The Lost Battalion (2001)

Fact-based war drama about an American battalion of over 500 men which gets trapped behind enemy lines in the Argonne Forest in October 1918 France during the closing weeks of World War I.

Director:

Russell Mulcahy

Writer:

James Carabatsos (as Jim Carabatsos)

Stars:

Ricky Schroder, Phil McKee, Jamie Harris

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ricky Schroder	...	Maj. Charles White Whittlesey (as Rick Schroder)
Phil McKee	...	Capt. George McMurtry
Jamie Harris	...	Sgt. Gaedeke
Jay Rodan	...	Lt. Leak
Adam James	...	Capt. Nelson Holderman - Co. K, 307th
Daniel Caltagirone	...	Pvt. Phillip Cepeglia
Michael Goldstrom	...	Pvt. Jacob Rosen
André Vippolis	...	Pvt. Lipasti - Runner
Rhys Miles Thomas	...	Pvt. Bob Yoder - Sharpshooter
Arthur Kremer	...	Pvt. Abraham Krotoshinsky
Adam Kotz	...	Col. Johnson
Justin Scot	...	Pvt. Omer Richards - Carrier Pigeons
Anthony Azizi	...	Pvt. Nat Henchman
George Calil	...	Pvt. Lowell R. Hollingshead
Wolf Kahler	...	Gen. von Sybel

Storyline

In 1918 in World War I, in the Meuse-Argonne Sector in France, the former New York lawyer and Major Charles White Whittlesey is assigned by Gen. Robert Alexander to a massive suicidal attack against the German forces in the Argonne Forest with his five-hundred-man battalion. However, the forces supposed to be giving support through the flanks retreat and the communications with the headquarter of the 77th American Division are cut. Major Wittlesey holds his position with his men, mostly Irish, Polish, Italian and Jewish immigrants from New York, surrounded by the German army. Without food, water, ammunition and medical supplies, only two hundred men survive after five days of siege.

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Plot Keywords:

france | argonne | army | u.s. army | trench warfare | 

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Taglines:

Caught between two lines of fire, the Germans gave them two options: surrender or die. They chose a third.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | War

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Certificate:

TV-14

Did You Know?

Trivia

MAJ Charles Whittlesey (later promoted to LTC) was a pallbearer, along with Alvin York, for the interrment of the first Unknown Soldier in November, 1921. Two weeks later, Whittlesey booked passage on a boat to Havana, and committed suicide the first night out by throwing himself overboard. He was said to be haunted for the rest of his life by the incorrect coordinates resulting in the friendly fire bombardment of his Lost Battalion.

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Goofs

When Private Yoder shoots the German sniper, he cycles his weapon but no spent casing ejects.

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Quotes

Cepheglia: This is a French Cho-Cho.
Rosen: Chauchat.
Cepheglia: It's a piece of garbage, don't worry about it.
Rosen: Leave it to Henchman and Hollingshead.
Cepheglia: Don't worry about mortars, tanks and artillery.
Rosen: We don't have any of that either.
Cepheglia: Basically we're mud crunchers,
Rosen: Gravel agitators.
Cepheglia: Infantry.

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Connections

Featured in Cinemania: I anodos kai i ptosi tou Nazismou (2008)

User Reviews

Not worth the hype.

This movie, for all the hype, is really a let down to those who know what really happened in the Charlevaux Ravine between October 2nd and October 8th, as well as the offensive fought in the Argonne Forest between September 26th and November 11th. Factually the movie repeatedly persists in making very basic mistakes concerning uniforms, dialog, military matters, and a whole host of other points too numerous to mention in this post. The quality of the acting is marginal at best, the continuity falls well short of the mark, and the story line fails to follow what really happened. The researchers obviously didn't do their jobs - otherwise the majority of the mistakes made would never have occured (ie: it wasn't the '308th Battalion', it was basically the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 308th Infantry Regiment, 154th Infantry Brigade, 77th Division, and elements of the 306th Machine Gun Battalion, and Company 'K' of the 307th Infantry - it is also inconceivable that combat soldiers would STAND UP in the middle of an attack and expose themselves to infilading fire) The location chosen for the film does not resemble the Charlevaux Ravine in the least, nor does Rick Schroeder resemble Charles Whittlesey (or act like him for that matter). All in all, except for certain battle scenes, this movie was a pure waste of film. Robert J. Laplander Author of the forthcoming book "Epic in the Argonne: A Comprehensive History of Charles W. Whittlesey and the Lost Battalion"

Details

Official Sites:

AandE.com On TV: characters,interviews,photos [United States]

Country:

USA Luxembourg

Language:

English German

Release Date:

2 December 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Lost Battalion

Filming Locations:

Luxembourg

Company Credits

Production Co:

Centurion, A+E Networks, David Gerber Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1