Synopsis
Includes:
Band of Brothers: Bastogne (2001)
Band of Brothers: Currahee (2001)
Band of Brothers: Crossroads (2001)
Band of Brothers: Carentan (2001)
Band of Brothers: The Breaking Point (2001)
Band of Brothers: Replacements (2001)
Band of Brothers: Day of Days (2001)
Band of Brothers: We Stand Alone Together (2001)
Band of Brothers: Points (2001)
Band of Brothers: The Last Patrol (2001)
Band of Brothers: Why We Fight (2001)
Band of Brothers: Bastogne
The sixth installment of HBO's WWII docudrama miniseries Band of Brothers, "Bastogne," which is shown primarily from the point of view of Easy Company's soft-spoken, dedicated medic, Eugene Roe (Shane Taylor), deals with the company's involvement in the Battle of the Bulge. Due to poor weather and heavy fog, the American forces are unable to drop supplies to the line protecting Bastogne, Belgium. With the company short on medical supplies, food, and warm clothing, Roe has his hands full. In addition to treating the wounded with limited resources, he has to keep everyone aware of the health dangers posed by the extreme weather conditions. He spends much of his time trying to find basic supplies like morphine, and reminding the men to move around and stay dry to avoid trench foot. A squad of soldiers on patrol, looking for Germans, runs into the enemy line, and Babe Heffron (Robin Laing) becomes distraught when a young soldier he was looking after is mortally wounded and has to be left behind as the squad retreats. When Roe leaves the woods where the company is stationed and goes into the town of Bastogne to try to scrounge up supplies, he meets a pretty young Belgian nurse, Renee (Lucie Jeanne), who is doing her best to treat wounded American soldiers in a makeshift triage station. Roe, being half-Cajun, speaks French, and during their brief interaction, the two develop a quiet rapport. But soon he returns to the line, and as the Germans advance and casualties mount, he becomes overwhelmed and seems on the verge of breaking down. Captain Winters (Damian Lewis) notices Roe's shakiness, and sends him back into Bastogne for a hot meal, but when the young medic arrives in the town, he finds that it is being bombarded by the Germans. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Currahee
The historic HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, based on the non-fiction book by Stephen E. Ambrose, and executive produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, begins with "Currahee," named for the Airborne battle cry. The first episode shows the men of Easy Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne, as they undergo their grueling paratrooper training. The drama begins in England, on the eve of the D-Day invasion, as two lieutenants, Richard Winters (Damian Lewis) and Lewis Nixon (Ron Livingston of Office Space) briefly reminisce about the horrible two years they spent training under Capt. Herbert Sobel (David Schwimmer of Friends), their mean-spirited commanding officer at Camp Toccoa in Georgia. The story then flashes back, showing Sobel ordering his men to run extra miles, repeatedly revoking weekend passes, and generally doing everything he can, it seems, to break their spirit. The troops bond together in their hatred of Sobel and tough it out, becoming the elite company of the regiment. Meanwhile, the straight-laced teetotaler Winters proves to be a resourceful and popular leader. When the troops are shipped to England in preparation for their assault on France, and begin combat exercises in the field, Sobel repeatedly freezes up. He panics and puts his men in harm's way. Things come to a head when, just before the planned invasion of Normandy, Sobel accuses Winters of disobeying a direct order, and the men of Easy Company desperately look for a way to stop Sobel from leading them into battle. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Crossroads
Part Five of HBO's groundbreaking WWII docudrama miniseries, Band of Brothers, was directed by executive producer Tom Hanks. In this episode, "Crossroads," Colonel Sink (series technical advisor Dale Dye) promotes Captain Winters (Damian Lewis) to Battalion Executive Officer. While Easy Company, under the command of Lieutenant "Moose" Heyliger (Stephen McCole of Rushmore), rescues a large group of British soldiers who are in hiding after getting trapped behind enemy lines during Operation Market Garden, Winters sits behind a desk, typing out a report of the company's previous encounter with the Germans. Winters, at the insistence of his friend, intelligence officer Lieutenant Nixon (Ron Livingston), takes leave and travels to Paris, but he's too distracted by his memories of combat -- in particular his shooting of one young German soldier -- to enjoy his trip. Upon his return to battalion headquarters, he has a brief encounter with the injured Sergeant "Buck" Compton (Neal McDonough), who also seems haunted by his battle experience. Then, Winters joins the company as they race to the front, where they meet other Allied forces, retreating from a vicious German counterattack in the Ardennes Forest. Here, Easy Company, ill-equipped to deal with the cold weather and short on rations and ammo, is charged with helping defend the strategic crossroads of Bastogne from German attack. Viewers may spot Jimmy Fallon of Saturday Night Live, who makes a brief appearance as a lieutenant dropping off some ammo for the company. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Carentan
