the audience applauded

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Lots of war movies follow a familiar pattern: there are lots of standard characters (southern guy with a harmonica, timid replacement soldier, grizzled sergeant, bookish guy with glasses, old veteran who's being discharged but has to fight one more battle, coward who does something heroic, small town Midwestern kid, Italian guy from New York, love interest who dies, etc.), the war is a noble cause, and the U.S. Army or Marines win in the end despite all adversity. "Battleground" hits all the standard clichés, yet it's irresistible because it's based on actual events and it has a wonderful cast.Simply put, this is the story of the Battle of the Bulge in 1944, told by one small group of soldiers who must resist the enemy at all costs. The weather is horribly cold and foggy, the men are running short of supplies, and the pressure on them is relentless. The film has a lot of standard characters but is so well done that you'll forget that you've seen it all before. Among the cast are stalwarts such as James Arness, Richardo Montalban, Van Johnson, John Hodiak, Marshall Thompson, James Whitmore, Richard Jaeckel, Don Taylor, and many others. Leon Ames is particularly effective as a wise and experienced Army chaplain. The film effectively captures the misery that these men endured those many years ago, and it's very entertaining as well. Try to catch it and honor the few remaining surviving heroes of those long-ago days at Bastogne.

"Battleground" is a film that would not and could not have been made just five years before. During WWII, films were used to motivate and inspire viewers, especially those at home who were constantly prodded to back the war effort.In this film most of the story takes place in snowy, foggy woodlands. The mood is claustrophobic and depressing. No doubt this accurately portrays the actual conditions under which the 101st Airborne operated around Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. Much of the dialogue consists of black humor.The soldiers had to contend with deprivations and hardship. With the enemy obscured by the weather conditions, and the battle lines constantly changing, they were plagued by shortages in rations, ammunition, and fuel. The actors' portrayals in "Battleground" include the usual caricatures--the hardened sergeant, the relatively new lieutenant, the farmboy and the city smart alecks.The action moves at a slow pace as the men slog through the snow and suffer from the cold. But the story is solid until a sermonizing speech given, appropriately, by a Lutheran chaplain. It deals more with the propaganda of war and future defense spending than with spiritual matters. Then the story gets back on track and we follow the weary sadsacks to the end of their campaign.

But lads , seriously , the best war movie made ? Lets have a think . When did the war end ? 1945 when was the film made ? 1949 , 4 YEARS AFTER ! which as good as makes it a propaganda film . Its difficult for almost anyone to be subjective , we all carry our own Little prejudices which are often hard to shift but having reached an age that makes me an old f*+t I can say with heart on hand I am being subjective so here goes . I watched the film eons ago and was fortunate to have then had the acquaintance of several veterans including a number who saw action in the battle . Does the film have merits ? absolutely , I mean don't get me wrong , it was gritty and captured to a large extent the feel of the combat . I enjoyed it , still own it and will not be consigning it to a car boot .But lets face it , we're 68 years on and for reasons unknown this conflict is the only 1 still subject to heavy censorship and slanted with propaganda . So does anyone really believe that a mere 4 years after the war Hollywood decided to produce an unbiased portrayal ? The shame is they nearly did here , the platoon members were believable in their fatalistic attitudes and low expectations . A desire to just get through , survive and go home . All of which is then negated by the pious , crusading clap trap injected in the end half . As my late Brit tank crew friend said to me at the time of our discussing the film after watching it said , if some padre , vicar come sky pilot would of come up front and give us a moralizing lecture akin to the one in the film did , we'd of asked him what the F he knew about it and kicked him up the ar*e . Whilst another , my much missed ex 106th battalion mentor , one of the few American vets who stayed on in England said to me , to be honest at that time most of us did'nt even care who won as long as it ended . Sorry if this ruffles feathers but they were there , they were real and not actors so I know who I believe .

During the Battle of the Bulge, an American squadron is trapped in a small French town, fighting not only the Nazis but also the elements of a brutal winter. The focus is more on characters than on action, and it is interesting to watch the interactions among the colorful characters played by a large cast of familiar faces. While the battlefield scenes are mostly effective, the film runs out of steam about two-thirds of the way through and bogs down in the latter stages. While the acting is good by the ensemble, particularly effective are Montalban, Thompson, Whitmore, and Hodiak, an actor who died too young. Playing a wise guy, Johnson provides most of the comic relief.