Verdade e Honra

Politicians start the wars and our children die in them. A movie about values, bravery, tragedy and a man struggling to do the right thing. No "buzz" about this movies but certainly worth every minute n tear.

The title of this movie derives from something Abe Lincoln said in his Gettysburg Address all those years ago, "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion."

The event in question happened in Vietnam in 1966, 21-yr-old Airman William H. Pitsenbarger, Jr., a medic, decided on his own to scramble down into the fray upon realizing the unit's medic was the one wounded. He had been recommended for the Medal of Honor but it never went through, we learn because the paperwork routing went awry. It was eventually awarded on December 8th, 2000 during the Presidency of Bill Clinton.

Several really good veteran actors are the the roles of men who fought with Pitsenbarger, plus during the end credits we see and hear from several of the actual men who were involved during the 1960s.

Good movie, I watched it at home on DVD from my public library, my wife skipped. Maybe 20% of the movie is recreated battle scenes, the rest in modern (1990s) times during the search to find out what happened and what needed to be done to get the award finalized.

The cast of this movie is amazing- William Hurt, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Plummer, Ed Harris, Peter Fonda, John Savage. I can't even list them all! It's a difficult subject but a true story that deserved to be told.

Sebastian Stan is a lawyer for the Pentagon. He's smart, driven, ambitious, politically savvy and looking for his next job. His last assignment at his current position is to look into the file of William H. Pitsenbarger, Jr., an airman killed in Vietnam twenty-two earlier. Members of his unit, soldiers whose lives he saved under the fire that killed him, his dying parents (Christopher Plummer in his final screen appearance, Diane Ladd) have petitioned to have his Air Force Cross upgraded to the Medal of Honor he was originally recommended for. As he travels to interview the people, we hear the things they are not saying more clearly, and Stan does too, gradually becoming convinced that Pitsenbarger must have his medal of honor, even though he is not sure why, and the fight may make him enemies he can ill afford.

It's a heartfelt and meaningful response to the question posed in the movie -- and almost a century ago, in BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN -- as to what a piece of ribbon is worth. It's a distinguished cast, including Peter Fonda (also in his last screen role), Samuel L. Jackson, William Hurt, and Ed Harris. Highly recommended.

Beautiful made movie! It's a movies which didn't bring out the violence of the war, but a emotional and touchy story of a hero. It's really rare that we even see a Vietnam war movies. I literally cried throughout the whole movies. Very glad to see. Great pick on actor and subject! Love the concept that this movie has brought hope to our life. PTSD was well written and showed in front of us. All the suffers that those veterans had been through. Great storyline based on real story. For sure that this story has "heart" , I really hope that people can see, feel and understand what veterans had been through and provide support for them. Definitely recommend!