Band of Brothers

Now for a review of the miniseries Band of Brothers.

While my personal knowledge of warfare is about as informed as my understanding of drug enforcement in Baltimore, I feel that Band of Brothers in probably the most realistic war movie I've ever seen (I say 'war movie' since that is what the series is: essentially, a 10 hour film).

The sequel, in spirit and style, to Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers shows the story of several soldiers during their campaign through Europe. Like Saving Private Ryan, the audience is not provided the usual scenes and dialogue that defines characters, instead being forced to follow along not completely knowing who you are going into battle with. This feeling of uncertainty is what, I suppose, many of the characters are going through also. The few character focused episodes are only provided later in the series, giving us time to gather our own opinions of who the people really are. This growth of familiarity is what essentially makes the men become 'brothers', much as I felt I was part of their brotherhood by the time I had reached the end of the series.

The haunting scenes of war and hardship (particularly the Battle of the Bulge and the concentration camp in Landsberg) provide such a visually engaging story the necessary tragedy and drama, making this series moving to a high degree. I give the Spielberg/Hanks production two thumbs up and a ring finger to boot.