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United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), English ( Dolby Surround ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Behind the scenes, Cast/Crew Interview(s), Interactive Menu, Scene Access, Trailer(s), SYNOPSIS: 5 Days of War is an action-packed international thriller from acclaimed director Renny Harlin. Based on true events, this intense film is a vivid account of a renegade American journalist, his cameraman and a local woman caught behind enemy lines, and determined to not only survive, but tell the world what was happening, during the swift but devastating 5-day war between Russian and the Georgian Republic in 2008. ...5 Days of War ( Five Days of War ) ( Red August )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
That is the initial message of this new film from Renny Harlan - famous for directing `Die Hard 2'. That would have normally put me off but I thought the subject looked worth a watch. This tells of the story of two journalists who worked together in Iraq where they were rescued from an insurgent fire fight by some Georgian UN Peace Keepers. They formed a bond with the captain.
So when war was about to break out in the newly non Soviet state of Georgia, they went in to tell the story. This is based on actual events, and in that I take it they mean the actual five days war that took place when Russian forces invaded Georgia after allegedley trumped up allegations of Georgian aggression against South Ossetia. The tale of the journos is a bit too contrived to be totally believable.
I do not want to give any plot spoilers but there are a few holes, that are mainly used to keep the tension well ramped up. The action scenes are frequent and bloody. There is the depiction of wanton murder, brutality, theft and rape. The action is where this film scores, it is done very realistically, with the help of some CGI for the big ticket items, no-one wants to blow up an entire village, for example.
The journalists get mixed up with the locals and realise that sometimes merely observing is not an option. This then is a rollicking actioner. It stars Rupert Friend (`The Young Victoria') and Richard Coyle who you might remember from `Prince of Persia'. There is also a part for Andy Garcia and even Val Kilmer puts in an appearance as another journalist. The language is all English with some Russian and everything is translated on screen by the players so no nasty sub titles.
This is a bit Hollywooded up, but I found it fairly good, it gives you what you expect, but a tad too many coincidences. If you take a step back and see this as an action movie, that is trying to highlight what happened during that short vicious war; then you will enjoy the journey. It should be lauded for what it is trying to do, it will no doubt be criticised for being anti Russian - that is for the individual to decide. It has a 15 rating and a run time of 109 minutes so for an evenings not so light entertainment, plot holes aside, this is a fairly promising choice. If journalists at war is your sort of thing you may also like the much more realistic and `true' account of the Australians in East Timor, in the film `Balibo' Balibo [DVD]- highly recommended.
So when war was about to break out in the newly non Soviet state of Georgia, they went in to tell the story. This is based on actual events, and in that I take it they mean the actual five days war that took place when Russian forces invaded Georgia after allegedley trumped up allegations of Georgian aggression against South Ossetia. The tale of the journos is a bit too contrived to be totally believable.
I do not want to give any plot spoilers but there are a few holes, that are mainly used to keep the tension well ramped up. The action scenes are frequent and bloody. There is the depiction of wanton murder, brutality, theft and rape. The action is where this film scores, it is done very realistically, with the help of some CGI for the big ticket items, no-one wants to blow up an entire village, for example.
The journalists get mixed up with the locals and realise that sometimes merely observing is not an option. This then is a rollicking actioner. It stars Rupert Friend (`The Young Victoria') and Richard Coyle who you might remember from `Prince of Persia'. There is also a part for Andy Garcia and even Val Kilmer puts in an appearance as another journalist. The language is all English with some Russian and everything is translated on screen by the players so no nasty sub titles.
This is a bit Hollywooded up, but I found it fairly good, it gives you what you expect, but a tad too many coincidences. If you take a step back and see this as an action movie, that is trying to highlight what happened during that short vicious war; then you will enjoy the journey. It should be lauded for what it is trying to do, it will no doubt be criticised for being anti Russian - that is for the individual to decide. It has a 15 rating and a run time of 109 minutes so for an evenings not so light entertainment, plot holes aside, this is a fairly promising choice. If journalists at war is your sort of thing you may also like the much more realistic and `true' account of the Australians in East Timor, in the film `Balibo' Balibo [DVD]- highly recommended.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
5 Days of War (or even August as it's known outside of the UK & US) is the dramatised story of the 2008 Russo-Georgian war told from the perspective of two veteran war correspondents; Thomas Anders (Rupert Friend - The Kid) & his faithful cameraman Sebastian Ganz (Richard Coyle - Prince of Persia). Whilst they are old-hands at reporting conflict having covered the Iraq War, this one turns out to have no rules whatsoever; when they become privy to an act of genocide by the Russian army, the Russians want nothing more than to suppress the truth about this 'invasion' and stop them getting their report out. Will they manage to make their broadcast? At what cost?
This is a fairly weighty film and it should be as it is dramatising an actual conflict. The characters are well played and Andy Garcia deserves a special mention as the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili (despite a rather dubious accent at several points) he plays the part with verve & emotion, really invoking compassion for the Georgian situation as they are effectively invaded whilst the rest of the world buries their heads in the sand.
The cinematography is incredible, as Sukhoi's bomb villages and Hind's strafe the towns; there is so much military hardware in 5 Days Of War it often feels disturbingly authentic, with hundreds of infantrymen, tanks, helicopters and planes advancing on the main characters it really invokes a sense of fear & tension - absolutely fantastic in places. Where 5 Days Of War falls down was attempting to mash a love story into the carnage of the war; Anders falls for a local woman (Emmanuelle Chirqui - who surprise, surprise, studied in the US and resultantly speaks perfect English with a rather suspect Georgian accent) and then makes a series of stupid decisions regarding her welfare, even though he met her all of 3 minutes ago.
