Rating: 
Summary: The Plot Successfully Escaped
Review: HART'S WAR had potential. The last months of World War Two as a backdrop with demoralized GI's crammed into an overcrowded POW compound. If this picture was soley about the hardships endured by surrendered soldiers during the Battle of the Bulge, then it could have had a chance. Instead the film makers took on too many plots and subplots. Unintentionally the movie borrows from SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE, A SOLDIER'S STORY, THE GREAT ESCAPE and STALAG 17. A cardinal rule in war films is that the premise has to be simple. In HART'S WAR we find some good elements lost in a virtual Mulligan stew. In the story Colin Farrell's character, a rear echelon lawyer, accompanies another officer on what he thinks is a joyride. Unfortunately for Farrell, the Germans have launched their attack in the Ardennes. The young lawyer is captured, harshly interrogated, and finally shipped out to a German stalag. There he meets the senior POW officer, played by Bruce Willis, and tries to settle down in the dirty and uncomfortable life of a POW. A soldier is killed and a recently downed Tuskegee airman is accused of murder. Yes, you guessed it. Farrell takes on the aviator's defense during the subsequent courts martial. If director Gregory Hoblit left the storyline to develop around the trial a decent film could have emerged. Instead we have additions of Colonel Hart's unexplained behavior, an mass tunnel escape plot, sabotage and the German Commandant's attempt to befriend the American lawyer as superfluous baggage.HART'S WAR was filmed in the Czech Republic, no doubt to cut costs. A little more effort and a lot less story and this film would have had a better showing at the box office. Still, if you enjoy war movies you should probably add this DVD to your collection.
Rating: 
Summary: The War That Never Was (Part IV)
Review: In the grand tradition of bloated Hollywood recreations of World War II like "The Battle of the Bulge", "Patton," and "Windtalkers", the screenplay of "Hart's War" has more to do with fantasy, not reality. Without going into a plot synopsis (I'm not going to explain something you can see for yourself), "Hart's War" is a mess from beginning to end. Here are 10 (Count `em, ten!) observations:
1. Bruce Willis received top Billing, but this is a Colin Farrell vehicle. "Hart's War" isn't "The Great Escape" and Bruce Willis isn't Steve McQueen. It's not an action movie, and there is not one shred of humor in it. In other words, the sum of what "Hart's War" isn't is greater than the sum of what "Hart's War" is.
2. While I have no problem with a courts-martial taking place in a POW camp, I do think that the grand finale concerning the destruction of a munitions plant by the escaped prisoners following their escape is insulting to any POW whose only heroic act may have consisted of staying alive through internment.
3. This film is a blunt departure from John Katzenbach's novel, "Hart's War", on which this film is based. The book was generally well-received, but that was because the author wasn't hell-bent on portraying American military leadership as being corrupt and racist, which is the film's not-so-subtle message. While racism in the armed forces was and continues to be a problem, this film is merely Hollywood ideology in a camouflage suit.
4. The blissful character Marcel Iure portrays as the camp's wonderfully sensitive Commandant, along with his Robert Johnson record collection, is clearly a figment of someone's rather naive imagination. Although I can't imagine how such an individual would have been able to survive as an officer of the third reich, I will say that someone like Colonel Visser would probably have been relegated to a concentration camp with a pink triangle sewn on the font of his tunic. Suffice to say that any Stalag Luft commandant worth his weight in sauerkraut would have just as soon killed the Bruce Willis character as look at him.
5. I watched this movie twice. I watched it the second time, about sixth months after the first viewing, because even though I remembered that I didn't like it the first time, I thought that I might like it after a second peek. I didn't.
6. This movie bombed at the box office. Why? Because the majority of the film's target audience, viewers between ages 18 and 22, don't know or care what happened ten years ago, much less sixty years ago. Ronald Reagan? Oh, yeah. He was a recurring character in "The Simpsons".
7. Any small-time investor can buy overstocked dvd's from various wholesalers and distributors for resale through various venues on the internet. If I'm such an investor, and I've bought a lot of dvd's of "Giglio" (Another movie that bombed at the box office) the very first thing I'm going to do is to write a glowing review of "Giglio" for Amazon.com, so that I can make a profit. Now for all I know, there might be a lot of people who saw"Hart's War" and liked it, but... Get the picture?
