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 enlarge | Director: Randall Wallace
Actors: Mel Gibson, Madeleine Stowe, Greg Kinnear, Sam Elliott, Chris Klein
Studio: Paramount
Category: DVD
List Price: $12.98
Buy Used: $1.74
You Save: $11.24 (87%)
New (59) Used (110) Collectible (2) from $1.74
Avg. Customer Rating:  549 reviews
Sales Rank: 1955
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd-video, Full Screen, Thx, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 138
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.3 x 0.2
MPN: 097363400240
ISBN: 0792182103
UPC: 097363400240
EAN: 9780792182108
ASIN: B000068TPN
Theatrical Release Date: March 1, 2002
Release Date: August 20, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Truckload of simplistic cliches August 19, 2002
9 out of 68 found this review helpful
Utterly unrealistic glorification of war. I happen to know a few real soldiers who fought on the other side. The war was much more brutal and savage and americans were much less civilised and gallant.
 Very Good Film But The Genre Is Tired August 19, 2002
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I expected this to be a great movie and I must say I was slightly let down. I was expecting a Vietnam version of Braveheart in a way which I suppose was a tough standard to beat. The bad thing though was that I had seen this after two other war movies, 'Behind Enemy Lines' and 'Black Hawk Down'. 'Black Hawk Down' was in my opinion a better film and 'Behind Enemy Lines' was very different in that it went more for a summer popcorn type of war movie. Mel Gibson is, as always, terrific here and Sam Elliot does a great job as well. This is a different film than 'Black Hawk Down' was in that it showed the enemy's viewpoint as well as the view on the homefront. I thought that this worked to the film's advantage.
I must however say that this is a better war movie than the recent John Woo film 'Windtalkers' which was, after four war films, nothing new. Explosions get a little less exciting and the story falters after the chain of recent war films but nevertheless this is a film that I would recommend if the subject matter is of interest.
 They Were Soldiers August 19, 2002
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This movie is a must to watch from an informational point of view. If you need to find information on tactics, uniforms, weapons,etc-this is the one. This the one,if you want to understand what this war was about. About real soldiers,who actually had to fight in Vietnam:18-19 years old kids,who were drafted and without any choice were thrown into a foreign country to play a strange game of survival : the one , who kills first, will win another chance to play this game again...and again.All we wanted was simple- just to go home ... alive. I was lucky to see my home, but many of my friends didn't.
a guys take August 19, 2002
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I love war movies, It has action and is intense but I also like it because it shows the womans side and how effects her and how they stay strong in times of war. Mel Gibson is the perfect actor for this movie. I like how it shows that he is a father to his childern and his men. So all in all I loved this movie and recomend it to anyone who loves war films. I also recomend black hawk down.
"Touching, Intriguing, Wonderful" August 18, 2002
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
I am an avid reader of World History and have read more than 15 books on the Vietnam war, and
honestly this movie is the closest I have ever got in truly comprehending what actually happended
in November 1965. The way that Randall Wallace has composed this movie is exceptional. Acting by
both Mel Gibson and the epigrammatic, yet, stunning appearance by Chris Klien is superb. Just
superb.We sometimes tend to believe that war is just something ordinary. It just shows up at your doorstep. All you have to do is just fight off the enemy. You win you lose. You die, you survive.
Actually its really not that simple. Its a very complex scenario, a scenario I have never ever
experiened in any motion picture. Well yes, might have in "Saving private Ryan", but not till
the extent, which was shown in this motion picture. The cameras were truly right where the action
was. Not too far and not too close, just perfect. Its like youre actually there. Its like youre
the one with the gun, the one who the enemy is after, the one who needs to survive. The music is wonderfully composed. The timing is exact. I mean, in some of the previous
war movies, music just starts off without any rhime or reason. However, in this movie, it
just truly motivates you. At times, the movie touches you deep within. How people with families,
people with hopes, people with dreams just die in a war. And how both American and Vietnamese
soldiers died in November 1965. And most important of all, this movie is not only one sided,
but it refletcs adequate light on both the Vietnamese and the American side.
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