User reviews

Band of Brothers absolutely one of the best miniseries of all-time...period. Not only that but it's also among the very best war movies/tv shows ever created! It follows the story of a US Army airborne division called Easy Company and their missions in Europe during World War II. It follows the brave soldiers and their experiences and bravery during the war. It's based off interviews with survivors of Easy Company and the soldiers letters and journals they wrote. EVERY episode is so incredibly written and the cast is absolutely amazing! It is a pulse-pounding accurate depiction of war that will keep you glued to each and every episode. I have to warn you that it's a tough watch but absolutely worth it.

Band of Brothers is the best Movie/Mega Mini series that has ever been made. It has all the production quality of Saving Private Ryan but with many more layers of plot and characters. I can't wait for the what has to be a gigantic DVD collection, just hope it is under $200!!! Thanks HBO!!!!!!!

I have read virtually all of Ambrose's WWII books, and this mini-series faithfully follows one of his best. The experience of these men of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne, was mirrored throughout the many divisions of Army and Marine ground troops in WWII. I feel that this series represents that collective experience in the finest, most forthright manner possible and pays tribute to them all. The acting, mostly by previously unheralded actors, was superb--particularly that of Damien Lewis (Capt.Winters). Winters had to mature along with his increasing command responsibilites, had to learn to turn over his initial company-level responsibilities to others as he was promoted to battalion commander. It was clearly tough for him, particularly when he had to order attacks on heavily defended objectives, without being to lead his former command directly. All of the characters were developed enough that you cared about each of them as individuals, and felt the loss of each of them through the attrition during the brutal fighting in the Northern European Theater. They cared for each other as fighting men do (confirmed by my own experience in the infantry in Vietnam), but at the same time they had to carry on with the mission regardless of loss. Replacements are regarded warily at first, but then managed to blend in with the veterans if they showed they were worthy of joining this band of brothers. The plot is real, and as such is neither macho nor macabre--it just is presented as it really happened. The truths of combat are stranger than fiction. The interviews with the actual veterans, interspersed throughout the series, added authenticity, verified what the series was showing. These representatives of "The Greatest Generation" did themselves and this nation proud. Though I knew the story well, I eagerly looked for to each new episode to see how well it tracked with the book and how well the actors and director portrayed it. Up to this series, I had thought that "Once an Eagle" (starring Sam Elliot) was the best war series, but this one is now at the top of the class in my view.

I am an 80 year old combat veteran (88th Inf. Div. Italy).

I watched BOB on the History Channel. I was so overwhelmed, indeed a bit panicked by the authentic nature of 90+% of the uniforms, signs, noises (I take exception to the sound of incoming artillery).

I cried several times at the authentic staging - for them and me.

I cannot believe I'll watch it again. It's too much. Too real.

We never had so much water allowed in a shower.

Rate: 10/10

This week I saw three things based on WW-II novels. The first was 'The Pianist' about the Warsaw ghetto in the war and the survival of a Jewish pianist in that ghetto. The second was 'De Tweeling', a Dutch film about two twin-sisters, separated in 1926. One of them grows up in Nazi-Germany, the other in The Netherlands. That movie shows us more of the common persons during the war, Germans and not-Germans. The third was 'Band of Brothers', a true story about combat in the war. All three things are great, the films I mean, and you definitely should see all three of them.

'Band of Brothers' follows Easy-company from their training in England, through D-Day, the rest of France (including Bastogne), Holland (including operation Market Garden), Germany and Austria. This story is shown to us in ten different episodes. Every episode starts with the real men from Easy-company telling about their experiences and ends with a short written update of Easy-company. Between beginning and ending of episodes one of the best things I have seen on screen is presented to us.

