Review of the film Monuments Men
Monuments Men
WWII mission to rescue...objects of art!
A result of monumental research and dedication by author Robert Edsel and based on the book written by him, with Bret Witter, Monuments Men comes across as half a thriller but a welcome deviation from the oft-repeated subject of rescue missions across enemy lines, set in the World War II period. Co-writer and director George Clooney eschews the temptation to go all guns blazing in this dramatisation of a true story, and restricts bullets and blasts to a minimum, in spite of playing the central character himself and having Matt Damon for company. The result is a human drama that is, at worse, sketchy in narrative and, at best, an ode to civilisation and culture.
The Monuments Men were a group of approximately 345 men and women from thirteen nations, including museum directors, curators, art historians, artists, architects, and educators, all brought together by US President Franklin Roosevelt. Together, they worked to protect monuments, paintings, sculptures and other cultural treasures from the theft and destruction of World War II. It could have been an impossible mission: with the objects trapped behind enemy lines, and with the retreating German army under orders to destroy everything as the Reich fell. How could these guys (the film restricts itself to a group of seven men), in a race against time, avoid the destruction of 1,000 years of culture?
Edsel is the author of Rescuing Da Vinci; The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History, and Saving Italy: The Race to Rescue a Nation's Treasures from the Nazis. He co-produced the documentary, The Rape of Europa, and is Founder and President of the Monuments Men Foundation for the Preservation of Art. Edsel was formerly a nationally ranked American tennis player. In 1996, he moved to Europe with his family. While in Florence, he developed a great passion for art and architecture. By 2001, that journey had become a full-time job. Edsel has dedicated more than twelve years to painstaking and far-reaching research about the Monuments Men, which first culminated in the publishing of his book Rescuing Da Vinci. Edsel is also the co-producer of the documentary film, The Rape of Europa, based on the award winning book by Lynn Nicholas. Current plans include publication of The Monuments Men in more than 25 languages.
Monuments Men was announced in January 2012 and is seeing worldwide release in February 2014. Largely shot in Berlin, it is written by Clooney and Grant Heslov, who also produced the film. It is their first production since winning the Best Picture Oscar for Argo. Clooney looks suave and performs with due grace. His co-actors include: old-timers Bill Murray (Meatballs, Tootsie, Groundhog Day), John Goodman (The Big Easy, King Ralph, Born Yesterday) and Robert (Bob) Balaban (Catch 22, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Whose Life Is It Anyway), all in their early to late 60s, the much honoured Cate Blanchett (playing an undercover French resistance operative) and the other Monument Men—Hugh Bonneville and Dimitri Leonidas. Though there is only a flash of a back-story about these volunteers, all of them are given almost equally distributed footage, with Clooney playing fair and not dominating proceedings. They do a competent job.
Besides the built-in thrills and suspense, there are touches of comedy too--some that draw chuckles and a few that make you laugh--including one scene featuring Balaban, and another involving a visit to a dentist (Michael Brandner). Damon is made to speak in a smattering of American French that makes even the largely dead-pan Blanchett’s character wince. In the end, he and Blanchett touch a strong, sympathetic chord among viewers. Locales are attractive and the soundtrack is pleasing.
Monuments Men delivers less than it promises, and some scenes are abruptly edited, but the pace tightens in the second half, when the thrills mount, leading-up to a logical denouement.
Rating: ***
