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A Midnight Clear (1992)
Released By: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment   Rating: R   In Theaters: N/A
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Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Genre: War
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Keith Gordon
Language: English
Official Website: N/A
Theatrical Release: N/A
Home Video Release: N/A
Cast: Arye Gross, Ethan Hawke, Frank Whaley, Kevin Dillon, Peter Berg, Gary Sinise
Published ID: 3709
UPC: 043960923033, 043396137516,
Plot: Based on a novel by William Wharton, A Midnight Clear is set in the Adriennes Forest in December of 1944. A group of American GIs, all of whom have been together a bit too long, cling to the vestiges of their peacetime interests to remain sane. None are brilliant soldiers, though Will Knot Ethan Hawke is the one who exhibits the strongest leadership qualities. Billeted at a chateau, the soldiers begin hearing strange noises emanating from a graveyard, the handiwork of a group of mischievous German soldiers. The two enemy camps draw closer to one another as Christmas approaches, due in great part to the influence of GI Vince Mother Wilkins Gary Sinise. A sudden, impulsive hostile act results in the wholesale -- and unnecessary -- slaughter of the German soldiers. Though the exteriors are convincingly mid-European, the film was actually lensed in Utah. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
IDDateTimeTitleReviewHelpfulVotesTotalVotes
A great film!
Added 10/12/2009

a tremendous film...that should have recieved many more accolades than it did!!!!!..watch this film!!!!!..the acting is first rate as is the cinematography and sets!..the DVD was long over due!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Why is this item so expensive?
Added 12/30/2008

Can anyone please tell me why this b-rated movie is so darn expensive?...I truly love the movie,but not at this exorbitant price....!!!,,,thanks..
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
Intensely emotional and different look at the impact of War
Added 12/13/2007

I watch this film every Christmas Season.Odd choice? Well, if you consider that the Season is about "peace,good will to all" then yes.A MIDNIGHT CLEAR is a look at the two small platoons of beleagured soldiers from America and Germany (who make it quite clear that they are not Nazis, and the F%$# Hitler!) who meet quite unexpectedly in the Ardennes Woods in December 1944 in the final year of WW2.The point of the film is to show that War is not all that some glorify it to be.This is a "different" approach to War, much like the recent LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA where human faces and emotions are placed upon both "the home team" and "the enemy." That both of these platoons discover each other at Christmas and exchange gifts,songs and negotiate a "surrender" removes us from the battlefield and allows us to examine the lives and the feelings of "greenhorns" weary of War.This film does not end on a happy note, but rather on an note of irony;War goes on and lives are still infected and affected.
The book from which this film derives it's source is autobiographical, and much more absorbing than the film, but the film still does an excellent job at recreating the intensity of emotion that is in William Wharton's book.One scene when they are "anointing" their fallen comrade is quite surreal!
A great companion film to this would be JOYEUX NOEL which tells a similar story about friendly troop exchange during WW1 and I believe to be the better of the two films.DAS BOOT is also another WW2 film that helps us see "the other side" as human.Warmongers will doubtlessly not find this film intriguing I should imagine! People of peace will!

0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
Great movie to watch during Christmastime
Added 11/30/2007

I always check to see if this is out on DVD around this time of year. I have read the book twice, so far back I cannot remember the year, then again a couple years ago. I passed it to my daughter who passed it to her friend and so on... to read. Have the movie on VHS but still wish this was available on DVD at a reasonable price. Only caught it on cable many years ago and never saw it aired again. One of the best movies I have seen.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Not Your Typical Band of Ragtag Army Misfits Movie
Added 1/7/2007

As an Army vet, I can say that the characters in this movie are just as crazy and varied as you're likely to find in any military unit. Falling somewhere between the Dirty Dozen and Jacobs Ladder, this sleeper is not for everyone. It's pace is slow. It's full of surreal moments. But such is life in a combat zone -- I saw some very surreal things in Desert Storm. I'll admit the writers took it a little too far a couple times, but most of their risks worked, and these accomplished actors pull it off somehow. Overall the movie stands out as one of the great commentaries on war. If you're not too much of a literalist, I'd highly recommend this movie.
4 out of 4 people found this helpful.
A great film!
Added 10/12/2009

a tremendous film...that should have recieved many more accolades than it did!!!!!..watch this film!!!!!..the acting is first rate as is the cinematography and sets!..the DVD was long over due!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
Why is this item so expensive?
Added 12/30/2008

Can anyone please tell me why this b-rated movie is so darn expensive?...I truly love the movie,but not at this exorbitant price....!!!,,,thanks..
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
Intensely emotional and different look at the impact of War
Added 12/13/2007

I watch this film every Christmas Season.Odd choice? Well, if you consider that the Season is about "peace,good will to all" then yes.A MIDNIGHT CLEAR is a look at the two small platoons of beleagured soldiers from America and Germany (who make it quite clear that they are not Nazis, and the F%$# Hitler!) who meet quite unexpectedly in the Ardennes Woods in December 1944 in the final year of WW2.The point of the film is to show that War is not all that some glorify it to be.This is a "different" approach to War, much like the recent LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA where human faces and emotions are placed upon both "the home team" and "the enemy." That both of these platoons discover each other at Christmas and exchange gifts,songs and negotiate a "surrender" removes us from the battlefield and allows us to examine the lives and the feelings of "greenhorns" weary of War.This film does not end on a happy note, but rather on an note of irony;War goes on and lives are still infected and affected.
The book from which this film derives it's source is autobiographical, and much more absorbing than the film, but the film still does an excellent job at recreating the intensity of emotion that is in William Wharton's book.One scene when they are "anointing" their fallen comrade is quite surreal!
A great companion film to this would be JOYEUX NOEL which tells a similar story about friendly troop exchange during WW1 and I believe to be the better of the two films.DAS BOOT is also another WW2 film that helps us see "the other side" as human.Warmongers will doubtlessly not find this film intriguing I should imagine! People of peace will!

0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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