Last night, Eric and I got a chance to watch Monuments Men on opening night. This is a movie I have anticipated since learning George Clooney was in production in the fall of 2012. That’s a long time to anticipate the movie!
I wasn’t disappointed.
This movie captures the tone of the Monuments Men. It grasps what this small group of men was trying to do and honors their memories. It also communicates their sacrifice and devotion. It visually portrays a piece of what was at stake during WWII — and the balancing act. Yet it did this without becoming dark and maudlin. Eric and I saw the 9:15 p.m. showing — in a theater filled primarily with college students — students who laughed out loud multiple times. The humor never detracted, but in enhanced the movie because it didn’t become slap-stick.
Monuments Men has an A cast: Matt Damon, George Clooney, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Cate Blanchett, Hugh Boneville and more. They all fell into their characters and became the Monuments Men they portrayed. The movie is a war movie, but the violence is limited and at a level I can take my 13 and 10 year-olds to see. There was some language, but not heavy…I didn’t count, but it wasn’t a distraction. There is also only mild innuendo and the outcome to that was PERFECT. I literally bounced in my chair because it mirrored history!
There were a couple twists to the story. Nothing major — the key one being the kid who interpreted didn’t show up as early as they portrayed, but he did play a role later in the process. This is a movie I will see again — and enjoy.
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I’m so glad to know from someone who knows that it’s pretty accurate. I can’t wait to see it.
We also enjoyed the movie. We went at 1:45 expecting the theater to be fairly empty at that time of day. We were shocked when it was better than half full. Mostly people older than ourselves. 🙂 Our 15 yr old commented on that. (We were out of school due to the cold.) He enjoyed the movie as much as we did. The one thing we did talk about was the cigarette use but how that was common in that time. That’s how my grandfather got hooked. 🙂 I was very proud of the choice made by a character, I hate too put much more and be a spoiler. I’m sure you know what I’m referring to. We all laughed at certain points. And had a few tense moments. We did enjoy he movie and this was a part of history we knew nothing about.
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Andrea, I know exactly what you are talking about. I practically cheered!
My husband and I saw it last night and loved it. I wanted to watch it in slow motion to catch all the great details! It was a classy production all the way through. And the “romantic scene” – oh my goodness! Not what I anticipated (dreaded) and absolutely beautiful. I loved how he showed respect to both women.
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Sarah, I was holding my breath through that scene. My great fear was that the writers would take it the other direction. Instead, the shots emphasized what a man of honor that character was. Wish we could see it again together!