According to people more knowledgeable than I, this movie includes pieces of classic war films such as "Stalag 17," and one with which I am more familiar, "The Great Escape." Combine these old favorites with two more recent hit war movies, "A Soldier's Story" and "A Few Good Men," throw in a few twists and turns, and "Hart's War" pops out. Despite the blatant mixing of so many sources, however, "Hart's War" really is a good movie.
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Very loosely based on John Katzenbach's book by the same title, "Hart's War" seeks to become a courtroom drama not only in the vast context of World War II, but also within the upcoming civil rights movement. The title character, Lt. Tommy Hart, is played by Colin Farrell, not Bruce Willis as the previews might lead you to believe. A second-year law student at Yale, he enlists in the war as an officer's aide thanks to his father's influence as a United States senator. But one day while out on a routine chore, he is stopped and taken hostage by the German Nazis. After days of Gestapo torture and questioning, he is sent to Stalag 13. Here he meets Col. William McNamara, who is played by Bruce Willis, the top ranking Allied officer in this German POW camp.
Once in the enlisted men's barracks he is like a fish out of water. An officer without combat experience, Hart is forced to vie for the men's grudging respect. He finally is befriended by the "supply man" Vincent Bedford (Cole Hauser), who is seen by all to be a pretty decent guy until two black Tuskegee officers are brought into the camp.
Just like Hart, they are told by McNamara that there is no room for then in the officer's bunk, even though empty cots abound. The two men, Lt. Archer (Vicellous Reon Shannon) and Lt. Scott (Terrence Dashon Howard) suffer much verbal abuse and hatred, much of it from Bedford. Then, through a flurry of events, Scott is accused of the murder of a fellow soldier and McNamara assigns Hart as his counsel for the court martial. This sets the scene for an inevitable showdown between McNamara and the two "lesser" officers, one ending in what unfortunately almost is a trite twist.
Luckily this twist does not ruin the overall affect of the movie. It does, in fact, emphasize one point that I've already made, namely that the success of this movie is not due to its original plot or its spectacular action sequences, or even to its memorable dialogue.
No, the success of this movie is due more to its ability to quietly bring all these things together in such a way that the characters seem human and the situation becomes believable. And while there is no overpowering theme pounding away, the viewers do leave with thoughts of fairness and honor in their heads.
Another factor, the jerky plot sequences, initially could seem a failure of the film. Most viewers think a plot should flow smoothly, transitioning from one sequence to another. But real life rarely is like that, and for this reason, the film's plot becomes one of its greater successes. Much like real life, this plot moves along slowly and then suddenly explodes in a bit of action before slowing down again and repeating the cycle.
The acting and the way that all the characters mesh together in believable fashion come to be seen as one of the film's best features. Deeper script development only could have increased the chemistry and power brought to the screen by these actors. Farrell's representation of Hart could easily have been fleshed out with more self reflection, as was briefly seen at the beginning and end of the movie.
And though Hart is the title character, the most interesting and intriguing character is McNamara. While I'm not suggesting that he be nominated for an Oscar, Willis brings so much to the table for this role that it's a shame there isn't a movie about his character and his experiences.
Add to this mix the final catalyst, German commander Col. Werner Visser (Marcel Iures). He plays this role to its stereotypical best: educated in the States (at Yale even), a lover of American things (Harlem jazz), he remains too much a nationalist not to carry out his duty.
I claimed at the beginning of this article that "Hart's War" is merely a conglomeration of many other movies and war themes. But when all of these are drawn together, the end result is one amazing film that is greater than its cliched and underdeveloped parts.
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