of suspense or surprise.
Painfully predictable, unnecessarily graphic, wanton death and destruction for no apparent plot reason.
Is Woo attempting to single-handedly rewrite the history of World War II?
This movie could have been a work of art, but I found it to be ugly and ill-conceived.
I was very disappointed, and rate this as a stinker of the highest order.