The Lost Battalion Review

I just recently watched the movie The Lost Battalion. It stars Rick Schroder and is directed by Russel Mulcahy. The movie is based on the true story of the 308th Infantry Battalion during World War One. It was a made-for-TV movie that originally aired on A&E in 2001, although, it is now available on DVD. Schroeder plays Major Charles Whittlesey, who is the commanding officer for the 308th. At the beginning of the film, the unit is ordered to make what Whittlesey considers a reckless attack. However, the attack goes forward and the 308th soon finds itself deep in German lines surrounded by the enemy. The rest of the movie follows the Germans' repeated attacks on the unit in an effort to restore their lines. The 308th holds on despite overwhelming odds and is rescued by American units at the movie's end.

While there are some minor historical errors, the film is very good. Most people would never notice these errors anyway, and despite them, the film is pretty accurate overall, in my opinion. The story flows smoothly, and I found all of the acting very believable. There are also some great camera angles that reminded me of Saving Private Ryan. For example, it is easy to compare the beginning of The Lost Battalion, when the soldiers charge out of the trenches, to the beginning of Saving Private Ryan, when the landings at Omaha Beach take place. The special effects are also fairly good, though you can tell it was done with a TV budget in some places. This is most notable when an artillery shell kills the character, Sgt. Gaedeke. The explosion from it came across as very fake to me. This does not detract from the rest of the film, however, and many of the other special effects are done very well. In fact, when writing this review, it was the only one that stood out bad enough for me to remember.

For fans of war movies or history in general, this is definitely worth watching. It is also nice to see another WWI movie, that are now rare with the renewed interest in WWII lately.