The casting is amazing. Even David Schwimmer (from 'Friends') as the bitter Captain Sobel is great. Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston are superb as Major Winters and Captain Lewis Nixon. Every actor seems to be perfect for his character. The photography and direction is great also. I especially loved the direction of the episode done by executive producer Tom Hanks, possibly with some help from the other executive producer Steven Spielberg. 'Saving Private Ryan' was great for showing us the horror in combat, 'Band of Brothers' does the same thing but adds some other things. You really learn to know the characters (in 600 minutes you can do that), you sympathize with them.

If you have the chance to see this masterpiece, do so. It is long but you can spread the episodes over some days. But if you start watching it is very hard to stop. Definitely one of the best WW-II movies or series out there.

Band of Brothers finds us following the exploits of Easy Company throughout their campaign in Europe, from their inception all the way to the end of the war. The commentary from the actual soldiers that were in those situations is touching, to say the very least. These commentaries also help to move the character development along quite a bit, as it lets us into their own personal thoughts on the situations they faced. This project, to the best of my knowledge was undertaken at roughly the same time as Saving Private Ryan, using many of the same locations and also employing DreamWorks special effects, giving it a very familiar feel for anyone that has seen Private Ryan. As I've already touched on, the character development is greatly due to the fact that this story is not told in a two hour segment, but throughout several hour long intervals, giving us the chance to truly "get to know" the characters personalities as the story develops. In my humble opinion, the only other military type mini series' that even come close to the scope of this one are The Blue and The Grey, and North and South.

All of the actors in this series do and excellent job at playing the roles appropriately and making us believe the hell these men were put through. The thing I also appreciated about the cast is the lack of any "real" names, leading to us not knowing who may or may not be making it out the scenes alive and unscathed.

This mini series is everything Saving Private Ryan was, as well as everything it wasn't. If you're a fan of war time stories and "army" movies, this is hands down the best of the best… I don't even think I could name ANY movies about WWII that could even compare to this one… A bold statement, I know, but I'm making it any how.

There aren't much TV-series which have left such an impression on me as Band of Brothers did. From the moment I saw the first episodes, I knew I had to buy this on DVD.

This series, telling you the story of Easy Company of the US Army Airbourne Paratrooper division is so unbelievably realistic, so authentic... There has been put so much effort in taking care of all the details that it makes you believe that you are right in the middle of all the action. This is an outstanding achievement. It's about ten hours long, but I wouldn't mind if it was a few hours longer.

Each episode opens with interviews with several of the actual men from Easy Company, talking about some of the experiences that that episode deals with. When you buy the special edition DVD box (a metal case with 6 instead of 5 DVD's), you will find the complete interviews with these men on the extra DVD. These interviews certainly aren't to be missed!

As you may have guessed, I'm one of the biggest fans of this series. I could go on for hours about it, but our time is limited and instead of reading this you better watch the series yourself. According to me, there is only one score appropriate for a masterpiece like this one and that is 10/10. Amazing!!!!

Band of Brothers absolutely one of the best miniseries of all-time...period. Not only that but it's also among the very best war movies/tv shows ever created! EVERY episode is so incredibly written and the cast is absolutely amazing! It is a pulse-pounding accurate depiction of war that will keep you glued to each and every episode.

Band of Brothers shows the world the ugly truth of World War II.

As it was a TV series, sometimes people may think that there are movies of the same quality, but honestly, I didn't find.

The characters are presented very deeply and we can even feel what they are going through and the problems they are facing.

At times, distressing. Others, exciting.

I believe that as it was based on real facts and having testimonials from people who have gone through the war, Band of Brothers becomes unforgettable.

"Band of Brothers" in a word is awesome. I couldn't wait to see each episode. Co-Executive Produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, it has the realism, look and feel of Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" (1998) but with more insight into the characters. Hanks even directed one episode himself.

Told over ten gut wrenching episodes, the story centers on a company of soldiers in the 101st American Airborne Division in WWII from their initial basic training to their landing in France on D-Day to their many battles and ordeals through to the liberation of a concentration camp and finally through to the end of the war.

