A Midnight Clear (1992)

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

I didn't know how to take this film, when I first saw it. But it has made me think, all these years.Strange things do happen during war ... and before war: Janice. And "local armistices" sometimes do occur, at great mutual risk.Gary Sinise has just been nominated to receive West Point's Sylvanus Thayer Award for 2015, in recognition of his support of American servicepeople, with performances of his Lt. Dan Band - the name from his character in Forrest Gump - among many other things. His portrayal of Mother in Midnight Clear is as compassionate, moving, and thought-provoking as any in cinema.The action seems are sufficiently realistic, as is the portrayal of the GI perspective - writing now as a Jan67-Jan69 GI/veteran (thankfully of West Germany not Viet Nam).It is superior to Saving Private Ryan, let alone Fury.Everyone should see this film and think about it.

This was not a film a WWII vet would enjoy. Trust me.When my 73-year-old father-in-law came to visit, my wife decided to fill an afternoon with a video he might like, a war movie. Being Christmastime, she chose this particular war movie for her elderly father.One would assume such a man might be uncomfortable watching a war movie featuring disdain for the Army, snowball fights with the Germans, random religious symbolism, a homo-necro-erotic moment, collusion with the enemy, and a deeply felt anti-war message. Though I think this is one of the finest anti-war movies (with a Christmas theme) ever made, I did point out to my wife that we do have a copy of "12 O'Clock High" she could have shown her dad instead. (He was grumpy for the next two days after watching this.)Beautiful direction and camera work, with Utah subbing for the German-French frontier in wintertime. (You will feel colder watching this movie.) A thoughtful film with tension, grace, action, emerging stars and a fascinating story, "A Midnight Clear" isn't a family film, by any means. There are too many "F"-bombs for kids, and too little John Wayne, respect, and gung-ho attitude (but enough blood) for the Greatest Generation.Like "M*A*S*H" in its darker moments? Then you're going to like "A Midnight Clear".

The reason this film is not as good as "Private Ryan" is that Ryan shows the horror of war, but also makes clear that it sometimes must be fought to prevent greater evils.Films like "Midnight Clear" are instead heavy-handed morality plays that ignore the greater moral need to fight evil when it appears.Does war suck? Yes. It would be nice if people didn't make it necessary. But as long as they do, war will be necessary to avoid oppression and injustice, larger wars, and genocide. It was, of course, anti-war sentiment that allowed Hitler and his Japanese allies to become as large and destructive as they did. I recall not being particularly sympathetic to this movie throughout because it seemed to ignore the above facts, and created unnecessarily (non-credible) tragic situations. Ethan Hawke is also an incredibly annoying actor.

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.