Monuments Men Saving Ryan’s Portraits It’s awards seasons and that can only mean one thing, a pleatherer of drama’s that have big names in and are frequently set in the past (mostly around the second world war), enter “Based On A True Story” Monuments Men. So I suppose the reel question is, will this be total Defiance? Monuments Men has a simple outline, the second world war is almost over, and Hitler while occupying France and several other territories has confiscated a great, great deal of artwork from some of the greatest artist who ever lived. The Monuments Men are sent in to try and recover as much as possible. Ok so let me come right out and say it, Monuments Men is not gripping in any way shape or form, there is a moment towards the end of the movie where it is implied that The Russians might catch up with the Monuments Men but realistically it never gets anywhere, and yes the film does feel like it was aiming to be an action movie but didn’t have the nerve or story to pull it off so settled for a historical picture instead, and perhaps a lot of the cast don’t have much to do (more on that later), but you know for all it’s faults and downfalls, I still kind of enjoyed Monuments Men. I think it’s because the film knows it’s own limitations and never tries to succeed them, it is a film that is ok with being old and somewhat complacent. Monuments Men feels like it’s happy being Indiana Aged. That’s one of the nice things about the film; it never shies away from the fact that these men, these solders are old they are past their prime and really can’t stand up to any real kind of confrontation. I also like how that Gorge Clooney (who stars, directs, partly writes and produces the movie) never wants to move away from the horrors of war, it’s true the film is generally speaking a light-hearted tale, however there are moments, touchstones that drag us back to the centre that war is still hell, that millions of people have died in this battle and that it will take an entire generation to recover. Monuments Men isn’t about war, it’s about what happens when it’s over, one of the more powerful sequences in the picture is when the crew land on Omaha Beach while it’s deserted and silent, all the fighting finished. This is in stark contrast to most other wartime movies, where the only way they can tell you War Is Hell is if they show you with violence and gunfire, Monuments Men is much better in that it’s much more subtle. The cast are of course stellar, with George Clooney spearheading and being supported by Hugh Bonneville and Bob Baladan, it is interesting to see Matt Damon and Cate Blanchett take much smaller roles than I’m sure they are used to in recent memory, but it is Bill Murray and John Goodman who really take the film for me, there performances are what young up and coming actors should dream to achieve. This is clearly a work of love for all the cast and it shows in the best way possible. In truth Monuments Men is a fine film, but it feels like it wanted to be a more of an adventure than a wartime drama, it’s great but not one to add to Schindler’s List. 3/5
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 13:31:15 +0000
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