 THE GREAT RAIDa.k.a. Ghost SoldiersMPAA Rating:
 for strong war violence and brief languageReviewed by: Willie R. Mangum, Jr. ______
Moviemaking Quality:
 Primary Audience:
Adults
Genre:
Action/Adventure, Thriller, Drama, Historical
Length:
2 hr. 12 min.
Year of Release:
2005
        The most daring rescue mission of our time is a story that has never been told. Producer’s Synopsis: “Set in the Philippines in 1945, “The Great Raid” tells the true story of the 6th Ranger Battalion, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mucci (Benjamin Bratt) who undertake a daring rescue mission against all odds. Traveling thirty miles behind enemy lines, the 6th Ranger Battalion aims to liberate over 500 American prisoners-of-war from the notorious Cabanatuan Japanese POW camp in the most audacious rescue ever.” The Great Raid is another in an ever lengthening and steady line of WWII films based on true-life events. The film opens with voice over from one of the main characters, Captain Prince, as he sets the context for the story. John Dahl (Joy Ride, Rounders) is a competent director and very effectively uses black and white stock footage and photography combined with contemporary location shoot footage to put us in the thick of the fight in the Pacific Theater, particularly in the Philippines. The first act of the film is spent in typical introductory fashion, building character and story to bolster the blood-and-guts-war-is-hell aspect of the film and draw in the chicks. An unrequited love once illicit for the sake of honor is now freed by death to blossom in purity and nobility, should providence allow. A raid on a POW camp in Cabanatuan will challenge the hand of providence and test the courage and mettle of this newly formed and thoroughly trained battalion under the able leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Henry Mucci. The Great Raid to save 513 American POW’s is formulated and will be attempted by this untried battalion of brave men. Overall, this is a very well made film from a technical perspective. Each of the actors is capable and, as a result, believable characters emerge. Major Gibson, played by Joseph Fiennes (Luther, Enemy at the Gates), is the rather melancholy and foreboding commander of the prisoners in the POW camp in Cabanatuan, and for the most part he is believable, but sometimes somewhat melodramatic. The action sequences are tight, putting us in the midst of the fight and raising the stakes with pure adrenaline. What the story lacks in depth and opportunity for the audience to identify, it makes up for in historical military detail and accuracy of the mission preparation and implementation. The irony of this film is the inability of the filmmakers to understand or embrace a biblical anthropology that is essential to honor, courage, fidelity and the inherent worth of human life that are fundamental to true heroism. The ease with which they betray the third commandment belies this understanding of all that is heroism. “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain” Exodus 20:7 NASB. (These words were spoken directly to Moses and are the third of Ten Commandments laying the foundation for godly morality in this world. These are binding words and disobedience carries severe consequences. Let me make it very clear that the profane use of God’s name in the form of common slang is a very small part of the meaning of the third commandment. I believe that this commandment includes every aspect of how we live our lives in the name of Christ. Every thought, word and deed falls under the scope of this commandment. But it certainly includes profane and careless words.) With that in view I will point out that there are 3 instances of the vulgar, profane use of God’s name. And yet there are beautiful allusions to faith in God that appear throughout the actions and dialogue; allusions that, in the end, come up empty, “holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power” (2 Tim. 3:5). In the end, as well made as this film is, I cannot recommend it. I may be accused of being Puritanical and naive, but I cannot tread lightly where Scripture commands me not to go. The uses of our God’s name in vain ought not to be tolerated. Just as David was not willing to allow the God of Israel to be mocked, so we too should take a stand and load our sling. Mel Gibson has proven that excellent filmmaking can and should embrace all that is good, beautiful and true according to a biblical world view. We must demand (with our pocket books) that Hollywood do better. Mel Gibson has set the bar high; let’s hold Hollywood filmmakers to the standard that he has set. Had the producers and director of The Great Raid not allowed those three usages of our Lord’s name in vain, none of us would have felt cheated out of a good film. As it stands, we cannot cheat God out of his good name. Violence: Moderate / Profanity: Moderate / Sex/nudity: None Year of Release — 2005 / USA release: August 12, 2005 (wide).  Positive - The Bible says that there is no greater love than for a man to
lay down his life for another. This movie is about that kind of love. See this movie. It is worth the cost of admission. Better than Average/5 —Gary Buie, age 53 Positive - Not since Back to Bataan and Sergeant York have we seen a
movie with such a heart, feeling and charisma. Contrary to
popular belief and knowing that I am going to get many people
upset by the following comment, however I am going to have to
say that YES The Great Raid is even better than Shindlers List
and Saving Private Ryan. Shindler’s List contrary to the public’s
perception is a movie that shows the tragedy of the Holocaust
entrenched in Sex, Language and Grotesque Violence. And
Saving Private Ryan is a fable clothed in the likeness of history
while showing the incredible victory yet more tragedy of D-Day.
