Band of Brothers

Just for the record, despite what the below reviewer states (1 star); the book and this series are right on the money historically. I'm not sure what historical facts the fellow below is referring to because the Book "is based on the first hand account interviews" with the very solders that did the fighting. Interesting how some guy who wasn't there seems to feel he has a more historically accurate understanding of the events then the men who where actually there.

This series does not glorify war nor does it offer and arrogant boastful image of the American solder. What it does offer is an inside view of the tremendous sacrifice these men made for all of us. Most of these men were citizen soldiers. Some where from poor backgrounds, some from more affluent backgrounds. Some with high school educations, some with Ivy League educations. In fact one member of the 101st was an all-American catcher and football player for UCLA, who played in the 1943 Rose Bowl.

Nothing is sugar coated. The series depicts both great victories and missteps encountered by the 101st in their fight. I found the depiction of the training prior to the Normandy drop to be particularly interesting. It leaves the viewer asking themselves if they themselves could have endured the training and physical demands imposed by the CO's.

The acting is superb, the story line is excellent, and each series creates a very accurate portrayal of the book. I strongly recommend this series, however I would recommend reading the book first. Simply an excellent book and series.

There is also an added bonus; "We Stand Alone Together, The Men of Easy Company". This is a 120 minute Documentary with the men of Easy. It offers interesting interviews, insight and vintage footage of the men.


Probably one of the best war films ever made. Stunning on Blu-Ray.   November 18, 2008
D. Stone (Sacramento, CA)
151 out of 160 found this review helpful

I have to say that this series blew me away. I was so impressed with the effort put into Saving Private Ryan to give it a documentary look and feel. Band Of Brothers falls from the same tree. Once again, Hanks and Spielberg reunite to produce this epic cable series of WW2 as told by the men themselves. Every episode has interviews from the soldiers who were there. Very realistic and emotional stuff.

First off, the set comes in a metal box with fold out style disk holders. Exactly like the standard dvd edtion a few years ago.

The Blu-Ray edition has 6 disks total. 2 episodes per disk on the first 5 with many, many extras on number 6.

The quality of the picture is perfect. These films were shot with tons of natural grain for that documentary style look. The lenses also give the look of a 40's camera used in the field. Although the film itself is washed out and very rough, it has awesome detail. You will notice so many things going on in the background. The size of the shots sometimes leave you in awe. The blacks are sometimes unstable, but that is the intent. The daytime scenes are beautiful in their full scope. The greatest thing about this series is the uncompromising attention to detail. From the uniforms to the weapons. The skintones are spot on and very nice looking with great detail. The majority of these episodes were shot outdoors. So, the landscapes look fantastic! From the coast of France, to the mountains of Austria, this has some amazing and beautiful scenery. While the picture may be " washed out ", it looks and feels just as you would expect from the point of view from a combat photographer. The battle scenes are simply unbelievable. It takes you to a new level realism.

The sound is second to none. You will easily be blown away with the audio track quality. You have to turn down the volume at many points during battle scenes. The voices are crisp and clean, but the battle scenes really rock your sound system. All of your speakers get a good workout. The subwoofer really hammers out the explosions. The rear speakers have tons of gunfire from all directions, as do the side speakers. You will have a true surround sound experience. Many movies do not make full use of the full audio possibilities. This one does!

There are great extras here as well. Great in depth interviews from the soldiers themselves. A really cool making of documentary called " We stand together: The men of easy company " And many other things for the history buff. Cant say enough about this product. If you are a war genre lover, this is one of the best. If you love history, and dont want a watered down, made for Hollywood war film. This is how it happened as told by the men of the 506th E Co. You will have a new respect for these guys who gave so much. It is hard to believe that some people could give so much for so little. Thank god they did.