War is hell. But we knew that, didn't we? This well made chronology of hellish experiences in WWII doesn't make for a really good movie or a moving morality play. Shocking as the events may seem on the screen, the film fails to connect the death and destruction with a broader cause that the British were fighting for against Hitler. Despite the uplifting ending, the movie never makes a case for why the losses were worthwhile. Absent the same,the movie gets only a qualified favorable review. Worth seeing, but not best picture material by any means.