I apologize in advance for my writing as English is a second language.
I was told by a couple acquaintances about the film Devil's Men (The German title translated to English is Devil's Brigade). As a student of the US/Canadian 1st Special Service Force, I was quite intrigued as this subject has not been broached by film since the rather abysmal film from the 1960s. I didn't have high expectations due to the rather cliché and gaudy poster that harkens more to stylish war films of yesteryear but due to my interest in the subject, I pressed on to watch it anyways.
This movie was far too long. I felt numerous times that the film was about to end only for it to continue another 15 minutes then to just tease me again. The acting wasn't terrible, though I wished I could have watched it without German dubbing since I prefer to watch films with their natural language with subtitles. It was full of cliches and honestly felt like it was a fever dream of what someone thought war was like if they only watched old war films from the 1960s. It was full of cliches like bootcamp scenes from Full Metal Jacket remade for children. I was shocked by the lack of real violence. What bothered me most was the portrayal of the German army as caricatures, just tools for the story rather than a formidable force that the 1st Special Service Force respected. They emphasized kids being in the ranks of the Heer when that didn't happen until far later in the war. It also portrayed them as quick to surrender and almost idiotic. In one scene, several US soldiers sneak up on Germans standing in the open and it didn't seem realistic at all. I realized the 1st Special Service Force were known to take prisoners and that they were feared by their German counterparts but it simply wasn't translated well in the movie because none of it seemed plausible the way it was written. Some of the areas they filmed looked like Europe but others didn't. The Monte La Difenza scenes look more like a desert rather than the mountain (I've actually visited the location as part of a historical paper for the University of Stuttgart). I didn't care for the love story, it felt too artificial and the actors didn't have much chemistry. The song midway through the movie also felt like it was added last minute and disjointed the feeling of the film. The last thing that I didn't like was the music that felt way too cheerful for the story. Those times were very dark days for us and the music felt like an overly patriotic understanding of what war is like.
The story of Sam intrigued me, however, and I learned that it was based on a true story and book. I was able to find a copy of the book and I had a chance to read it before I wrote this review. The book was very well done and it pains me to say that the film doesn't do it justice. Sam in the book was nothing like the Sam in the movie. Sam in the movie was very sad and mopey while the Sam in the book was far more jovial. I wish they would have taken more of his writings word for word from the book. It would have enhanced the experience overall. The writers really should have workshopped their work more to more accurately reflect what the book offered in terms of mood. As I said earlier, it's like a 1960s war movie in mood, not what war is actually like or what it does to people.
I hate tearing something down without providing some positives (something I've learned in academia). The filmmakers themselves did a rather good job with the videography. It felt slightly more professional than typical amateur productions. Also much care was given to the authenticity of uniforms, weapons, and equipment. They went as far as perfectly equipping the actors exactly how members of the 1st Special Service Force appeared which is no easy task as we have struggled with our museum to accurately portray these men. I was happy that real people were used as characters rather than fiction. If anything I'm very happy I watched this because it introduced me to Sam's book which hold a special place on my shelf.
I was told by a couple acquaintances about the film Devil's Men (The German title translated to English is Devil's Brigade). As a student of the US/Canadian 1st Special Service Force, I was quite intrigued as this subject has not been broached by film since the rather abysmal film from the 1960s. I didn't have high expectations due to the rather cliché and gaudy poster that harkens more to stylish war films of yesteryear but due to my interest in the subject, I pressed on to watch it anyways.
This movie was far too long. I felt numerous times that the film was about to end only for it to continue another 15 minutes then to just tease me again. The acting wasn't terrible, though I wished I could have watched it without German dubbing since I prefer to watch films with their natural language with subtitles. It was full of cliches and honestly felt like it was a fever dream of what someone thought war was like if they only watched old war films from the 1960s. It was full of cliches like bootcamp scenes from Full Metal Jacket remade for children. I was shocked by the lack of real violence. What bothered me most was the portrayal of the German army as caricatures, just tools for the story rather than a formidable force that the 1st Special Service Force respected. They emphasized kids being in the ranks of the Heer when that didn't happen until far later in the war. It also portrayed them as quick to surrender and almost idiotic. In one scene, several US soldiers sneak up on Germans standing in the open and it didn't seem realistic at all. I realized the 1st Special Service Force were known to take prisoners and that they were feared by their German counterparts but it simply wasn't translated well in the movie because none of it seemed plausible the way it was written. Some of the areas they filmed looked like Europe but others didn't. The Monte La Difenza scenes look more like a desert rather than the mountain (I've actually visited the location as part of a historical paper for the University of Stuttgart). I didn't care for the love story, it felt too artificial and the actors didn't have much chemistry. The song midway through the movie also felt like it was added last minute and disjointed the feeling of the film. The last thing that I didn't like was the music that felt way too cheerful for the story. Those times were very dark days for us and the music felt like an overly patriotic understanding of what war is like.
The story of Sam intrigued me, however, and I learned that it was based on a true story and book. I was able to find a copy of the book and I had a chance to read it before I wrote this review. The book was very well done and it pains me to say that the film doesn't do it justice. Sam in the book was nothing like the Sam in the movie. Sam in the movie was very sad and mopey while the Sam in the book was far more jovial. I wish they would have taken more of his writings word for word from the book. It would have enhanced the experience overall. The writers really should have workshopped their work more to more accurately reflect what the book offered in terms of mood. As I said earlier, it's like a 1960s war movie in mood, not what war is actually like or what it does to people.
I hate tearing something down without providing some positives (something I've learned in academia). The filmmakers themselves did a rather good job with the videography. It felt slightly more professional than typical amateur productions. Also much care was given to the authenticity of uniforms, weapons, and equipment. They went as far as perfectly equipping the actors exactly how members of the 1st Special Service Force appeared which is no easy task as we have struggled with our museum to accurately portray these men. I was happy that real people were used as characters rather than fiction. If anything I'm very happy I watched this because it introduced me to Sam's book which hold a special place on my shelf.
