Les Héros des Ardennes

From working in Hollywood, I'm use to seeing every kind of movie, from student films to big Hollywood blockbusters. Everyone wants their opinion on how a script should be written and what will draw an audience in. Refreshingly this movie doesn't fit any stereotype. While not a movie with a huge plot (ex: we must take this outpost or the world will end!) it focuses on one man's personal experience of what it was like being an infantry soldier in World War 2... and for once, the story is true.

Based on the real life experience of Don Smith (the director's father) we get to see first hand what it was like for the "every man." Having to leave your family and loved ones... facing a fear of death on a daily basis and the human emotions and relationships that go hand in hand with fighting for your life. For an independent movie, this film has good production value and remembers and honors every soldier, no matter how small their role was in history.

While talking with my friends after seeing this movie I think that the best part of this movie is that they portrayed the regular German soldier as not the regular caricature evil German. Having friends from a German heritage they really apreciated that. Many of those guys that were in the regular forces did not want to fight but feared what would happen to them or their families if they did not. We all really liked that aspect of this movie. It was very moving to see the interchange between the US soldier and the German towards the end. I won't say anything more cause I don't want to give anything in the story away. We really liked it. It wasn't some Hollywood retelling reworking of history.

Most war movies out lately such as "The hurt Locker" leaves veterans with a love it or hate it attitude. One of the main reasons for this is because of the gross inconsistencies that these movies provide. Everyman's War however is not this type of film. From the beginning, you can tell that this was a labor of love. The filmmaker (Thad Smith) actually based this story off of his own fathers accounts of war from his division's experience during the Battle of the Bulge. I can say this film was very historically accurate and right on point in capturing the realities of this war. From the costume design to the weapons used, even the troop characteristics you can tell that (even for a small budget) no expense was spared at recreating this event. Also the feeling and attitudes of those left home to worry about the troops was spot on.

I love WWII movies but this was some really bad dialog. Like they just learned their lines for the first time. Really weird. Oh and like everyone else said about the Germans but at least they were speaking German so not that noticeable.

This movie is like someone's first movie they made out of film school and they couldn't afford actors. The story line is bad, the special effects, the game looking scenes the put in was funny as heck. Everything was bad but the dialog stuck out even more. How did this even make it to final draft?

Really bad stuff. I wish I didn't see it.

The true story of Don Smith and his fellow soldiers leading up to the Battle of the Bulge in December-January, 1944-45, is chronicled.

"Fallen Not Forgotten" (2009), aka "Everyman's War," is a WW2 Indie only costing $720,000 and is reminiscent of "Straight into Darkness" from five years prior, just more straightforward and less surrealistic. It was a labor of love written & directed by the sons of the real-life protagonist. "The Frozen Front" (2017) is another comparison. While this isn't as good as "Straight into Darkness," it's superior to "The Frozen Front."

I watched it because I was in the mood for a WW2 flick, but also because I heard how little it cost and wanted to know if a decent WW2 film could possibly be made on such a non-budget, shot exclusively in Oregon of all places. Just think of the cost of apprehending items from the early 1940s, such as clothes, cars, uniforms, weapons, military vehicles and a tank or two, not to mention convincing sets. Then you have to have enough money left over for competent no-name actors and amenities, like lodging and catering.

Yet the Smith brothers pulled it off. Sure, it's a micro-budget Indie, but the story & characters drew me in enough to give it a marginal thumbs-up for those who don't mind spare change Indies. The well-depicted Germans even speak German (with English subtitles).

The movie doesn't overstay its welcome at 1 hour, 43 minutes.

GRADE: B-