Fresh
Probably the best thing you can say about We Were Soldiers is that it does justice to an awful conflict.
Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
We Were Soldiers
Father, Husband, Brother. No Man is Just a Soldier.
2002 · 2h 18m · R
Action, History, War
Directed by
Randall Wallace
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We Were Soldiers
Overview
The year is 1965 and America is at war with North Vietnam. Commanding the air cavalry is Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Gibson), a born leader committed to his troops. His target: the Ia Drang Valley, called "The Valley of Death." As Moore prepares for one of the most violent battles in U.S. history, he delivers a stirring promise to his soldiers and their families: "I will leave no man behind...dead or alive. We will all come home together."
Director and cast
- Randall Wallace Director
- Mel Gibson as Lt. Col. Hal Moore
- Madeleine Stowe as Julie Moore
- Greg Kinnear as Maj. Bruce 'Snake' Crandall
- Sam Elliott as Sgt. Maj. Basil Plumley
- Chris Klein as 2nd Lt. Jack Geoghegan
- Keri Russell as Barbara Geoghegan
- Barry Pepper as Joe Galloway
- Đơn Dương as Lt. Col. Nguyen Huu An
- Ryan Hurst as Sgt. Ernie Savage
- Robert Bagnell as 1st Lt. Charlie Hastings
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
63%
Tomatometer
Rotten
The Vietnam setting looks authentic enough, but the action is as inert and unpersuasive as Gibson's attempt to fashion Bill Mauldin poetry out of his $20-million-plus smirk.
Manohla Dargis, L.A. Weekly
Fresh
Makes you cry for the hundreds of thousands of men and women who died so pointlessly with Geoghegan. And their orphans.
David Edelstein, Slate
Fresh
As I settled into my World War II memories, I found myself strangely moved by even the corniest and most hackneyed contrivances.
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer
Rotten
After suffering through We Were Soldiers, I think I've seen all the war movies I care to endure for quite some time.
Rex Reed, New York Observer
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