Don't Believe the Hype

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

I watched it twice and think maybe it is the best war or antiwar movie I ever saw. It is highly recommended for watching.

This should have been the definitive war movie about the building of the Burma railway, but it falls short on many levels. The characters are far too spread out and the editing lets this down. The second half moves into Christian mishmash which does nothing for character or plot. Tireless voice overs ask imponderable philosophical questions, without solution or redemption. An implausible scene shows one man being crucified by the "evil" Japanese officer who then has a tear in his eye, even though his life revolves around the Bushido code. Nothing really makes any sense despite vague philosophical pretensions about forgiveness. Could have been great.

The first thing to say is that if you are looking for a war movie with big battle sequences that shows men singlehandedly holding back a complete division with only a pistol and some foul language, you best look elsewhere.If you are looking for a movie that gives a little insight into what happens to a man when he gets stripped of dignity, morality and even base humanity, you NEED to see "To End All Wars." I have never been a P.O.W. or even served in uniform so I would never dare to say that I would do this or that or even compare myself with any of the main characters in this movie, but I FEEL that the acting, the portrayal of men who WERE there was brilliant. Although some of the scenes in the movie were fictional -- such as the use of a wheelchair for one of the men who had been paralysed from the waist down -- the balance of scenes as taken from the autobiographical novel were very well done.This movie tells the true story of men being held in a P.O.W. camp by the Japanese and being used as slave labourers to construct a railroad to allow the Japanese a method to conquer more territory in Asia. What impressed me more than anything else was how the movie did not play down the brutality of Japanese soldiers in WWII because it might offend sensibilities. History should not be pasteurized because if we water things down we might end up repeating such things in the future. ALL countries have had their "dark" eras.I enjoy any movies that depict the military because I am an amateur military historian. This particular movies earns high marks in ALL areas, cinematography, acting, directing and most important, remaining accurate to real events. If you have NOT yet seen it, I envy you.

As a history buff I've seen a variety of war and POW movies. WWII movies happen to be a favorite as they seem to show special spirit of the nations in a hard fought fight against the Axis powers.Out of all of the war movies I've seen this one holds a great place in my heart.1) The story wasn't solely focused on an American soldier. While I love our soldiers many nations joined together to fight in WWII. It was really nice to see other nationalities hold the banner of freedom out in such a movie.2) The opening scene captures my heart.3) The soundtrack is one of the greatest I've heard outside the Thin Red Line.4) Kiefer Sutherland portrayal in the latter half of the movie is the greatest since the early days of his portrayal as Jack Baurer.5) This movie beyond anything else shares the greatest picture of redemption I've yet to see.I was in awe of this story throughout. It captivated my attention and refused to let it go. I've never enjoyed a movie enough to write a review on IMDb, but this broke every mold I know.