Maybe this is a bit insensitive with regards to the recent events in the US, but I was wondering if anyone else has been watching the HBO WWII miniseries, "Band of Brothers."

I've been watching it from the beginning, and each episode just gets better. It is an incredibly well written, well executed series from Speilberg & Tom Hanks based on the book of the same same (historical account of a real 101st Airborn infantry regiment).

It is alot like Saving Private Ryan in quality and production. It seems very realisting and shows the brutality of WWII. The only problem is it's hard to keep track of characters as they die and new ones come in.

Last night's episode have me almost jumping out of my seat as the Gernman armor & troops came out of nowhere to rout the allied troops from a town in Holland. I loved the British tank commander's lines to the infantry guy, "I can't shoot the tank if can't see it. My orders are no unessicary damage to the buildings." Of course, then the Germans proced to level half the town!

-FTZ

I was curious as to how faithful the tv was to the book.. and finally found the book.. The incident where Lt. Spiers shot the German POWs.. in the book-- was a rumor. Not a fact as presented in the movie.
Slanderous at the least, if Spiers is still alive.
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I can't get into any of the characters. They're on the screen too briefly to develop themselves, and they get replaced too frequently.. other than Capt. Sobel, there's no real persons to remember.
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I missed last night's show, looking for LEXX 4.10.. which was supposed to be shown Friday, and again Sunday..
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While I think it's beautiful to look at, it is not very well written (as a drama). This is no reflection on Stephen Ambrose, but rather on the teleplay writers that adapted his book.
Bad Character development (which is why after four episodes, you still don't recognise anyone), and unnremarkable performances, except for maybe Lt. Winters (Damian Lewis). Bad, bad CGI. Not very effective editing.
I think that they aren't really trying to say anything, other than just re-create the book in film format. Unfortunately, with to much fidelity to real life, film can become kind of boring, almost like a documentary, but without any particular message.

'Course I might be wrong.

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I really like it so far.

Some of the CGI could have been a little better, but for the most part I'm quite impressed. Once they offer the complete set on DVD (like they did with "From the Earth to the Moon") I'll be sure to get it.

Steve

I missed the first episode but have seen the rest and enjoyed them to this point. I have enjoyed the documentary feel of it. I was born 26 years after the last shots were fired and cna only imagine what it would take to get up and charge into the middle of all of that gunfire. The men who fought in the WWII really had guts and it is amazing what they did then.

While I agree that not alot of time is being spent on character development (with maybe the exception of Cpt. Winters), I think it is out of necessisity. Since so many people die (i read they suffered 150% casualties throughout the was) and new ones come in, the show would probably be bogged down in character development. The last eposide had a short statement from a surviving veteran saying that he didn't want to get to know the new people as he'd just feel worse when/if they were killed.

I think the performances have been quite good and whats so bad about the CG? It looked pretty good to me. They're making the equivelent of 5 feature length movies for $100m US. While not cheap, you can't expect perfection. I think it has been far from boring!

-FTZ

Originally posted by lrsudog
While I think it's beautiful to look at, it is not very well written (as a drama). This is no reflection on Stephen Ambrose, but rather on the teleplay writers that adapted his book.
Bad Character development (which is why after four episodes, you still don't recognise anyone), and unnremarkable performances, except for maybe Lt. Winters (Damian Lewis). Bad, bad CGI. Not very effective editing.
I think that they aren't really trying to say anything, other than just re-create the book in film format. Unfortunately, with to much fidelity to real life, film can become kind of boring, almost like a documentary, but without any particular message.

'Course I might be wrong.

Don't get me wrong. I've watched every episode twice! It's just that I had higher hopes. "From the Earth to the Moon" was amazing and while factual (essentially) gave some really great insight into what many of the key figures were going thru.
I deal with this stuff every day, so I may get a little picky, but to me "Saving Private Ryan" did a much better job establishing the characters. You knew every one of those guys in the first ten minutes. This isn't the fault of the actors, but more the director and editor's use of what was available in the screenplay.
As for the CGI, I think it has a place in film, but no CGI can replace true life feel yet. Until you can't tell a real live action C-47 from a CG C-47, it's not good enough. Compare the Mustang flyover in the last episode to the Mustang flyovers in "Empire of the Sun". Actually, you can't, because one looks real (and is) and one looks like a "transformers" episode.

I read the book about 3 weeks before the show started on HBO. So far I've recorded every show but #4 which I will record this week.
I personally think that a good job has been done on the series. In the book it was difficult to follow one person and it remains true for the series except Winters. As for comparing Band of Brothers to Saving Privite Ryan. I don't think you can really compre them. One was fiction and the other NON-fiction. Also Ryan really emphsized the blood and gore of war as with Brothers it trys to take out a little of the blood by muting the colors.

my $.02

Lucas

Like I said, I get pretty picky. I sometimes forget to turn off the "Internal Critic" and just watch.

Still, I will be interested to see what the next one is like, since Tom Hanks directed it. If anyone should have his mind wrapped around the material, it will be him.

I have enjoyed them alot. Missed the last one, but its on in 10 minutes here. On character development, its about war, people die constantly, and the main focus for me anyway is the fighting and the characters are secondary. (except for Lt. Winters)

Andrew

2 thumbs up here

I really wanted to but missed the first episode. I won't watch a movie or mini-series from the middle so I have to wait for the second showing.

Originally posted by Kevin Murray
I really wanted to but missed the first episode. I won't watch a movie or mini-series from the middle so I have to wait for the second showing.

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The next time around.. maybe will like this one.. with several showings of the current episode per week. Watch your listings..

I read somewhere that HBO will re-air the first few episodes sometime in Oct., presumably to allow people to catch up.

I watched episode 4 again last night (even though I taped it, I was up late). I still think the CG is pretty good, at the very least passible. I swear I even saw the ailerons move when the P-51 flew over. I first thought the parachutes CG looked bad, until they showed in the closeup of the real ones really do have that ugly green color scheme

Interestingly enough, it was easier to follow the characters the second time. I still got excited when that slant-nosed Jagdepanther turns the corner and starts blowing away the Sherman tanks one by one.

Reading the book, I have to wonder how Lt. Sobel was able to form the best company in the US Army with his background in the textile industry.
Although he would have been the first casualty at the drop on D-Day (fragged), the men he trained all give him the credit for making them the superior soldiers they were.
Where did he learn what to do towards that end?
Was there an official US Army training syllabus that he followed..-to the book-.. and apparently the only officer who did so?
Even though some of his practices were ch..........t, the overall result can't be criticized.
How he do that?:confused