The soldiers are ordinary people thrust into horrific situations and shows how each is able (or not able) to deal with the situations. The battle scenes are realistic and convincing and the special effects are breath taking. While the series depicts the trials and tribulations of the company, it isn't afraid to show how the war affects seemingly sane and rational men. For example there is a scene where the nominal hero of the story, Winters (Damien Lewis) shoots an unarmed German soldier out of frustration. There is also a scene where a group of German prisoners are cut down by an American officer after he had given them cigarettes. Even after the German surrender there are instances of out and out murder of Germans. This is very rare for an American war story.

The cast is of largely unknown actors, which makes for a more effective telling of the story. There is no John Wayne leading the troops to victory kind of thing. Damien Lewis is very good as Winters who rises through the ranks to lead the company. Ron Livingston plays his friend and second in command, Nixon. Others include David Schwimmer, excellent as the training officer, Scott Grimes as Malarkey the grizzled sergeant and ex New Boys on the Block member Donnie Wahlberg effective as Corporal Lipton.

"Band of Brothers" is a story that could only be told in a mini-series. It clearly shows that war really is hell.

I absolutely love this miniseries.

As a keen amateur historian, I got sick and tired of books and documentaries about the great leaders, politics, geography and basically, the non-bloodshed parts of WW2.

Similarly virtually every time I saw a war movie, it was ruined by flashbacks( thin red line) ridiculous fiction (and yes, i do mean you, The Bunker) or completely unnecessary and out of place sex scenes (who can forget Enemy At The Gates, a powerful film, until that awful sex scene which ruined the whole thing?)

There are good war movies. But this stands out, because not only is there no fiction whatsoever, but because, as a miniseries, more time is available to get to know the characters, and follow their progress, to know them, to love them, to mourn them.

Time allows for detail, and the fact that the 'frills' that other films stick in to make them more viewer friendly and marketable have been left out....

When a character in BoB dies, you mourn not because a flashback tells you they have a young sweetheart or something...but because you know this is real, it happened. The acting is truly superb, and you realise, it isn't a character you are mourning at all, it's a real person. This is because the actors made very strong relationships with their real life surviving counterparts, they knew their roles inside out and it really does show. We feel so strongly for the characters because the actors have portrayed them so faithfully. There are no clichés, because the truth is so accurately reproduced.

After reading Ambrose's book, you realise how religiously each part of the series is portrayed.

The sets are perfect, the effects remarkable, and Michael Kamens score will go down as one of the finest ever written. Everything about the production of this series is phenomenal, the details are so minute yet so important.

This should be watched not just for entertainment value, but as a reminder of the sacrifices made for us.

Easily the best television series ever produced.

Watch it. Now.

"Band of Brothers" is a nearly 12 hour long show about the experiences of a group of soldiers during their tour of duty in Europe during WWII. Given that it is this long, it allows so much more in the way of character development and story telling than a typical war movie. The closest thing to this quality-wise is the original version of "Das Boot"--as it was a mini-series and was later spliced apart to make it a motion picture. But even then, the German submarine film was only about 40% as long and never got into the detail and had quite the emotional impact as "Band of Brothers". In every way, the show screams quality--with amazing sets, details and direction. In fact, while the budget for this was large ($125,000,000 according to IMDb), it was actually pretty small considering the number of actors, the amazing sets and the length of the series. This is a must-see for anyone and I would say more and heap more praise on the film except that there are already hundreds and hundreds of other reviews on IMDb that pretty much do that already.

I understand why ppl rate it so high, but imo this show is aimed mostly to american audience to bring up patriotic feelings and high emotions, as an european i cant really get into it. A very nice ww2 series in general but not a 9.5 for me.

Lots of people applaud this series for its realism, but I can't really agree. I think there is still too way much Hollywood here and a lot of the scenes are cliché. The Germans are almost without exception behaving as total amateurs. For example, in the Crossroads episode they let themselves be completely surprised by the American attack in the rear, and in response they go running round in the open like a bunch of headless chickens to be shot down in droves. Yet we are told that these are SS soldiers. The SS was a crack unit and I don't believe that they were such poor soldiers to let this happen to them. One of the first things you get taught in tactical school is to secure your perimeter and set guards in all directions.