8. In all fairness, "Hart's War" does, in some ways, cinematically portray a somewhat realistic picture of the living conditions of allied POW's. My only question about that is: Where were they supposed to have gotten all the cigarettes?
9. I gave "Hart's War" one star, but only because there isn't a special category of awfulness for this type of film. The only thing missing is John Travolta, whose most consistent accomplishment consists of being a politically correct ham for the last twenty years. "Hart's War" is like "Hogan's Heros" dumbed down for an audience of preschoolers. It's ridiculous, boring and embarrassing.
10. On the other hand, anything's better than having to sit through "The English Patient."
Bonus Comment: I figured out that the Bruce Willis character was Hogan, and Marcel Iure character was Colonel Klink, but where was Sergeant Schultz?
Rating: 
Summary: A twist on WW II!
Review: I thought the movie had a great plot. The Bruce Willis role of being in charge of a POW camp in Germany. To sacifice a black American Airman for the good of an escape plot is abhorrid. The thing is I'm sure this could have some historical merit. Collin's role is quite good as he launches his investigation into the war crime. It brought up racial bigotry in a way not told too often. We talk of the atrocities of Nazi Germany, but we do the same things here --- even today. I did not think Collin's role should have pointed out the area where Allied men were after being captured before arriving at the POW Camp. Being a fan of Mr. Linus Roache, (great British thespian) was not pleased he had such a small role in this film either. He deserves better from US films. Other than the fiction of the '60s comedy Hogan's Heroes, I really doubt that things in a POW Camp in Germany, or anywhere are really that calm. If your a fan of Bruce Willis, or Collin Ferrell this would be for you. As for me being a fan of Linus Roache it left flatter than old soda. Also this was a film of merit as it delved into the subject of racism in America, and everywhere.
A modern era message here maybe, "We have No Business in Iraq," We should clean our own house first, then help other nations.
Rating:
Summary: Compelling World War II Drama
Review: In early 2002, movie audiences were still getting acquainted Irish newcomer Colin Farrell. On the same token, they were also quite familiar with Bruce Willis' acting credentials. Putting the two of them together in a racially charged World War II drama would seem an unlikely mixture. Farrell was already establish his bad boy credentials in Hollywood and Bruce Willis, despite a recent renaissance with films like "Sixth Sense" and "Unbreakable", was still being remembered mostly as `Mr. Joe Actionhero' from movies like "Die Hard". As strange as this combination would seem, actors and story, the resulting "Hart's War" turns out to be surprisingly good film.
"Hart's War" is set in the waning months of World War II. While the Allied forces are locked in the struggle of their lives in the Battle of the Bulge, Lieutenant Thomas Hart (Farrell) remains comfortably behind the lines at headquarters, courtesy of strings pulled by his father, a United States Senator. However, one day Hart volunteers to drive an infantry captain back to the front lines and ends up a prisoner when his jeep is ambushed by Germans posing as Allied MPs. After a few days of interrogation, he is sent to a German P.O.W. camp where he is promptly billeted to bunk with the enlisted men because he was less than truthful with Colonel McNamara (Willis), the ranking U.S. P.O.W. about the information he gave up under interrogation. The routine seems to be setting in as the Hart prepares to spend the rest of the war in captivity. That is, until a few new prisoners are added to the U.S. contingent, two black pilots from the Tuskegee Airmen. Needless to say, in the still segregated U.S. Army, this does not sit well with many of the soldiers; especially a racist sergeant in Hart's barracks named Bedford (Cole Hauser). Bedford conspires to get one of the pilots executed on a trumped up charge and not long afterwards, Bedford ends up murdered, seemingly by the other pilot as revenge. Instead of ordering an immediate for execution of the second pilot, the camp Commandant (Marcel Iures) agrees to let McNamara form a military tribunal to try the case, with Hart, a law student, defending the pilot, Lt. Scott (Terrence Howard). Of course, there is more to this trial than just trying to see justice served. McNamara wants to buy time for an important plan while the German staff is distracted by the proceedings, and the entire tribunal is merely a pawn in this plan.
