Hart's War
Review
by : Gareth Von Kallenbach
Starring:
Colin Farrell (Hart), Bruce Willis (McNamara)
Directed by: Gregory Hoblit
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The terrible conflict that was World War II has forever been
visualized in film and print in ways to numerous to mention.
In recent years, Hollywood has returned to the World War II
setting and given us some great productions such as "Band
of Brothers", and "Saving Private Ryan". Alas, for every "Ryan"
there are a number of misfires such as "Pearl Harbor" and
"Captain Correli's Mandolin" that were large on spectacle
and hype but short on character and plot.
Following
the tragic events of September 11th, war related films such
as "Behind Enemy Lines", and "BlackHawk Down, have been embraced
by audiences that sent the films box office to lofty heights.
The new Bruce Willis vehicle "Hart's War" is attempting to
reach the same audience that drew "Enemy" and "Blackhawk"
by relying on human drama rather than battlefield exploits
to propel the story.
"Hart's
War" tells the story of LT. Tommy Hart (Colin Farrell), an
officer at the rear headquarters in Europe who is safely behind
the lines thanks to his Senator father. Hart was in his second
year of law school at Yale when he entered the war, and is
content at serving his country in HQ. While driving to a field
office, Hart is taken prisoner and finds himself in a Stalag
run by the brutal Major Wilhelm Visser (Marcel Iures), and
the ranking prisoner Colonel William McNamara (Bruce Willis),
who is a fourth generation West Point graduate. Hart is ordered
to live apart from the officers in enlisted men's barracks
ostensibly due to a lack of space. Hart later learns that
McNamara does not trust him as his debriefing only lasted
three days by the Nazis and he never moved past an entry level
interrogator. Undaunted, Hart goes about adjusting to life
in the camp, and even gets the attention of the camps trade
merchant Bedford, (Cole Hauser), who has a knack for finding
items prisoners need for a price be it winter boots and socks
or parts for an illegal radio. Life in the camp is soon disrupted
by the arrival of two black airmen who have been shot down.
Mcnamara instructs Hart to watch out for the men, and this
causes him to run afoul of the men he lives with, as they
are very opposed to living with black officers. When one of
the black pilots is framed and executed, tensions run high
in the camp. The discovery of a dead white prisoner further
complicates matters when the remaining black pilot is forced
to stand trial for the crime and Hart is assigned to protect
him.
It is
at this point that the movie becomes uneven as its pacing
and focus become undone. It seems as if director Gregory Hoblit
was unsure if he wanted a prisoner escape film, a racial drama
in the vein of "A Soldiers Story", or a courtroom drama such
as "A Few Good Men". The screenplay by Billy Ray and Terry
George does service to the book by John Katzenbach, but fails
to have the emotional impact that the book had. Willis is
good in a subdued role, as the audience is never sure of McNamara's
intentions until the very end. Farell plays Hart as a wide-eyed
soldier who is removed from his place of comfort and has to
develop the traits of leadership, loyalty, and honor as he
learns that life in the camp and on the lines is not the starched
uniforms and lifestyle to which he had become accustomed.
Marcel Iures is effective in his portrayal as he is a man
of diversity. Capable of killing without hesitation one minute
and listening to jazz while reading Mark Twain the next, he
is a loyal soldier who is determined to do his duty to the
end.
This film
is a hard one to get a grasp on, as it was a well-crafted
film with some great cinema photography. The pacing of the
film is slow as the film builds to its climax in an methodical
manner that is plausible despite some Hollywood style trickery,
such as characters dragging events out in order for future
events to happen even though their delays have no valid reasons
and would not likely happen in reality. That being said, the
film did entertain at times, but it left me with an empty
feeling, as I did not gain hope, inspiration, or satisfaction
from the characters and their stories, only acceptance of
their fates much like the huddled masses imprisoned in the
stalag.
Gareth
Von Kallenbach
Gareth@nwlink.com
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