Band of Brothers

A masterpiece! Even twenty years later. When the series premiered, "Medal of Honor" and "Call of Duty" were being played daily by players. But two decades have passed, and over time you gain some experience, learn a few things, and thanks to media coverage, the war is actually online on our phones, and suddenly we perceive the ten-hour colossus is completely differently. That senseless massacre in the Ardennes is no longer as cool, and neither are the torn bodies. Suddenly, there are ten mini-stories about one huge bit of determination, about real "ordinary men" who did "extraordinary things," which stands precisely on the edge of a celebratory ode and simple military pathos, never sliding into kitsch or pleasing flattery. HBO spent an extravagant budget for its time, which the creators pumped into the magnificent set design and huge cast, where mud and snow get under their nails. These small outbursts of humanity (particularly the medic's ordeal) only confirm the power of the storytelling. A genre benchmark and a series standard that continues to dominate in many aspects and leaves most competitors far behind. (30.01.2024)

Some of the episodes are “only” brilliant and some are downright masterpieces, especially episodes six, seven and nine: Bastogne, The Breaking Point, and Why We Fight, the last one of which took my breath away. By the way, the fifth episode, Crossroads, was directed by Tom Hanks himself and with his use of interesting cuts between two time planes and unusual camera angles he proves that he is not only a great actor but also a great director. Overall, I bow in deep respect to the people behind this ten-part work of genius, for the impeccable filmmaking, for the absence of annoying jingoism, and for the deep humanity that permeates all the episodes. Ladies and gentlemen, 5 stars is not enough in this case! (01.07.2003)

Fantastic work! The creators took the best of Saving Private Ryan (a naturalistic and technically brilliant depiction of the war), got rid of the disgusting patriotic pathos, and focused their series on believable flesh-and-blood characters who make mistakes and behave like real people. The narrative concept, in which each episode focuses on a different point of view and pays attention to different characters, is initially confusing, but once you get used to a few key faces, Band of Brothers becomes a truly addictive affair. The image of war is appropriately harsh, immediate and indeed brilliantly transmitted through the eye of the camera to the viewer's brain. The perfectionism of the camera and the direction is astonishing, and even though we have already seen most of the tricks in Spielberg's war tale, it is only in Band of Brothers that it truly feels immediate. Michael Kamen's majestic music is also excellent, and of course the screenwriters deserve maximum recognition, who managed to mesh the seemingly disparate war images into a completely coherent whole and create the potential for film images as powerful as the miniature love story of the medic and the French nurse in Bastogne. Band of Brothers is not just a spectacular experience, it is also a supremely impressive portrait of war suffering and everyday heroism... (23.05.2006)

I'm probably damaging the series by giving only four stars because it features excellent craftsmanship and is one of the peaks of the genre. It is a realistically presented war drama, brilliantly cast with well-drawn characters, without cheap pathos, and at the same time with a sufficiently large budget to create a visually attractive series. I only mind the distorted American view of World War II, which only a good history expert fully realizes. Although Band of Brothers is essentially civil, it lacks the traditional infamous patriotism, and the viewer naturally does not find out while watching the series how low the combat morale of the American units was on the Western Front, and how low the support for the war was in Europe among the American public. The United States had long been drawn into isolationist policies, partly due to its bad experience in its involvement in World War I. The European war was not popular, and actually, only the drastic shots from concentration camps and the depiction of German atrocities at the end of the war subsequently justified entry into the war and wartime losses in the public eye. That's why the anti-Jewish pogroms also attracted such strong attention. The American command wanted to minimize losses and conducted the war campaign very cautiously with regard to public opinion at home. The usual tactic was to decimate the enemy through intensive bombing and artillery shelling to avoid any resistance if possible. Even in the last months of the war, when American units faced a demoralized enemy running out of fuel and supplies, they advanced only an average of 3-5 km per day, despite their overwhelming superiority. Viewers of the series simply won't learn about many of these things or at least won't learn about them to the full extent. Although there was dying and suffering on the Western Front too, it is incomparable to the dramas that took place on the Eastern Front or during partisan warfare. Overall impression: 90%. (11.05.2007)

Our heroes deserve the best possible tribute. And that’s just what HBO did. That’s right, it’s that easy... On the other hand, it’s true that not every episode is complete genius. Some of them are “only" highly above-average, but who cares when the rest of the series is jam packed full of unforgettable moments. And not just battle moments, but primarily the human moments. ♫ OST score: 4/5 (19.01.2005)