On Saturday night, Doug and I went for a date to the movies. He knew I’d been wanting to see Monuments Men since before it came out, so that’s where he took me.
I LOVED the movie! Wow! I had to concentrate because it did cover quite a bit of ground – a long time period with a large roster of characters. But it was excellent. I did have trouble with Hugh Bonneville from Downton Abbey as a British soldier, but nevertheless, I enjoyed it.
It follows six (I think I’m counting correctly) men who enter the Army charged with the task of preserving art and architecture as the Allies advance across Europe and recovering art that Hitler and the Germans have stolen. They risked their lives – and in some instances gave their lives – to preserve culture and a way of life.
Their work continues today, in a way, as art is still being returned to the families from which it was taken. There was an item in the news recently about a piece of disputed art at the University of Oklahoma. Did the Jewish family who owned it before WWII give it to the people who donated it to the university or was it stolen? That will be an interesting case to follow. Here’s a link to the story.
The writers did a fabulous job of building the tension up to the end of the movie. I found myself holding my breath. At the risk of giving part of the movie away, at one point, something startled me and had my heart racing. I could only imagine that is how the real Monuments Men must have felt. Sharing in their fear made the movie more real to me.
The story of the American soldier – a German Jew who fled to the US in 1938 – who translated for the Monuments Men captivated me. This great summary includes a clip with him.
This movie focused on France and Germany, but the Monuments Men worked in other places, too, such as Italy. My fellow WWII author Cara Putman wrote a terrific novel about their work there. Shadowed by Grace is a great read.
If you’ve seen the movie, what were your thoughts on it? If not, would you like to see it?
Cara Putman says
I enjoyed the movie, too. i’d love to go again, when I’m not so focused on whether they got the history right.
Annie Kate says
Thanks for the review. I’d been hoping to see this sometime, but it’s good to know in advance that it has scary moments.
So excited that Daisies are Forever is coming out! I’m reviewing it with LitFuse and really hope it will be as good as Snow on the Tulips was.
Doreen Hanna says
I absolutely loved the movie. I have recommended it highly to others already. Why? Because it carries such a powerful message. I don’t believe I have complete recollection of the quote that was stated in the movie but it went something like this… “When people lose their history, they lose themselves.” I also appreciated that the producers incorporated “faithfulness to marriage” through one of the characters who could have easily chosen otherwise.
I give this one *****.