We Were Soldiers (2002)

Director:

Randall Wallace

Writers (WGA):

Harold G. Moore (book) and
Joseph L. Galloway (book) ...

Release Date:

1 March 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Action | History | War

Tagline:

Fathers, Brothers, Husbands & Sons.

Plot:

The story of the first major battle of the American phase of the Vietnam War and the soldiers on both sides that fought it.

Plot Keywords:

Soldier | Battle | Vietnam | Vietnamese | Major

Awards:

1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Mel Gibson	...	Lt. Col. Hal Moore
Madeleine Stowe	...	Julie Moore
Greg Kinnear	...	Maj. Bruce 'Snake' Crandall
Sam Elliott	...	Sgt. Maj. Basil Plumley
Chris Klein	...	2nd Lt. Jack Geoghegan
Keri Russell	...	Barbara Geoghegan
Barry Pepper	...	Joe Galloway
Duong Don	...	Lt. Col. Nguyen Huu An
Ryan Hurst	...	Sgt. Ernie Savage
Robert Bagnell	...	1st Lt. Charlie Hastings
Marc Blucas	...	2nd Lt. Henry Herrick
Josh Daugherty	...	Sp4 Robert Ouellette
Jsu Garcia	...	Capt. Tony Nadal
Jon Hamm	...	Capt. Matt Dillon
Clark Gregg	...	Capt. Tom Metsker

Also Known As:

The Lost Patrol (USA) (original script title)
We Were Soldiers Once... and Young (USA) (working title)
Wir waren Helden (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for sustained sequences of graphic war violence, and for language.

Runtime:

138 min | Argentina:140 min | Germany:126 min (cut) | Spain:143 min | Turkey:124 min (TV version)

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English | Vietnamese | French

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-ES | Dolby Digital EX | SDDS

Certification:

Australia:M (TV rating) | Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (appeal) | Canada:18A (British Columbia) | Canada:18 (Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Finland:K-15 | France:-12 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Castle Green - 99 S. Raymond Ave., Pasadena, California, USA

Company:

Icon Entertainment International

Trivia:

A good amount of the musical score is based around the song "Sgt. McKensie", which plays during the closing credits of the film.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Joe Galloway's Nikon camera shown throughout the movie is a model "F Photomic FTN", first sold in Sept. 1968, but it was November 14, 1965 at 10:48 a.m., when Lt. Col. Hal Moore and his young troopers touched down at Landing Zone X-Ray in the Ia Drang.

Quotes:

[first lines]
French Captain: Anything?
French Lieutenant: No, Captain.
French Captain: Fucking heat. Fucking grass. Fucking country.
[Vietnamese bullet hits him in the head]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Hollywood Vietnam (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me

Seeing the enemy and home in a different light

This film is so different from the traditionally cynical (and rightly so) Vietnam War movies. While it goes without question that this film depicts the bloody and gruesome horrors of the tragedy of the first major conflict of the war, it does so while juxtaposing the story with that of stories of the home front and the enemy. The enemy in this film is not the animalistic, silent enemy we are used to. We hear this enemy speak, we see his love for his family and his devotion to his cause. While being bombarded with images of death and destruction on the battlefield, we are brought back home to see the wives as they face the death themselves.

While of course not a flawless movie, it was without a doubt moving, and I highly recommend it.