Extra Content: There is a series of interviews with the Cast & Crew, filming on location in Tbilisi, Georgia and also a B-Roll of additional footage that didn't make the final theatrical cut.
All in all, a great film that details the horrors & injustice of war whilst really makes you feel for the characters. Recommended for a serious, but completely enthralling saga.
This is a fairly weighty film and it should be as it is dramatising an actual conflict. The characters are well played and Andy Garcia deserves a special mention as the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili (despite a rather dubious accent at several points) he plays the part with verve & emotion, really invoking compassion for the Georgian situation as they are effectively invaded whilst the rest of the world buries their heads in the sand.
The cinematography is incredible, as Sukhoi's bomb villages and Hind's strafe the towns; there is so much military hardware in 5 Days Of War it often feels disturbingly authentic, with hundreds of infantrymen, tanks, helicopters and planes advancing on the main characters it really invokes a sense of fear & tension - absolutely fantastic in places. Where 5 Days Of War falls down was attempting to mash a love story into the carnage of the war; Anders falls for a local woman (Emmanuelle Chirqui - who surprise, surprise, studied in the US and resultantly speaks perfect English with a rather suspect Georgian accent) and then makes a series of stupid decisions regarding her welfare, even though he met her all of 3 minutes ago.
Extra Content: There is a series of interviews with the Cast & Crew, filming on location in Tbilisi, Georgia and also a B-Roll of additional footage that didn't make the final theatrical cut.
All in all, a great film that details the horrors & injustice of war whilst really makes you feel for the characters. Recommended for a serious, but completely enthralling saga.
5 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I've been looking forward to seeing this since I heard about it on IMDB. Originally titled 'Georgia', this war-thru-the-eyes-of-journalists drama shares the same DNA as 'Salvador' and 'The Killing Fields'. There are some very good things about this film, 1) It is beautifully shot on location in Georgia, completely belieing it's meagre $20 million budget (it looks ten times this). 2) The battle and action scenes are incredibly well done, Renny Harlin is a master at action and it is really great to see him back in this genre. 3) There are some really effective sections, in particular a so-tense-you'll faint sequence where the heroes and some refugees hide in an orchard, an interrogation scene, and a harrowing missile attack on a wedding party. Unfortunately what lets this film down is a poor script, some horribly hackeneyed dialogue "Your one crazy mother f***er" says Richard Coyle's character, made all the more cringeworthy because he's English, and a softening of the edges (I think to make it more sellable back in the US where I believe it's getting a theatrical release).
I think this film will put Renny Harlin back on the map, his career has suffered in the last ten years, reduced to reshooting an Exorcist prequel and the godawful 'Driven' for example. But I think there was probably a much harder, rawer film that he originally intended to make, and ended up softening and commercialising the final version. Not that this is a bad thing, but as with his big hits 'Die Hard 2' and 'Cliffhanger' you can spot the 'studio exec / committee notes' bits a mile away.
I think this film will put Renny Harlin back on the map, his career has suffered in the last ten years, reduced to reshooting an Exorcist prequel and the godawful 'Driven' for example. But I think there was probably a much harder, rawer film that he originally intended to make, and ended up softening and commercialising the final version. Not that this is a bad thing, but as with his big hits 'Die Hard 2' and 'Cliffhanger' you can spot the 'studio exec / committee notes' bits a mile away.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
A fast-moving story of war based on SOME fact?
The 2008 war between Georgia,(I suppose it's best to refer to it as an Independent Country near Russia)and Russia itself began over no-one really knows what? Read more
Published 4 months ago by Patrick H. Williams
A little Gem
I really enjoyed this movie; it is based on factual events and offers up information on the conflict that the few television news (and print media) failed to air. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Andrew Masters
Meretricious, mendacious war-porn
This is a thoroughly bad film, for a number of reasons.
First and most important is its dishonesty, which would make Ananias blench with embarrassment. Read more
First and most important is its dishonesty, which would make Ananias blench with embarrassment. Read more
Published 8 months ago by J. D. Salt
five days of war
product was ok after i found a player that would play region 5 videos...i did not know this before i made the purchase...would be nice if this was made known before hand.. Read more
Published 8 months ago by marcus a sudberry jr.
Poor
If your a Val Kilmer fan then you will be disappointed his role is really just a cameo appearance and is not in it much. Read more
Published 9 months ago by C. J. P
Does art immitate life? Probably not...
Well, when I say "art" I mean "a movie 'based on' actual events." One has to wonder just how much licence the director and writer take with the "facts" to spice up their narrative... Read more
Published 9 months ago by T
Never mind the politics...
Whatever the politics and/or truth of historical background, the film's failure is its lame direction, at times poor editing, and a very, very bad script that also tries to bridge... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Celtic Cymro
An extraordinary and harsh movie that sticks in the memory
This is a complex film to review, because there are a few factors involve that bias the creative influences and the critics' reception, so for those who just want to know if it's... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Benminx
Beware of unreflected interpretrations.
Should a moviemaker producing a "true story" play God with the facts ?
Obviously not an issue for Renny Harlem, ignorance does not fear posterity. Read more
Obviously not an issue for Renny Harlem, ignorance does not fear posterity. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Ernst Wiltmann
Must watch movie of you want to understand Georgia-Russia...
Usually movies about war are just collections of special effects, cool weapons and fights. This movie has it all, but great thing about this movie that it very precisely conveys... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Mikhael P
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