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IMDbPro

When Trumpets Fade

  • TV Movie
  • 19981998
  • RR
  • 1h 35m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
7.7K
YOUR RATING
When Trumpets Fade (1998)
Home Video Trailer from HBO Home Video
Play trailer1:08
1 Video
28 Photos
ActionDramaWar
A private in the latter days of WWII on the German front struggles between his will to survive and what his superiors perceive as a battlefield instinct.A private in the latter days of WWII on the German front struggles between his will to survive and what his superiors perceive as a battlefield instinct.A private in the latter days of WWII on the German front struggles between his will to survive and what his superiors perceive as a battlefield instinct.
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
7.7K
YOUR RATING
    • John Irvin
    • W.W. Vought
  • Stars
    • Ron Eldard
    • Zak Orth
    • Frank Whaley
    • John Irvin
    • W.W. Vought
  • Stars
    • Ron Eldard
    • Zak Orth
    • Frank Whaley
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 106User reviews
    • 13Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos1

    When Trumpets Fade
    Trailer 1:08
    Watch When Trumpets Fade

    Photos28

    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)
    When Trumpets Fade (1998)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Ron Eldard
    Ron Eldard
    • Manning
    Zak Orth
    Zak Orth
    • Warren
    Frank Whaley
    Frank Whaley
    • Medic Chamberlain
    Dylan Bruno
    Dylan Bruno
    • Sgt. Talbot
    Devon Gummersall
    Devon Gummersall
    • Lonnie
    Dan Futterman
    Dan Futterman
    • Despin
    Steven Petrarca
    Steven Petrarca
    • Baxter
    Dwight Yoakam
    Dwight Yoakam
    • Lt. Colonel
    Martin Donovan
    Martin Donovan
    • Captain Pritchett
    Timothy Olyphant
    Timothy Olyphant
    • Lt. Lukas
    Jeffrey Donovan
    Jeffrey Donovan
    • Bobby
    Bobby Cannavale
    Bobby Cannavale
    • Captain Zenek
    Frank-Michael Köbe
    • German Sergeant
    • (as Frank Köbe)
    András Stohl
    • Wounded Soldier
    Matthew Rutson Cooney
    • Driver Corporal
    • (as Matthew Ruston Cooney)
    Brian Hicks
    • 1st Sergeant
    • (as Gy. Sgt. Brian Hicks USMC)
    John Miller
    • Radio Man
    • (as Cpl. John Miller USMC)
    Peter Thomas
    • News Footage Narrator
    • (voice)
      • John Irvin
      • W.W. Vought
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The red keystone unit patch signifies that Manning and the others are part of the The 28th Infantry Division. The 28th is a unit of the Army National Guard and is the oldest division-sized unit in the US armed forces.
    • Goofs
      The Dragons teeth of the Siegfried line are not shown as they really were (and in numerous places still are today). 1) In the movie the line is built with four rows of teeth. In reality the line is built with five rows. 2) The teeth are in reality not made in one size as shown in the movie, but in 3 different sizes, where the first and last rows contain the biggest pillars, the middle three are middle sized, and woven in the last row you can find the smallest. 3) The rows are not placed exactly behind each other. If you would see them from above, you would see an angle in the middle. 4) The rows of pillars are also not built in one line. If you would look over a row from the side, you would see a zigzag of pillars. 5) The pillars in the movie are too close to each other. In reality, the area between two pillars is so big, you can park a car between them (as is done by the author of this comment on numerous occasions).
    • Quotes

      Pvt. David Manning: If I can help you in any way without endangering my own life, I won't hesitate. But I'm not taking a bullet for anybody!

      Lt. Lukas: That's not good enough.

      Pvt. David Manning: That's as good as it gets.

    • Connections
      Referenced in Ban the Sadist Videos! (2005)
    • Soundtracks
      White Christmas
      Written by Irving Berlin

      Performed by Bing Crosby

    User reviews106

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    Good All Around War Pic: Action, Characters,. Plot & Theme
    This movie actually hearkens back to Director Irving's previous "Hamburger Hill", in that it focuses on the fate of some unimportant small unit fighting in a larger bloodbath battle. The battles involved In both cases, Hamburger Hill and the Hurtgen Forest, were utterly unimportant battles that managed to get a lot of our men killed. Both were US Army assaults on heavily defended prepared defenses performed by largely green troops without proper tactics or gear. The Hurtgen Forest was actually planted and maintained as a defensive position. The irony was, that east of the Hurtgen Forest, the Roer River in Germany was dammed, so the Germans merely opened up the dams and flooded the valley, making logistic and supplies nearly impossible; so the battle had no strategic value. This was a result of Eisenhower's flawed broad front strategy where he wanted his whole front to apply pressure, instead of Montgomery's more sound plan of a strong left hook through the low countries along the coastal plains into NW Germany. Though one might add that a set piece battle commander like Monty probably would have muffed any clever hook advance like that. These battles happen cause war has its own logic and fighting is done for fighting's sake. But since the loss ratios weren't working in our favor, someone should have had the nerve to pull the plug on the whole strategically useless campaign. But Monday morning quarterbacking by me is hardly fair too, you might add.

    These battles are called meat grinders, for the pointless waste of life. This movie was released on HBO right after "Saving Private Ryan" so it was submerged behind all that hoopla. "Saving Private Ryan" was a grand big budget salute to all the Greatest Generation vets, with it's Normandy D-Day setting, it's elite paratrooper and ranger troops and their humanitarian mission. Here it is just the opposite, the men are just semi trained green replacements in a standard infantry division, mainly fighting to stay alive. They face murderous German artillery fire and mines, as well as determined defenders. There is no ideological hatred of Germans or Nazis either, they are just the enemy.

    The "hero" is a flawed man, Ron Eldard as Pvt. David Manning a survivor of the first failed advance along the Kall Trail. So he is first promoted to sergeant by his desperate Captain, who are all being pushed by their seniors to push through the strong German defenses. His captain made him a devil's bargain, wipe out the German guns and get the advance going and he'll get a Section 8 relief. So he is given a squad of green replacements and warned not to bug out on them or else. He leads them on a behind the line operation with flamethrowers to destroy the German guns covering the river crossing, and kills one of the replacements when he balks at charging with his flamethrower. After that, everyone is cracking up from the flawed battle. Meanwhile, both his captain and his lieutenant are relieved and he is now the platoon lieutenant. Another sergeant, Talbot, is on to him as well as the medic.

    So you see it is a complicated plot of many anti or reluctant heroes, mainly trying not to get killed in a war they heard will be over by Christman anyways. In this way, it is more cynical than Hamburger Hill, where a similar squad was trying to stay alive during an assault against a fortified enemy hill. The acting is good, Ron Eldard has presence and that gaunt hunted, loner look. Basically, all the men are being driven by unseen superiors, in some remorseless machine of death. It is in the family of war pics like "Men in War", "Hell is for Heroes", "Platoon" and other flicks that show ordinary soldiers who have to face a near invisible lethal enemy as well as their fellow troops. It was shot in Hungary, Eastern Europe seems to be the ideal location for WW ll flicks; with it's retro look, cheap extras, and tons of surplus military gear. "Bridge at Remagen", the 70's remake of "All's Quiet on the Western Front", "Enemy at the Gates" and "Cross of Iron" all made use of Eastern European settings to their credit.
    helpful•7
    2
    • Jakealope
    • Oct 22, 2006

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 27, 1998 (United States)
      • United States
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Budapest, Hungary
    • Production companies
      • HBO NYC Productions
      • Citadel Entertainment
      • Hofflund/Polone
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 35 minutes
      • Color
      • Black and White
      • Stereo

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