I like war films. Not because I like war, but since it happens I'd like to know more about it. This film isn't like "Platoon", "Hamburger Hill", "Saving Private Ryan" or any other such "Movies". This film isn't like a movie at all. It is so real that it sucks you into every moment as though you were actually there. After the character development, I was literally on the edge of my seat, with my elbows on my knees with my hands holding my cheeks. I saw it at home, so thankfully I was able to pause it to make a cocktail; I needed one because it was that serious.
Other war films I have seen and liked; they seem like popcorn fodder compared to this one. I was so engrossed in the progression and actually became angry at war itself like I have never felt before. I wasn't aware it was a true story until the end credits and I cried then. I was emotional throughout the film, not even knowing this. It was so real that I talked not only to myself, but to the characters I was watching.
Thankfully, there were no "shaky cameras" like "Inglorious Bastards", making it easy to concentrate on what was really going on. What was going on was disturbing and humbling at the same time. Every scene and every incidence was relevant. I don't even call this film a "movie", because it is better than that. I have never given 10/10 to any film and rarely write reviews, but this one is deserving of a 15/10 if that were possible. If you have any reservations about watching this film, cast them aside and view it. Every aspect of what a perfect film would be about is included in this one. It's not a family film or for those who faint easily. It is gripping, extremely graphic, truthful and simply a masterpiece of cinema.
It is deserving of the Academy Award for "Best Picture", "Best Director", "Best Screenplay", "Best Actor", Best Supporting Actor", "Best Cinematography", "Best Editing", "Best Makeup", and of all the films I have ever seen, I put this one on the top of my list, and that isn't an easy feat. With my child love of the "Wizard Of Oz" and my insatiable lust for "Star Trek" and "Star Wars", this film has dethroned all of them. This is the best film I have ever seen in my life.
