I thought this movie was a little less than mediocre, as far as war movies go... I've seen better war films with the theme "people on the other side are people too", blah blah, but this one didn't quite cut it, for me. MAYBE if it was just THAT theme, then I think I would have liked it slightly more, but the fact that it seemed like a plug for Mormonism (DUMB DUMB DUMB DUMMMMB)really bothered me. It made the "silly" atheist see the error in his ways because a Mormon gave his life for him, sacrificed himself so he could save the others... he pocketed the little book in the end, and it was all so BLAH (did anyone else feel like there was a not so subtle pro-Mormon thing going on? Am I alone in this?).
I also thought the interactions of the soldiers were all so cliche... the biting humor of the "witty, but still slightly nancy" English man was trite, the country boy that don't know nothing, but shirks at the idea of smoking a cig because the Brit called it a 'fag'... and I dunno, the dialogue and the back-story, well... it all just seemed weak. And there was even a starwars-esque moment when Deacon has the vision at the end... I mean... COME ON.
All in all, I really didn't find this movie all that impressive, and in NO way can I even begin to understand how the eff they are comparing this to Band of Brothers. Completely different league, IMHO.
reply
share
wmartine-1
16 years ago
To whoever has a problem with this film being a subtle pro-Mormon film, they need to have a wake up call to what film is all about. Or how about Art in general. People create films to share a message or belief that they feel strongly about. Just because you may have a problem with religion doesn't mean that it is wrong to make a film that promotes religion. That is the creators prerogative. And doing this certainly doesn't make it a bad film, because at it's core it is dealing with simple human truths that is evident in war and life.
reply
share
Tsavo
15 years ago
Im sorry to say it, but while you are heavy against the mormon themes, what about the numerous other films that did the exact same thing with traditional christian themes?
reply
share
kbanes
15 years ago
A couple of things.
I just watched the movie, not reading any "reviews" beforehand.
I didn't see anything relating to Mormanism. To be honest, I thought the guy was going to turn out to be a Quaker. Or a Baptist. It never entered my mind that he was Morman. What in the movie would have tipped you off to Mormanism? I might have missed it.
Maybe I was just reading too much into the "country boy" not wanting the cigarette becasue it was called a "fag".
What I saw was a country boy try to start a conversation with the Brit, in the hopes of getting a smoke. The Brit called him on it, and the country boy knew that he had been busted. Didn't he later try again to get the cigarette? Would he have done that if the term "fag" had really bothered him?
Preaching? I am so used to being preached at at every movie that I see, I really don't pay that much attention to it. Most Hollywood directors, whether liberal, conservative, religious or agnostic, have some slant to the story that they are trying to tell. There are very few war movies that don't "preach" in some way.
I didn't see the "religious guy" as a preacher. Considering that his CO had called him the best shot that he had ever seen, I got the idea he had not been overtly religious until he inadvertently killed 2 women and 4 children. It just seemed to me that his behavior was more attributable to his lack of sleep and his guilt, than to some religious convictions.
Was this Band of Brothers? No. Nothing is Band of Brothers. Was it Oscar worthy? Eh, not to me. But it was decent. I didn't sit through the movie thinking about all of the ways that it sucked. I even liked some of the soundtrack.
If you split my list of watched movies in half, this falls on the good side.
kbanes
reply
share
vosges1945
14 years ago
*****
I didn't see anything relating to Mormanism.
*****
Neither did I. I thought it was a good movie, told it's story well and entertained. That's what a movie is supposed to do, so it's a 'win' in my book.
:)
Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order
reply
share
14 years ago
[deleted]
cmeyer38
13 years ago
a: He was from Snowflake, Arizona
b: He avoided the coffee
reply
share
radioaz
12 years ago
I thought the film was an unabashed piece of Mormon propaganda from one end to the other.
1) The main character was from Snowflake, Arizona. A real town. Just shy of 100% Mormon.
2) The main character talked about having been a "missionary" on a "mission" in Berlin before the war. Both terms are used by the Mormons when they send young people off for two years to try and gain converts all over the world.
3) Did anyone beside me read the fine print at the end of the film? It was made in Utah. OK, a lot of movies were made there (most of John Wayne's westerns) and they do not have Mormon themes. But this movie is very definitely Mormon influenced.
4) Mormons using guns is spot on. They are avid hunters and fishermen. They are always willing to take up arms and serve their country. Unlike, say, Quakers, they are not pacifists. One of the most tragic massacres in US history happened in Utah, apparently at the behest of Brigham Young.
5) The main character mentioned that he never kissed his wife until AFTER they were married. A reference to Mormon dating protocol.
6) Finally, the very title of the film, "Saints and Soldiers." "Saints" is what Mormons call themselves. I presume the use of the plural form, "saints" refers to the fact that the German soldier known by the main character was a convert.
reply
share