shaunmoulster

As with many of the reviews, one is simply blown away by the scale, cinematography & realism of this production. Overlaying- and haunting- is the superb score, providing as much aural tension as the images provide visual. The decision to include a final, eleventh hour charge emphasised the futility.

However, I felt the film failed to quite capture the individual futility and did not, for me, establish the same character empathy or the sense of camaraderie, which is much more evident in the 1979 version. This film wonderfully illustrates the hell of the First World War and the innate courage to live just one day, but is perhaps less beholden to the author's original message.

Great film making: yes; same evocation of the novel's spirit: no.

A smashing Spanish film perfectly recreating a feel of the late 1970s. Whilst the protagonists are ultimately criminals, one but cannot like all of them in one way or another. I strong insight into the characters and the evolution of a bullied introvert who finds new "family" and purpose in the local criminal gang. The writing and reproduction of the 1970s is superb. Despite being essentially a crime-spree film, many moments, and particularly the end, are deeply moving.