"Hart's War" owes a large debt to great World War II prison movie such as "Stalag 17" and "The Great Escape". Certainly, many elements are borrowed from these films. However, it's the addition of the racism angle that sets this film apart. While some will see this as a forced-upon-the-audience message, it actually fits quite well when one looks at the overall arc of the story. "Hart's War" is not meant to be a referendum on racism in the U.S. Army in that era. It simply uses that issue as a way to distract all the characters from the true mission of McNamara's (while also still managing to make a point about racism). Willis, in his role as McNamara, continues to bring the demeanor of quiet, dignified fury about him that he first put into use in "Sixth Sense". It's a strong performance, matched Farrell's nuance effort as the naïve (but learning) Tom Hart. Marcel Iures as the conflicted, manipulative commandant is also a treat to watch. While "Hart's War" won't ever been in the upper pantheon of great war films like "Patton" or "Saving Private Ryan", it is a still solid, compelling entertainment and certainly worth a watch.
Rating:
Summary: The Plot Successfully Escaped
Review: HART'S WAR had potential. The last months of World War Two as a backdrop with demoralized GI's crammed into an overcrowded POW compound. If this picture was soley about the hardships endured by surrendered soldiers during the Battle of the Bulge, then it could have had a chance. Instead the film makers took on too many plots and subplots.
Unintentionally the movie borrows from SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE, A SOLDIER'S STORY, THE GREAT ESCAPE and STALAG 17. A cardinal rule in war films is that the premise has to be simple. In HART'S WAR we find some good elements lost in a virtual Mulligan stew.
In the story Colin Farrell's character, a rear echelon lawyer, accompanies another officer on what he thinks is a joyride. Unfortunately for Farrell, the Germans have launched their attack in the Ardennes. The young lawyer is captured, harshly interrogated, and finally shipped out to a German stalag. There he meets the senior POW officer, played by Bruce Willis, and tries to settle down in the dirty and uncomfortable life of a POW. A soldier is killed and a recently downed Tuskegee airman is accused of murder. Yes, you guessed it. Farrell takes on the aviator's defense during the subsequent courts martial.
If director Gregory Hoblit left the storyline to develop around the trial a decent film could have emerged. Instead we have additions of Colonel Hart's unexplained behavior, an mass tunnel escape plot, sabotage and the German Commandant's attempt to befriend the American lawyer as superfluous baggage.
HART'S WAR was filmed in the Czech Republic, no doubt to cut costs. A little more effort and a lot less story and this film would have had a better showing at the box office. Still, if you enjoy war movies you should probably add this DVD to your collection.
Rating:
Summary: Where's the history?
Review: Well, not really Stalag 13, but the situations reminded me of the TV series. But the racism got to this redneck cowboy who stopped looking at color years ago. I guess that is one of the things about movies -- they show history. All in all it was a very good flick.
Rating: 
Summary: COLIN'S MOVIE
Review: Colin Farrell is an amazing actor. In the few years since he burst on the scene in TIGERLAND, he has given us marvelous performances in films such as MINORITY REPORT, PHONE BOOTH, and THE RECRUIT. In HART'S WAR, it is heart and fierce performance that drives this well executed film. Director Gregory Hoblit (Fallen, Frequency) has orchestrated a tense, inspiring and suspenseful look at men in war. Bruce Willis also stars as Colonel McNamara, a man whose intense desire to be at war obscures his humanity and morality. Terence Howard as Lt. Scott, accused of murdering a bigoted soldier, is also brilliant in his uncompromising performance. Howard never overdoes the prejudice he faces, and is truly moving in his speech about the German POWs treatment in Alabama as compared to African-Americans. Marcel Iuries as the German commandant gives a multi-layered performance of a man driven to exert his power and yet commiserate on the agonies of war. The rest of the cast, including Sam Jaeger (Fisk) and Cole Hauser (Brendon) are perfect. The cinematography, music and editing are likewise top notch, and HART'S WAR provides us a searing, heartbreaking look at the power of honor and justice. And again shows us what a truly versatile actor COLIN FARRELL has turned out to be.
Rating: 
Summary: It was worth seeing...
Review: I enjoyed the movie & I'm glad I saw it. I haven't decided yet if it's a keeper or not. I expected there to be more action then there was. I'd recommend seeing it at least once.
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