arthur_tafero Review of The Lost Battalion

The Lost Battalion (2001 TV Movie)

Not Quite as Good as 1917, but Close - The Lost Battalion

[7/10 · 24 May 2021]

For wall to wall violence, one would be hard-pressed to surpass this fairly accurate film about the Argonne Forest campaign in WW 1 (My grandfather was in this battle). I had no idea of the horror he must have gone through. This film clearly shows the brutality and insanity of WW 1 warfare. Schroeder does his best work as an actor making the transition from TV to a major film. The production values are outstanding and the equal to those of 1917 a few decades later. The film shows the grit of the New York/New Jersey soldiers involved in the battle. There were soldiers from other areas of the US as well, but the city boys were highlighted. The constant hour of fighting helps the audience understand the weariness the WW 1 soldiers must have endured, as we become weary ourselves watching the unending violence of this one attack. No wonder gramps had steak every day for the rest of his life which he worked as a train engineer in Bayonne. An excellent WW 1 film.