We Were Soldiers

"Father, Husband, Brother. No Man is Just a Soldier."

2002 2h 18m EN

👍

7.1

SOLID

★7.1TMDB · 2,385

ActionHistoryWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The year is 1965 and America is at war with North Vietnam. Commanding the air cavalry is Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Gibson), a born leader committed to his troops. His target: the Ia Drang Valley, called "The Valley of Death." As Moore prepares for one of the most violent battles in U.S. history, he delivers a stirring promise to his soldiers and their families: "I will leave no man behind...dead or alive. We will all come home together."

“Father, Husband, Brother. No Man is Just a Soldier.”

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Cast

Mel Gibson
Lt. Col. Hal Moore
Madeleine Stowe
Julie Moore
Greg Kinnear
Maj. Bruce 'Snake' Crandall
Sam Elliott
Sgt. Maj. Basil Plumley
Chris Klein
2nd Lt. Jack Geoghegan
Keri Russell
Barbara Geoghegan
Barry Pepper
Joe Galloway
Đơn Dương
Lt. Col. Nguyen Huu An

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Randall Wallace
Writers: Randall Wallace, John Mann
Languages: English, Vietnamese, French
Countries: Germany, United States of America, United Kingdom, France

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $75M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 24 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Vietnamese, French.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 4 countries: Germany, United States of America, United Kingdom, France.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

262+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Randall Wallace, shot by Dean Semler. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Nick Glennie-Smith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor William Hoy shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Randall Wallace directs. Dean Semler behind the camera. Nick Glennie-Smith scores. William Hoy cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in Germany, United States of America, United Kingdom, France. Dialogue in English, Vietnamese, French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $75M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Released 24 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Vietnamese, French.
4International production across 4 countries: Germany, United States of America, United Kingdom, France.
5262+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
6Directed by Randall Wallace, shot by Dean Semler. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Nick Glennie-Smith. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor William Hoy shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Mel Gibson and Madeleine Stowe and Greg Kinnear carry the top of the cast.
10Marketing tagline: "Father, Husband, Brother. No Man is Just a Soldier.".
11IMDB entry: tt0277434 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
12Classified under 26 themes, including "vietnam war", "vietnam veteran", "hero", "army".
13Released under 17 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Dean Semler
Original score: Nick Glennie-Smith
Editing: William Hoy
Production design: Thomas E. Sanders
Costume design: Michael T. Boyd
Makeup / hair: Kerry Mendenhall
VFX supervisor: David Goldberg
Sound: Geoffrey G. Rubay
Stunt coordinator: Allan Graf
Runtime: 138 min · 2h 18m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $75,000,000
Box office: $114,660,784
Return: 153% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: We Were Soldiers (2002)

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Randall Wallace

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What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-07-02
★ 6/10
Mel Gibson ("Col. Moore") takes charge of training for, and then execution of, a perilous operation in the Vietnamese highlands in 1965. We know from the start of the film how difficult that task is going to be - the previous French troops met with ruthless treatment at the hands of the N.V.A. and so "Moore" and his motivational deputy "Crandall" (Greg Kinnear) know that they are going to have their work cut out for them. Their mission is to combat an enemy with overwhelming superiority of numbers and try to capture and hold a mountain. Needless to say, their hosts are none too keen on that a plan and what ensues is a brutally depicted, bloody and gory, series of well photographed combat scenes that test the mettle of both sides as the body count mounts. There is a poignant angle added too, as back home we see the colonel's wife "Julie" (Madeleine Stowe) take responsibility for delivery of the letters that are sent to the families on the base intimating bad - even tragic - news to those left behind. Sam Elliott adds well some stoic discipline as "Sgt. Maj. Plumley" and Chris Klein's portrayal of the recent father "Lt. Geoghegan" also contributes a strong human angle to this story. Sadly, though, this is all way too long and though certainly potent at the start, that is washed away in a sea of repetition. What makes us sit up and take notice at the start becomes much less effective; the pyrotechnics lose their impressiveness a bit and to be honest, Gibson just hasn't the on-screen presence to carry this for 2¼ hours. It does emphasise just how modern - airborne, usually - warfare can provide smaller groups with greater superiority and as an example of the ghastliness and futility of war it is a worth watching.

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