Band Of Brothers (Tin) > Reviews > Band of brothers - here we go

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Outstanding
How does it compare to similar films?	Outstanding

Advantages:	Excellent 'real - life' footage of combat scenes
Disadvantages:	Suddenly stops when you want more action

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Band of Brothers (BoB) is an excellent 6 disc (in a tin box) that covers the story of Easy company - a band of Americans who trained together in 1943 and then went on to capture Hilters Eagle Nest in May 1945.

Each episode follows a different group of paratroopers (the 101st Airbourne Division) through some pretty horrendous action against the Germans in France, Holland and Germany.

Each episode is directed by a different director - including Tom Hanks.

Episode 1- Currahee (Dir - Phil Alden robinson) - Basic training - we see all the characters train together and start their relationships as the Band of Brothers. All the men in Easy company rebel against their officer (played by David Schwimmer - should have stayed in Friends - I kept wanting him to say Joey or Derr! - very off-putting). Needless to say he no-longer leads them into combat.

Episode 2 - Day of Days -(Dir - Richard Lonraine) D - Day: 6th June 1944- the big drop into occupied France - now were talking good action and cinematography - you have to watch the production DVD to see what they shot in real life and what they shot as green background - its very hard to distinguish. A good episode and sets the standards for the next few episodes. basically - you follow the new leader of Easy as he tries to round up a rag bag bunch of misdrop paratroopers and the episode conclusion finale of the officer taking out 4 88mm antitank guns - which really happened and became a text book method for other assults on gun enplacements.

Episode 3- Carentan (Dir - Mickal Solamon) - French village - must be taken to prevent german counterattack - now the action steps up another notch and we follow a private called Blythe. A scared invidiidual who avoided combat by trying to find his unit - until eventually he links up with them and is then ordered to take a village. A lot of soldiers die in this episode and the camera action is great. We see Blythe develop into a fully formed combat soldier and witness his first kill - he volunteers for point duty on the last day the 101st was stationed in France and the irony of his bravery is he - you've guessed it...the end credits explain what happens to him eventually when he gets back to the USA.

Episode 4 - Replacements (Dir - David Nutter)- The last three months since D-day have passed and Easy company have been relaxing in Aldbourne (very close to where I live now actually) and are given orders to drop into Holland for Operation Market Garden - aka "A bridge too far" story. We see the new recruits who have volunteered for active duty and how the recruits are treated by the veterans. Another gruesome episode with some tank action as well. Episode focuses on one sargent who gets left behind in the withdrawal of an attack on a town and how he is cared for by a dutch girl but then has to defend himself against an enemy patrol. A small group of his soldiers leave the safety of their encampment to find him and bring him back - reinforces the BoB theme more in this episode.

Episode 5 - Crossroads (Dir - Tom Hanks)- Easy company's leader (Winters) get promoted due to his actions on D-day. He recounts the last day he fired his weapon. He leads his platoon to a machine gun post and wipes it out only to be confronted by a whole division of polish SS conscripts (here we are shown how the Nazi's conscripted poles to fight for them) and the major kills a young boy. The final scene we see him being told he has been promoted to major after shooting the polish boy.

Episode 6 - Bastonge - (Dir - David leland) - The 101st Airbourne gets surrounded by the Germans as a consequence of their December offensive in 1944. The famous quote of Brig. Gen. McAuliffe - 'Nuts!' was the response to the Germans surrender offer. Easy company holds the forest east of Bastonge and suffer more at the hands of the weather than the Germans. We follow a corporal and his quest to get an elusive german officers luger. A we also follow a medic as he befriends a nurse in Bastonge. The corporal manages to shot a german officer on horseback and calims his reward. Again the BoB theme of brotherhood is reinforced even more as one by one the old members of easy company die through accidents and ambushes. Easy company eventually survive as the winter fog clears and the resupply planes can drop their supplies.

Episode 7 - Breaking Point - (Dir - David Frankel). After surviving Bastone, Easy company moves further east in the Ardennes Forest to the outskirts of Foy - a strategic town that must be taken. The survivors now faced a terrible ordeal - the German 88mm guns were modified so that the shells exploded in the trees and we see a few of our favorite characters get badly wounded. Easy company has been assigned a rather weak officer who is nowehere to be found. On the day Easy company is ordered to take the town of Foy, the company has no faith in their leader - he doesn't disappoint them. Major Winters orders (an action man look a-like) Speers to take over. He successfully manages the task - we see the end of the cowardly officer in a particular twist of fate. No-one mourns.

Episode 8 - The Last Patrol - (Dir - Tony To). Tom Hanks son makes an appearance in this episode as a token. The 101st is nearing Germany and the two side are separated by a river. Easy is ordered to send a 12 man patrol across to capture prisoners and destroy a lookout post at night. Easy has seen too much action at this point a morale is low. They successfully make the capture and destroy the outpost. We follow a private who was injured in Holland (and who also trained with easy in 1943) but who missed Foy and the horrors of the 88mm shells, he is ostracised and treated as a new recruit. You get to feel for him but all is okay in the end - he is still their brother.

Episode 9 - Why we fight?- (Dir - David Frankel) - Easy company has crossed the Rhine and moves through Germany. Stationed in a town, one patrol discovers the work of the Nazi's a jewish concentration camp. A particularly moving episode and one that brings home how badly treated the Jews were at the hands of the Nazi's. Hence the reason why we fight? We follow another officer who ever since Bastonge has started to drink and since arriving in Germany has looted houses for wine etc.

Episode 10 - Points - (Dir - Mickal Soloman) - The final episode. May 1945 and Easy company learns of the final German surrender in Berlin. Easy is in Hilters Nazi headquater town and is given the final task to capture it. With ease they secure the mountain hide-away and discover a vast wine cellar. Looting is rife for Nazi memorabilia. On hearing the Germans surrender, the Military decides who should return home and who should stay and fight in the East against Japan. A 'Points' system is devised and those with a certain number can go home. Obviously those close to the number are disgruntled and others start to become unfocused and reckless (19 year olds with loaded weapons and no-one to shot at!). We see some needless deaths. The brotherhood starts to disband as soliders and officers leave for home or move up through he military machine on promotion. A quiet episode but fittinly so - to allow us to reflect on what Easy has gone through nearly a year ago.

Bonus materials - a DVD with bonus materials including a documentary about the role of 101st Airbourne Division in D-Day and subsequent operations. A 'The making of band of brothers' section and an interview/ video diary of Ron Livingston - who played the officer with a drink problem. The bonus material is interesting to see how the cgi action works and were in the series they used it. I found it a little disappointing but for the fact that it was too short and I didn't get to see any new footage or background info on the production (well not much anyway). This does not mean that its not interesting but when you compare it to some bonus materials for box sets (namely Star Wars Trilogy - that's in a league of its own).

Summary - a superb set, wellworth getting for Christmas if you haven't got it or treat yourself for the winter months and buy it. You will not be disappointed at all. Trust me.