The Great Raid (2005)

I enjoyed The Great Raid very much – the story of the January 1945 rescue of 511 American soldiers from a POW camp in Japanese-occupied Luzon, Philippines (and still the biggest rescue in US military history). Basically, I agree with Roger Ebert: This movie’s focus is on the full story, on how and why wars are actually fought, on the moral and physical heroism of the soldiers on the ground, starting with the mission planners – in short, “how wars are won with great difficulty, risk, and cost.” I was pleased to see how closely the film hews to history, esp. the selfless sacrifices of Margaret Utinski and the Filipino guerrillas. This is no amped-up and tarted-up blockbuster like Pearl Harbor but the acting, while low-key, had me sitting on the edge of my seat most of the time (even the love interest subplot). I thought the script was exceptional, as well as the musical score. I appreciated the archival film footage at the end. This one a keeper that I will always be ready to watch again. My only quibble was that, once the offensive began, it was like a carnival shooting gallery with live ammo. You know: US soldier standing in the open, mowing down the enemy, while being untouched by return fire. On the other hand, we only lost 2 lives in the historical battle. Use the movie afterwards as a springboard to read up and learn more about this chapter in America’s history. Enjoy! 5 stars. (4-13-2016)