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Dom Robinson reviews
Hart’s War 
MGM
- Cert:
- Cat.no: 22944 CDVD
- Running time: 120 minutes
- Year: 2002
- Pressing: 2002
- Region(s): 2 (UK PAL)
- Chapters: 32 plus extras
- Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
- Languages: English, Czech
- Subtitles: 10 languages available
- Widescreen: 2.35:1 (Super 35)
- 16:9-enhanced: Yes
- Macrovision: No
- Disc Format: DVD 9
- RRP: £19.99
- Extras: Trailer, Deleted Scenes, Photo Gallery, Two Audio Commentaries
Director:
- Gregory Hoblit
(Fallen, Frequency, Hart’s War, Primal Fear, TV: Hill Street Blues, LA Law, NYPD Blue)
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Producers:
- David Foster, Gregory Hoblit, David Ladd and Arnold Rifkin
Screenplay:
- Billy Ray and Terry George (from the novel by John Katzenbach)
Music :
- Rachel Portman
Cast :
- Col. William A McNamara: Bruce Willis
Lt. Thomas W Hart: Colin Farrell
Lt. Lincoln A Scott: Terrence Howard
Staff Sgt. Vic W Bedford: Cole Hauser
Col. Werner Visser: Marcel Iures
Capt. Peter A Ross: Linus Roache
Lt. Lamar T Archer: Vicellous Shannon
It’s called Hart’s War but once the stereotypes and predictability kick in, it may as well be the American version of Allo Allo.
As the film begins, desk jockey Lt. Thomas W Hart (Colin Farrell) never gets to see life in the frontline because he’s the son of a senator, but after a trip to escort a soldier (played by Holby City’s ‘Alex Adams’ replacement, Rocky Marshall) goes awry as the latter gets his brains blown out and Hart is captured and stuck in a POW camp, despite not telling the Germans anything… or did he?
It’s December 1944 and World War II isn’t far from being over, but there’s still time for a bog-standard plotline as snotty-nosed white Staff Sgt. Vic W Bedford (Cole Hauser) hates the two black Lieutenants who’ve just joined his barracks, going as far as to stitch up Lt. Lamar T Archer (Vicellous Shannon) for petty theft. German scumbag Herr Flick, er… I mean, Col. Werner Visser (Marcel Iures) tries him in an instant and has Archer shot dead, despite it being as obvious as sin to everyone who the guilty party was.
Hart and McNamara meet German scum Visser. Give it a short amount of time and Bedford is found dead in the barracks. Who just happens to be standing over the body but Lt. Lincoln A Scott (Terrence Howard), the other black officer. Visser wants to try him in the same way, but Col. William A McNamara (Bruce Willis) sets the wheels in motion so he can have a fair trial. Well, as fair as the cliched script will allow.
Did Scott do the deed? It’s obvious to everyone that he didn’t and that the script is as flat as could be, with Marcel Iures doing his best to pretend he’s Max Von Sydow in a German colonel’s suit, while trying to bait Scott’s lawyer, Lt. Hart himself, and proving that he’s not the complete Nazi shit he first appears to be, unless that could just be a front… or…
oh, who cares. I’m glad I didn’t see this in the cinema as it just bores you totally as the film goes on and the person with the least reason to be here is Bruce Willis himself, who is just there to provide a big name for the cast, but whose character is completely and utterly redundant… or is he? Oh, there I go again.
What really grates more than anything, is when Scott knows he’s innocent, but would rather stay and face an unfair trial and certain death, than have a chance at freedom when offered an escape route, because by staying that would be the definition of “Honour” and, as such, he could happily write to his son and explain that, rather than get the chance to be with him. Gahhh! I *HATE* dumb characters like that in films and would happily pull the trigger myself, not because of his colour, but just because he’s one of those stereotypical Hollywood characters who resigns themselves to death because it would be an honourable death. Dickhead!
Hart and Ross attend to an injured soldier. The film was shot and is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen and largely looks superb, but some of the outdoor daytime shots are a little too soft.
Most of the movie is a courtroom drama, something you don’t expect from the trailer, so sound wouldn’t normally be a factor, but the Dolby Digital 5.1 provides some cracking sound early on as the German train station is shot at and bombed, plus a bit later when a plane is shot down and crashes into the POW camp. Other than that, there’s not much going on.
The extras are fairly standard and not a lot to shout about. The trailer is in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, but standard Dolby Surround, and runs for just over 2 minutes, making the film look like a very gung-ho affair. There are 10 Deleted Scenes, each with the option of director’s commentary.
The Photo Gallery takes in selections from the film, behind the scenes, the set and the poster shoot. Finally, there’s two audio commentaries: one from Bruce Willis, director Gregory Hoblit and writer Billy Ray, with the second from producer David Foster.
There are the usual 32 chapters to the movie for a big MGM title, dialogue comes in Dolby Digital 5.1 for English and Czech only, with subtitles in 11 languages: English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese and Swedish. The main menu features some animation and a looped piece of music from the film.
PICTURE QUALITY
SOUND QUALITY
EXTRAS
OVERALL 
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.