Good story, Not enough for a whole film

A different way of telling a story

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

1) I am not weapon expert, but even i can see difference between U.S. army riffles in WWI and WWII. In movie we can see privates, armed with "M1 Garand" (invented in year 1932!), not authentic "1903 Springfield" (aka "Silent Death"), who privates use until WWII. Difference - M1 can load 1,5 times more ammunition and 3 times more fire rate! M1 was semi - automatic, Springfield requires reloading after every shot. Little difference?! 2) German army uniforms has borrowed from 1940 Year too. Especially - helmets. German helmets until end of WWI have significant pike on top, we cannot see even one in movie. And if we make little additional search in archives - how much truthful is this "True Story"? I am surprised, how much "truthful" can be film directors in a pursuit of cheap propagation.

I will not comment on the facts or omissions or what actually happened versus what was portrayed. My comment is on the direction of the movie. The director appears to have learned his tricks of trade through reruns of "saving private Ryan" and "Band of Brothers". Where the camera work on those productions is superb and groundbreaking through the use of the first person perspective and excellent angles, in this production it feels contrite and jittery at best and gimmicky at worst. Wardrobe - obviously - took great pains to recreate the uniforms and equipment to great accuracy but the special effects department let down the whole visual experience with the acrobatic tumbles of the soldiers and the thriller style stunt work. The Ardenne shelling in "Band of Brothers" was nerve shattering and brought the terrible ordeal of the soldiers to the viewer in a way that is memorable. The attempt to recreate that effect here completely misses the mark.I'm afraid that the overall experience has not been pleasant and I kept wishing the director would stop trying to impress us and just tell the story.

This is a great war film. It has an authentic look and feeling about it and the production values were comparable to anything that Hollywood puts out on a regular basis. Rick Schroder does an excellent job as well as the rest of the cast. I would rate this film up there with "Saving Private Ryan" and "Band of Brothers" in it's realism, believability and attention to detail. If you like war films, don't miss this one! It has the feel of a large-scale production and all of the hallmarks of major studio release. There is plenty of hand-held shots to convey that 'combat footage' feel without over using it to the point of nausea like you see in less talented directors. Kudos to A&E for making a quality piece of entertainment!

In 1918 in World War I, in the Meuse-Argonne Sector in France, the former New York lawyer and Major Charles White Whittlesey (Rick Schroder) is assigned by Gen. Robert Alexander (Michael Brandon) to a massive suicidal attack against the German forces in the Argonne Forest with his five hundred men battalion. However, the forces supposed to be giving support through the flanks retreat and the communications with the headquarter of the 77th American Division are cut. Major Wittlesey holds his position with his men, mostly Irish, Polish, Italian and Jew gangsters from New York, surrounded by the German army. Without food, water, ammunition and medical supplies, only two hundred men survive after five days of siege.Based on a true event, "The Lost Battalion" is a great tale of bravery and courage. I do not know how accurate the facts are displayed, but I liked this movie very much. The battle scenes are very gore and realistic, in a war of trenches and bayonets, and the actors have great performances, being impossible to highlight an individual acting. Just as a curiosity, this film does not have any actress, only men in the cast. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "O Último Batalhão" ("The Last Battalion")