richie_daniel
Full of cheesy one liners...I wonder was this supposed to be a comedy? But even then it would have failed. Apparently Paul Gross was meticulous in his preparation for this venture, made in memory of his grandfather. But,it comes across as a self indulgent game of war the likes of which would be played out by 8year old school boys in the playground. The fact that he directed, wrote/took the lead role in this sad affair comes across as a kind of ego trip. He even wrote the forgettable second rate love theme song. Mr Gross either treated the movie as his baby,or nobody else in the industry wanted anything to do with it.The scene where Mr Gross's character heroically carries David back to the Canadian lines (all on his own)on some sort of wooden cross was I in fairness absolutely hilarious. The movie cost 20 mill Canadian dollars(shame on him).What a dreadful insult to brave Canadians who gave their lives in WW1. As a comedy 3/10 at best. Otherwise, sub-zero $1 DVD bargain bin trash.
mmcceng77
A collection of hackneyed war movie clichés...Gross' ultimate cash grab. I left the theatre after hurling Coke and popcorn at the screen. God what a disgusting waste of time. The problem with many Canadian films is, they seem to try too hard to emulate Hollywood. Give up! And: Gross..... Stop trying to tell us you have talent! The idea of having a guy dying on a cross of barbed wire. Jeeezus...... pathetic. . What a ludicrous idea! What were you thinking?? The idea of a romance being relevant to a war movie..ridiculous! You should have stuck to a theme more realistic than what you put out...like, showing men and mules knee deep in mud, sleeping in foul trenches for weeks at a time, and enduring meat - headed tactics dictated by senescent British generals who lived in relative luxury 20 miles away from the fighting.
mark-sheriff
Having just watched this with my son, we both headed off to IMDb... myself predicting that we would see reviews from both ends of the spectrum... and that's what we found.As a result, this review provides guidance for:Canadian families. Global families. Those interested in WW1 drama, and or historical dramatisation.******This is a film created primarily with the Canadian family in mind... probably one that has girls and a mum, as well as boys and a dad.So, if you're in that category, and looking for a film that will remind the kids that Canadians fought in WW1, and that Canadians did well...... then this film will do that, whilst providing a glimpse of love, separation, racial hatred, and war mongering.Actually, vis a vis 'love' it's a bit more than a glimpse, but hey; see paragraph 2.The youngsters will get to see a truly first class battlefield 'set', and hence the deserved (overall) 2 stars as a WW1 movie. If we were judging battlefield 'sets' it would probably have been 9 or even 10 stars.There is one genuine sex scene, but actually the scene itself was probably one of the more accurate historical moments... clearly, 'let's do it now because...' (and it's over pretty quick)If you're of an embarrassed disposition with the kids, you can easily break the ice by saying "that's how it was, before people went off to fight".It has sufficient gore, close proximity death, and a horrifying image of living and fighting 'sodden' day in and day out (you can explain how the flesh would just rot) - all correct for current consumption.RE: As a global family film...I would give this a respectable 6 stars, if only to perhaps introduce WW1 to a younger audience of boys and girls.The problem is that it is not a good intelligent film. To say it is cliché ridden, would be an understatement.On this... search for the review here, by reynoldh, as I don't wish to repeat his work.If you wish to see a high quality WW1 family film, 'do not pass go', 'do not collect £200', but go directly to Gallipoli by Peter Wier.If you are looking for a film that pertains to Passchendaele, and or want to see intelligent drama, and or dramatised history...... I can honestly say that 'this is NOT a film for you'. I would instead search on IMDb for 'List of World War I films' by ferreiracarlos1504Consider also Breaker Morant by Bruce Beresford (Boer war)Truthfully... somebody should have stepped in and told the company "you just cannot use the name Passchendaele as the film title. It was wrong of them, and it verges on 'the disgusting', if you have any empathy towards those families that might wish to see that full story told.However... if the film sparks an interest in our recent history... by watching it with your family; you might even be able to get a trip to France and Belgium out of it.It would definitely be worth it, just for that :)
ant1830
This movie affected me emotionally in a way that very few movies ever have. I believe that the battle scenes are very realistic based upon my research of the Great War, and more importantly input from my father and others who actually fought in it. I do not care to comment on the technical aspects or romantic interludes. I will leave that to the 'experts' of which there seems to be an abundance. I am encouraged that this movie acknowledges Canada's contribution to the allied cause in the Great War. I think that very few people realize the sacrifices that were made by Canadians in both of the World Wars. Lastly, if anyone ever thinks of making a movie to show the futility of war as a method of solving differences, then some of the battle scenes could be used as is.