Movie Review - “We Were Soldiers”

REVIEW: One of my neighbors loaned us this film from his private collection. This is a very realistic war movie, yet unusal in several ways. First of all, it shows the North Vietnamese perspective on the battle; their leader Lieutenant General Nguyen Huu An (played Don Duong) is depicted as a brave soldier and smart commander. Second, in addition to the many, realistic, expertly filmed, gory battlefield sequences we also see how the carnage of war affects those left behind, the soldiers' wives and children. This is a very moving anti-war film which, by sticking close to the true stories of real soldiers, very effectively brings home the overwhelming horror of war. Probably without doubt the best Vietnam war movie ever produced. We give it [5-Stars]

SYNOPSIS: In 1965, 400 American troops faced an ambush by 2,000 enemy troops in the Ia Drang Valley (also known as the Valley of Death), in one of the most gruesome fights of the Vietnam War. WE WERE SOLDIERS is a detailed recreation of this true story: of the strategies, obstacles, and human cost faced by the troops that participated. The story focuses on the lieutenant colonel that led the attack, Hal Moore (played byMel Gibson), and a civilian reporter who accompanied them, Joseph Galloway (Barry Pepper), as well as a number of other soldiers who were involved.