Everyman’s War

Eagle Entertainment

R4 DVD

The story is based on Sgt. Don Smith’s wartime experiences in the 94th Infantry, especially in the Battle of the Bulge. War weary, the unit was part of a thinly stretched line around the town of Nenning in Germany. Outgunned, poorly supplied and desperately in need of a break (they had only had a few days R&R since Normandy) they now faced German Panzer divisions. The Allied intelligence officers said the Germans could not attack in the freezing weather. They were wrong.

In a series of flashbacks we see how the soldiers started in the unit. One was evading a prison sentence, one was of American-German origin and had to prove himself to the Americans, and so on. Many were just drafted.

Just before he left the U.S. Smith met a girl called Dorine. He had hopes of something growing from the meeting but his transfer orders came through and within a couple of days he was on his way to Europe. He started to write a letter to Dorine, not sure how it would be received. He never got around to posting the letter, just kept adding to it – his thoughts, his observations of the war, and his fears.

In the constant pressure of combat we see how important a little thing like a letter from home is. We see how personalities change, not always for the better, especially when one of your buddies is killed. The horrors of war are not only on the U.S side. Smith sees a German prisoner take his own life because his family has gone to the gas chambers and he has nothing left to live for. Smith must face these horrors full on when most of his platoon is dead. He can give up or carry on.

The story is not so much a narrative as a series of events, each one affecting Smith in different ways. It has a lot in common with the feel of Band of Brothers but is on a far more personal level. It is unfair to compare it with Saving Private Ryan because it seems to have been made on a tiny budget.

Despite this it is a strong story, well done. There is the blood and gore you would expect but it is not overdone for effect. This is definitely a war film worth watching.

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