The Great Raid shows the power of God, Human Spirit and
Power of our blessed Country. Positive - I’d recommend this film for any American over 16. Japan is (I hope) a totally different nation today, but the way these AMERICAN men were treated… I didn’t think Hollyweird was capable anymore of producing a war movie, based in history, that actually was positive toward Americans and not Soviet snipers or some other enemy of freedom. Positive - I took my teenage sons to see this movie with me and what a great time we had. The honor, courage and skill portrayed in this film is something that we will remember for a long time. It shows WW2 soldiers as they ought to be shown, as they, I believe, would want to be shown: as ordinary men who cared about their comrades. Positive - I was concerned going in to see this movie because usually I
avoid “R” rated movies for the obvious reasons. I found this
movie not to be offensive (I have seen movies rated PG or PG-13 that in my
opinion should have deserved an “R” rating that were far worse than this movie. There were some disturbing scenes in the movie but none were gory, etc., but very realistic of war. Positive - …well done. War is horrible. You can read about them in the Word. So I would say see the film if one wants to get a realistic picture of war. If you want to be entertained - see another film. If hearing a few cuss words upsets you - stay home. Positive - I thought this was an excellent moving film. There wasn’t a dull moment in it. I did not even notice any taking the Lord’s name in vain. I did see several positive references to God. This is an excellent portrayal of a POW rescue for which I and many of my generation are likely unaware. For older teens and adults. There are some brief but very gruesome scenes. This movie made me appreciate the atrocities of war more than any I have seen. Comments from young people
Positive - I saw this movie with high expectations, and it certainly met
them. Although a little slow at the beginning, this movie was definitely quite a sucess with the big action scene at the end. I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of Christian references. Although there was some language, it is a war movie. The acting was Oscar worthy. It’s just too
bad Miramax didn’t give it more publicity. Definitely put on your must-watch list! Positive - When I went to go see “The Greatest Raid,” I expected
a LOT of violence and language. I was surprised to see that there wasn’t nearly the amount of violence or gore that most modern war movies have (“Saving Private Ryan,” “Black Hawk Down,” ect). This movie was very good, and I think that it could’ve been PG-13, but there were still some gruesome scences such as a close-up of burning corpes that obviously weren’t PG-13 material. If you like good historical war movies, then this movie is a good choice. Positive - Wow…this is one of the best movies I’ve seen this year. While
there’s violence and some rather intense scenes, it is a war movie, appropriately rated R, and if that bothers you, I wouldn’t recommend it. But for those who can stomach the gore of war…there’s no sex, no needless, shock-the-audience violence, wonderful acting, high moral standards among the main characters, and overall just really well done. Do yourself a favor and watch it. Positive - This is a great movie depicting the violence of World War II and the honor found in the American soldiers. No wonder the liberals disliked it. IT is very unlike 'Letters from Iwo Jima' which puts the Japanese in a favorable light. The Great Raid shows the harsh truth.
The general plot is MacArthur was forced to leave the Philippines for his safety. His retreat left thousands of American soldiers in the hands of the cruel Japanese. They rounded all the men up and separated them, putting them in POW camps. Among these is Major Gibson (Joseph Fiennes), a man who survived the famous Death March and then put into the Cabanatuan POW camp. Then, American troops land again in the Philippines. Everyone (including the Japanese) know that MacArthur is going to recapture the islands in a few weeks. Captain Prince (Franco) develops a plan with Colonel Mucci (Bratt) to rescue the POWs. They know that if the military keeps advancing, the Japanese will probably kill the POWs.
Violence/ Heavy - The violence is quite strong and, at times, almost graphic as it accurately depicts the brutality that the Japanese showed to the Americans in the POW camps. There is live footage that is pretty violent. At the beginning, some American POWs are grouped into a bomb shelter and burned alive by the Japanese. This isn't terribly violent but some will still find it quite disturbing. Later on in the movie, ten POWs are executed in a moving, tragic scene. The men are lined up and a Japanese soldier walks from man to man, shooting them through their neck. This is shown from a distance and is not really graphic. It is quite disturbing, however. Many people get shot throughout and there is a scene where a man gets beaten. There is no shortage of blood throughout the film.
Language/ Moderate - There was quite a bit of language in the film, but, considering that the movie was about the military, the profanity wasn't that bad.
Sex/ None - There is no nudity or sex whatsoever in this film. There isn't even any kissing.
Positives - There is one mention to Christianity in this film. A one point, Fiennes' character is called to the office of Nagai, the leader of the Cabanatuan POW camp, where Nagai asks him to persuade his love interest, Margret (Nielsen) character to betray her partners in the Resistance. Nagai states 'I am giving you your future.' Fiennes looks slowly and says quietly, 'My future's not in your hands.'
I would caution parents from letting their children watch this movie due to the heavy violence and the language. However, teens and up should be able to see this movie with no problems. It shows us the brutality of World War II and the valiant, honorable American soldiers who fought in it. This is a beautiful, but harsh film.
Movie Critics
“…the power of sacrifice… best film I’ve seen so far this year…” “…meticulous attention to period detail …Reaching for epic breadth, this based-on-fact WW II drama forgoes storytelling depth…” “…Here is a war movie that understands how wars are actually fought…” “…The action is brilliant, the combat sharp and rattling, and the film follows the historical record more closely than most Hollywood films…” |
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