I once again felt like watching a movie but this time I chose to go outside my usual haunts. So I watched the Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill movie Moneyball (2011). This movie is all about how the manager of the Oakland Athletics baseball team decides to try using computer generated statistics to set up his team instead of using “baseball people”.
I'm not a sports guy, but it was an okay movie. If you like sports, do give it a shot. This is however pretty much all I have to say about Moneyball, so I sat down and watched:
Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018). I talked about the original Sicario movie a couple of weeks ago and it is a good movie. Day of the Soldado isn't. It is in fact awful. Inconsistencies and plot holes you can drive a truck through. I do not recommend this movie. At all. Watch the first one and skip this mess.
This left me in a bind as I wanted to have something to write about and movies that I don't like or care about isn't good content. Thus I bit the bullet a third time and watched:
A Bridge Too Far (1977).
This is a WWII movie about Operation Market Garden directed by Richard Attenborough. It stars a couple of known names like Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Laurence Olivier, Gene Hackman, Edward Fox, Anthony Hopkins, James Caan, Robert Redford and many many more. Everywhere you look you run into famous faces, and the “That's that guy from that movie” syndrome is in full effect.
Operation Market Garden was an allied attempt to shorten the war. Set after D-Day in 1944, thousands of British, U.S. and Polish airborne soldiers (Market) were dropped behind the German lines in order to secure nine (three in the movie) vital bridges and cut off the Germans. Land forces (Garden) would then attack, punching through and splitting the German forces before mopping them up. As with all such ambitious operations, there were plenty of problems, and the end result was a mixed success. Some would say it failed, others that is achieved most of what it was designed to do. Either way it was a costly affair.
The movie is good, let's get that out of the way. You only have to glance at the cast to see that the actors are not a problem. Attenborough does a fine job directing, especially as he had to juggle all the balls at the same time. The airborne troops, the tank troops, officer meeting and all the fighting.
Speaking of the fighting, the battle scenes are spectacular. Planes dropping bombs, tanks and troops everywhere... It is top shelf fight scenes. It doesn't shy away from the horror of war, but it also doesn't dwell on it. People are hurt and killed and many scenes are very somber and sobering, but it's not overly grisly like Fury was. I think respectful is a good word to describe how this movie handles the subject matter.
I have a small problem with the music though. It is either easy to miss or then it is a over the top happy and bombastic march. Suitable in itself, but when played over the intense fighting, suffering and sacrifice it rings a bit hollow. This department could be a lot better.
A Bridge Too Far is three hours long so be prepared. It speaks volumes, however, that it in no way felt three hours long. Time flew by, and though there are some scenes that could have been left out, nothing screams bloat.
So, do I recommend this movie? Yes. Particularly to fans of war movies. The amazing cast doesn't interact that much with each other, which is a shame, but it is absolutely worth it.
That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great and safe week!
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