Memorial Day - Official Website I was out of town or else I would have gone to see this film. It seems interesting and, from what little I've seen, has gotten positive response from those who have seen it: IMDB reviews I've noticed that it is available in DVD and Blueray formats online and at certain retail locations. I would guess this is due to the limited release and small budget. Here's the trailer on YouTube: [video=youtube;ZOeGUQlIBDk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOeGUQlIBDk[/video] And another trailer: [video=youtube;3oNkIQiqp9M]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oNkIQiqp9M[/video]
I take it no one has seen the film. I'll see if I can pick up a copy and will let y'all know what I think of it.
Just watched both 'trailers', I will see this one way or another! Hopefully it will hit the airwaves soon.
I suppose you recognized actor James Cromwell. He's pretty recognizable and has been in many films. They got him for this small budget film because his son, who lives in Minnesota where the film was made, was in it. James plays the grandfather and his son, John, plays the grandfather during WWII. Brilliant bit of casting, I think.
I have an Uncle's footlocker that he shipped home by way of the Pentagon after his stint in Korea. Neat reading the stenciling and still has a tag on it. Inside was a personal radio he carried in his P-47, (he'd listen to whatever radio stations he could pick up), in the SWPA which was passed down to his son, but I was able to see it ! The footlocker is sitting at the foot of the bed he sleeps in when he visits us. Which, Hot Damn, he will be - in 27 days! He will be 92 on July 1st and we're Havin' A Party !
IMDB does have it listed with the year 2011, but everything I have seen indicates it just had it's opening over Memorial Day 2012. I know that at one point the movie had the working title of "Souvenirs", but I can't find anything about it being released under either title in 2011. Maybe that was when they were originally going to release it and it got delayed. Just a guess.
Supposedly, there was an agreement with Walmart to carry the DVDs, but I was at WM earlier and couldn't find it. I will try one other WM and if they don't have it, I will let them know I'll be buying it online. To blazes with them if they can't keep a promise.
I finally got my DVD of Memorial Day in the mail yesterday (Walmart didn't want my money I guess). I grabbed a beverage and put it in the old DVD player. Knowing it was a relatively low budget film (IIRC about $4 million), I wasn't expecting too much other than a good story. I have to say, I was very much impressed with the entire film. There are some very solid performances, most notably the well known actor James Cromwell. If you don't know him by name, you'll know his face. James Cromwell plays Kyle's elderly grandfather. The actor's son, John Cromwell, plays the grandfather when he was a Lieutenant with the 82nd Airborne in Europe. An excellent bit of casting, since the son looks every bit like a younger version of his father. The special effects and stunts, while unlikely to make Spielberg envious, were surprisingly well done. It is a war movie so there is some violence, but it is not overly graphic or overdone. It is simply there to advance the story, which is the reason to see this movie. The film starts out with SSGT Kyle Vogel leaving a hand written letter on the seat of his car. He grabs a handgun and walks off into a wooded area. We are left wondering why. The film then cuts to Iraq a few months earlier. You can read the rest of the synopsis here. To paraphrase the synopsis, the film is about the losses, regrets and moral dilemmas shared by all soldiers of all generations. I'm not much of a movie critic, but I do know what I like. This film does not have a political axe to grind. It is about the soldiers and their families. It's about those who didn't come home and how those who did try to go on. It's about difficult decisions made in impossible situations and living with those decisions. It's serious, funny, intense, sad, heartbreaking, challenging and, ultimately, hopeful. I give it out of 5. Some might think I have rated it too high, but I accounted for the fact that the story far exceeded my expectations, as did the overall film. A small budget film shouldn't be this good.
things you'd do to get a pretext to grab a beverage . Thanks for the review, I might get myself a copy.
My son & I sat down and watched this film last night -- his first viewing and my second. I have to say, I liked it even more the second time. This is a movie that makes you think. I picked up on a lot of things that I completely missed the first time. Not only that, but my son and I had a good discussion about it afterward. As any dad will tell you, that makes it worth the price of the DVD.
I watched this film a few weeks ago and loved it. I hadn't realised James' son was in it or that he had played the part of the grandfather in WW2. I can remember thinking that they'd done well in finding such a 'match'. No wonder!
I watched this film again on Memorial Day after I got home from my trip. As I was watching it, my son showed up and said that it had been broadcast earlier in the day. He sat down and watched it again with me. It was the perfect end to a great weekend of remembrance.
I have netflix and you can get it on the streaming. Or you could when I watched it. They change titles from time to time as to what's available right away. As fate would have it, I watched it on Memorial Day. I thought it would be appropriate. I loved this movie. Yes, it's not high budget and the combat scenes are lacking, well you could say "material'. Meaning the amount of men and what not were maybe a little more sparse. But it didn't detract from the message and was well done with what they had to use. I'm not a huge James Cromwell fan but he played the part well. It was seemingly believable, thoughtful, and heartfelt. The main character I felt was a little, well, subdued in his acting. But that's fine. It is not a huge "shoot em up" as my Dad likes to say, but it's a very good WWII movie. I'm a grandson of a fallen soldier and it's like a fantasy of how things could have been for me. Or a picture of it. I give it both thumbs up for sure.