The American side too made huge blunders, if we accept this to be a realistic depiction of what happened in reality. Take the attack on the village of Foy (another place where we constantly see crowds of Germans nervously running around in the open for no apparent reason). The Americans knew that the Germans had artillery and tanks there, yet they assault the village with less than one Company of infantry without any attempt to soften up the defenders first! What are they thinking? Where was the Air Force? Couldn't they bomb the village first? Where was the American artillery? Couldn't they lay a barrage on the village before the attack? Why not use smoke grenades to give themselves some cover when they crossed the open fields? And we are supposed to feel sorry for the guys that their attack got bogged down?

Also very unrealistic is the layout of the opposing sides in the Last Patrol episode. If you believe this, the lines were less than hundred meters apart, yet on both sides people were walking around right in the open, and exposing themselves at the windows etc. At night they show some huge spotlights on the German side - surely those would be immediate targets given that they only appear to be a couple of hundred meters away from the Americans and plainly visible? Ridiculous! The behaviour of the Americans during the shelling in the Bastogne wood is equally unrealistic. Why are they all walking around in the open and talking to each other if they were so close to the German lines and expecting to come under fire? They should have been sitting in their foxholes, observing the enemy, not walking around chatting as if they were taking a stroll in the park! And then when the first shells explode why are some of them running round like idiots, shouting to the others to take cover? Don't you think that these D-day veterans would know by now to take cover when the shells start flying? All this kind of stuff that is only designed to get us excited and rooting for the characters is typical Hollywood nonsense. Never mind the decent acting, the good costumes and props, the camera-work - if the overall behaviour of the characters is quite unbelievable the entire story falls flat on its face. I am still waiting for the first truly realistic depiction of front-line combat - but I don't think I will ever get to see it, because in reality it isn't very photogenic so it wouldn't sell.

As near to perfection as a TV Series can be, I cannot put into words the gravity & importance of this series.

A true, accurate, beautiful, and brutal portrayal of war. Nothing compares in the modern age, if ever.

Episode 9 is so emotionally draining it is very hard to watch at times, but watch it you must.

Never Again must we let this happen. Never, ever, ever again.

From a UK viewer, my heart, soul and tears are with every allied veteran, and every jewish person (and others) tortured and murdered by the Nazi regime.

This is the best, Chernobyl second best.

I was a little hesitant to watch this miniseries because i'm not too fond of war movies, but this one was amazing! The acting was amazing, as well as the quality of picture. It was made to look like it was back in the 40's. It's not in black and white, but it has that older look. The actors, mostly British, are absolutely amazing. You really feel like you are there with them participating in the battles, feeling the pain of losing a comrade, and the fear of the battle. It starts with the basic training in Toccoa,Ga, and continues through Normandy, The battle of the Bulge, and Operation Market Garden, among others, as well as the liberation of a concentration camp. If you liked Saving Private Ryan, or even if you didn't, you will definitely love this miniseries!! Once again, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg created a masterpiece!

After 20 years it remains rightfully one of the highest rated things on IMDB. This is because it taps into the darkest days of the 20th century from which the greatest sacrifices were made, and the greatest heroes were forged. They simply wouldn't make BoB this way anymore and it wouldn't be as significant. Because 20 years age, most of us still had parents and grandparents who were still alive who had fought in or experienced WW2. So it was very much still real and close to all of us. 20 years later it is now almost entirely part of history books as opposed to being something we can still feel. Band of Brothers immortalised a number of ordinary but inspirational men and their stories, which were a microcosm for the stories of the millions of people and families around the globe and their experiences in humanity's darkest days. It would also be too political and careful if it were made these days. Because enough distance has passed people now for people to feel comfortable enough to criticise what happened as seen from a modern perspective and may even try to denigrate or change the narrative to serve their delusions or agenda. Because they no longer have to look into the eyes of the ordinary men and women who had to do terrible things and make terrible sacrifices being thrust into scenarios they did not create. So a series like Band of Brothers will never and could never be made again, so treasure it.

