Make up your own mind about this Woo film

Rating: 7/10 (4 March 2008)

By no means the worst War film I have ever seen (bearing in mind that the first one I ever saw was 'The Battle of Midway'). Nicolas Cage, in what was one of two war films for him within the space of 12 months - the other one being 'Captain Corelli's Mandolin', acquitted himself well. It was a surprisingly restrained performance, allowing us to see the other end of the continuum of his acting range for once. Christian Slater also puts in his usual solid performance. The real surprise in all of this is Woo's direction, in that he shows an eye for scenery. Definitely worth watching, although it won't endear the Japanese to you... Good pace, nice music, delicate use of research into the Navajo indians. Is this a credit to Nic Cage's resume? I would say 'yes'. Of course, the real acid test for this film would be to sit the real soldiers from those events down to review it.