A Midnight Clear (1992)

Set in 1944 France, an American Intelligence Squad locates a German Platoon wishing to surrender rather than die in Germany's final war offensive. The two groups of men, isolated from the ... See full summary »

Director:

Keith Gordon

Writers:

William Wharton (novel), Keith Gordon (screenplay)

Stars:

Peter Berg, Kevin Dillon, Arye Gross

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Peter Berg	...	Bud Miller
Kevin Dillon	...	Cpl. Mel Avakian
Arye Gross	...	Stan Shutzer
Ethan Hawke	...	Sgt. Will Knott
Gary Sinise	...	Vance 'Mother' Wilkins
Frank Whaley	...	Paul 'Father' Mundy
John C. McGinley	...	Major Griffin
Larry Joshua	...	Lieutenant Ware
David Jensen	...	Sergeant Hunt
Curt Lowens	...	Older German Soldier
Rachel Griffin	...	Janice
Timothy S. Shoemaker	...	Eddie (as Tim Shoemaker)
Kelly Gately	...	Young German Soldier
Bill Osborn	...	American Sentry
Andre Lamal	...	German Soldier

Storyline

Set in 1944 France, an American Intelligence Squad locates a German Platoon wishing to surrender rather than die in Germany's final war offensive. The two groups of men, isolated from the war at present, put aside their differences and spend Christmas together before the surrender plan turns bad and both sides are forced to fight the other.

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Plot Keywords:

germany | group | christmas | blood | snow | 

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, war violence and a scene of sensuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 April 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

En la línea de ataque

Filming Locations:

Utah, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$1,526,697 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

A&M Films, Beacon Communications

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film-makers scouted then Yugoslavia as the filming location before settling on Utah, as snow in Yugoslavia had been notoriously unstable the last few years before filming , and there was no money to make massive amounts of snow in the budget.

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Goofs

When Miller checks the frozen corpses of the German and American soldiers with his bayonet, he uses his left arm. In some shots, though, he is using his right arm.

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Quotes

Will Knott: I'm not exactly sure what country we're in. Could be Belgium, Luxembourg, France, or even Germany. I don't know what day it is. I have no watch, so I don't know what time it is. I'm not even sure of my name. The next thing you know, they'll be making me a general.

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Soundtracks

"It Came Upon a Midnight Clear"
Sung by Sam Phillips
Arranged and Produced by T-Bone Burnett and Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips appears courtesy of Virgin Records

User Reviews

The Ultimate Anti-War Film

Keith Gordon's film about war, friendship, humanity, and irony, A MIDNIGHT CLEAR, is one of the greatest war film ever made. This is a film that is refreshing, original, brilliant, disturbing, and extremely well made. It's about a group of World War II GIs trying to scout out a German GI camp located a few meters away from their location. They manage to avoid getting too close to actually coming in contact, but when they are spotted one day and not shot, they begin to suspect that the Germans want to have a truce and surrender. They must decide what is the right thing to do. However, their incompetence and fear of confusing their distraught fellow soldier Mother(Gary Sinse) may be a serious detriment. This film has an excellent opening sequence. it starts with the sound of bells and singing slowing transforming into a loud scream and then we see a scene filled with true suffering as Gary Sinse cries over his trauma of his child dying as he tears off his clothing while another GI tries to calm him down. With haunting scenery, great acting, and several underlying themes, the film doesn't feel overdone or over accomplished. It has almost a Kurt Vonnegut feel to it that brings a good sense of fresh air to this allegory. The film is flawless. It's definitely a sleeper hit. Check it out. its a keeper.

NOTE: If you can, track down the DVD, because the commentary track and the deleted scenes are definitely a must see and hear. It's a shame that a lot of these scenes were cut out because they definitely add little more humanity to an already very human story. A lot of people don't recommend the DVD because it's full screen, but personally, a film is a film. If i can see the actors, the scenery, the actions, and the image, I'm alright. It's not like the quality is bad or anything. It'd be hard to make this film look bad though.