This is an incredibly poignant and important show that everyone should watch once. It's so real in the portrails of these men and women who lived through this war. I've watched it a couple dozen times and I still get drawn into this story and am touched by the sacrifices so many people made. Please show this to everyone you know. It's important to tell these stories that are becoming lost to time and history.

Judging by other comments, it seems that this miniseries struck a chord with many viewers. I almost hate to add yet another glowing endorsement since the other reviews are pretty much identical...but here goes. This one made me wonder WHERE DOES AMERICA GET SUCH MEN? The things that Easy Company (boy, there's irony for you!) went through. I've always been grateful to all those who fought for my freedom (I served my country but never had to fight) and have wondered how men could do the awful things that had to be done. I've admired those who actually faced combat. Anyway, Band of Brothers is superbly done historically correct documentary about E Co, 101st Airborne. It follows the lives (and sometimes deaths) of the men of Easy Co. The miniseries takes the men through most of their combat engagements. The cinematography is outstanding. Spielberg and Hanks really did a great job on this miniseries! There are some interviews with some of the survivors, who have remained close to this day. Disks 1-5 are the actual miniseries but WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T SKIP DISK 6! There is a lot of information about how the film was cast, the "boot camp" that the actors went through and how soft actors were turned into lean, hard fighting men. There are more interviews with surviving members of Easy Co. Folks, this is a don't-miss series!

This is the true story of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. It start 2 years before D-Day as they train in Camp Toccoa, Georgia. They battle from Normandy ending with the idleness of occupation in Germany.

This is almost perfect television. It takes compelling important history and makes it a thriller touching TV event. There are so many great characters. The greatness of this show is that these actors make these characters come alive. Obviously the audience isn't expected to keep track of every character. However every leading character has a compelling personality. It's also a new level of authenticity for TV production. The action is thrilling. The last episode is slower dealing with an usual aspect of the struggle. The episode is unexpected but compelling nevertheless. This is a great TV war miniseries from start to finish.

This is peak television. It's authentic and characters feel very real. It feels like you're there, you feel the tension, not made by bad cliches of modern tv shows, but because you're so immersed and on edge all the time. There is no sense of hero vs bad guy, it just feels like everyone is a loser in this. They don't just try to make the other side all look like evil people just to get audience on their side, they just show how it is and what needs to be done. The characters are not perfect, that's what makes this show good. In modern tv shows, they need all the main characters to be perfect and all their actions need to be justified and they need to be likeable, and this and that to a point where they don't feel like real people. Here they do indeed feel like real people so when they die, you really do feel bad and this sense of loss resonates whether it's one of the main character that dies or a German who's also just following orders on the other side and is just as scared. If this show was made today, the show would be more concerned with trying to emotionally attach you to a bunch of main characters who get saved in a cliche way every time and of course they have to be diverse even if it didn't make sense, and add some women as well, story comes second, actually just change the story massively just to fit your own narrative because it's fiction anyway and they treat audience nowadays like braindead zombies who can't think properly so they'll have 1 dimensional characters and a 1 dimensional plot and like they have the attention span to sit through downtime so they got to throw in drama everywhere. I'm glad this came out when it did, HBO would never make something this good nowadays.

I was watching this series and thought it was good. There was so much talk it was so realistic and based on true stories. Then there was the episode about the Netherlands and seeing the "hills(!) of Eindhoven" just made me laugh. The boy who brought olives to the soldiers was just ridiculous, as were the peasants traveling in a Russian carriage. Then my parents and mother-in-law (who lived through all this) pointed out all the other stupid mistakes they made. They found it offensive and couldn't watch for more then 10 minutes. With all the money they put in this series they could have put some towards research in authenticity. Maybe for the USA this war has become just a story but in Europe it is living memory.