****1/2 out of 5

Rating: Null/10 (21 July 2002)

First of all whether you like this movie or not you have to give action jack of all trades John Woo credit for first, attempting his first war movie and second telling a story that hasn't been heard all that much in the past. Woo has always been known for his endless shoot outs and bigger than life action scenes and this is no exception. The battle sequesnce are huge and the gun fights never stop, at least half of the 2 hours are beautifully filmed battle scenes that capture the true horrors of war, trust me Woo doesn't let us off easy he deptices the dismemberment of heads, the loss of limbs and even an intense scene in witch a soilder gets trapped in barbed wire. But there is more to this than just the endless amounts of violence, Woo regular Nicolas Cage gives a great performance as always as a sargent ordered to protect an indian soilder who can speak a very special code. Christian Slater, another man who is no stranger to Woo territory also gives a small but none the less effective performance. The only probably with the film is that due to the fact that it is a war movie and it is expected to have a lot of violence Woo's trademark action style seems to lose some of its poetic justice. The thing that amazes me most about this film is that Woo has made here a war movie that can be enjoyed by not only war buffs but conventional action fans as well.