The third installment of HBO's acclaimed fact-based WWII miniseries, Band of Brothers, is entitled "Carentan," and details Easy Company's involvement with wresting control of the eponymous French town from the Germans. The town is critical strategically, because it is where the forces from Utah Beach and Omaha Beach will link up before moving further inland. The gritty, gore-splattered episode was directed by Mikael Salomon (Hard Rain) and written by E. Max Frye (Something Wild). It begins as a few soldiers from Easy, still lost after the chaotic night jump into Normandy, come across Private Albert Blithe (Marc Warren), standing alone in a field, staring into space. As the soldiers start discussing the skirmishes they've been in, and displaying the grim souvenirs they've obtained, Blithe is nervously evasive. He later hears some soldiers discussing rumors about Lieutenant Speirs (Matthew Settle), who has joined Easy Company. Some have heard that he cold-bloodedly murdered some German POWs (an incident shown in the previous episode). There is also a rumor that Speirs shot one of his own men for drinking. When the troops reach Carentan, they find the Germans waiting. There is a bloody fight for the town, and Blithe panics and collapses. The Germans, outnumbered, begin to retreat. Blithe is examined by a medic, who finds nothing wrong with him, despite his claim that he can't see. Lieutenant Winters (Damian Lewis) has a few compassionate words with him, and Blithe recovers. Winters knows the Germans will try to retake the town, so Easy Company waits in the trenches, to attack the similarly entrenched Germans at first light. That night, one soldier mistakenly bayonets another from the company, and the panicky Blithe, perhaps unwisely, tells Speirs of his inability to fight. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: The Breaking Point
The seventh installment of HBO's fact-based WWII miniseries Band of Brothers depicts Easy Company pushing back the Germans after General Patton opened up Bastogne. The company suffers heavy casualties in their efforts to take the German-occupied town of Foy, Belgium. This episode, the most graphically violent of the series so far, is narrated by Carwood Lipton (Donnie Wahlberg), the company's tough and resourceful first sergeant. Lipton is distressed, not only by the carnage he's seen, but by the incompetence of Easy's new CO, Lieutenant Dike (Peter O'Meara), who always seems to disappear at the crucial moment. Heavy shelling in the woods outside Foy takes its toll, and Lieutenant Compton (Neal McDonough) reaches "the breaking point" when he sees two of his men, exceptional soldiers, lying together in a heap, seriously wounded. Just after the company gets hit, taking heavy casualties, Dike disappears again. But Lipton, determined to keep morale up, continues to defend Dike to his men. After overhearing company mimic George Luz (Rick Gomez) joking with some other men, Lipton tells him "First, great impression of Dike," then adds, "second, don't do it anymore." But on the eve of their assault on Foy, Lipton is so concerned about Dike's incompetence that he speaks privately to Captain Winters (Damian Lewis). Winters has his own reservations about Dike, but with the company short of qualified officers, he can't find a way to replace him. During the hazardous assault, Winters watches helplessly from the woods above the town as Dike freezes up and the casualties mount. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Replacements
"Replacements," the fourth installment of HBO's docudrama miniseries, Band of Brothers, focuses on the new members of Easy Company who arrive as the unit becomes involved in the ill-fated Operation Market Garden. Some of the old-timers who jumped into Normandy with Easy are more accepting than others. Lieutenant Buck Compton (Neal McDonough) and company impressionist George Luz (Rick Gomez) are friendly enough, but hustle one of the recruits for his cigarettes in a dart game. Roy Cobb (Craig Heaney) loudly objects to one of the new guys wearing a company-wide presidential citation on his uniform, because it was given for the company's involvement in the Normandy invasion, and the replacements weren't there. Cobb, however, was hit in the plane and did not make the jump into Normandy himself. Sergeant Denver "Bull" Randleman (Michael Cudlitz) earns the respect of the new privates under his command with his quiet proficiency. The company parachutes into Holland in a massive drop. Their mission is to liberate some Dutch towns so British tank units can pass through into Germany. They expect little German firepower at first, but get less than that in the town of Eindhoven. Instead, a joyous crowd greets them, including women who throw themselves at the soldiers, and members of the Dutch resistance. "They all speak English; they all love us," notes Private Webster (Eion Bailey), one of the replacements, "What a fantastic country." But the next day, in a nearby town, they meet an unexpectedly strong force of German tank and infantry units, and after taking several casualties, they're forced to retreat. Sergeant Randleman is lost in the chaos and has to spend a harrowing night on his own, hiding from the Germans, while a few soldiers who fight under him contemplate a perilous rescue mission. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Day of Days
Richard Loncraine (Richard III) directed the second installment of HBO's acclaimed Band of Brothers mini-series, "Day of Days." The action begins just before D-Day, and finds the men of Easy Company on a harrowing night-jump over Normandy. Their first mission is to take out German artillery so the invasion force can land on the beach the next day. As the C-47 planes are bombarded from the ground, the paratroopers of Easy Company anxiously await the order to jump. After their plane's co-pilot is hit, the pilot quickly gives Lieutenant Winters (Damian Lewis) and his men the green light to jump, but they (and the rest of the surviving paratroopers) are far from their drop zone. Winters lands in the woods, and is quickly joined by John Hall (Andrew Scott), a baby-faced private from Able Company. As they look for more men from their respective units, Winters, despite the fact that he lost his rifle in the jump, is able to keep the nervous young soldier calm. "We're not lost, private," he reassures him, "we're in Normandy." Soon they meet up with some other men, including Guarnere (Frank John Hughes), who is angry over the recent news of his brother's death in Italy, and Malarkey (Scott Grimes), who's obsessed with finding a souvenir Luger for his kid brother back in Oregon. The makeshift platoon, under Winters' direction, successfully ambushes a German supply cart. Eventually, they reach their rendezvous point, where the scattershot remains of several airborne companies have gathered. Here, Malarkey finds a surprising connection with a captured German. Meanwhile, with their commanding officer unaccounted for, Winters takes command of Easy Company, and leads a small team of men on a daring assault of a cluster of German artillery units. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: We Stand Alone Together
Director/producer Mark Cowen and writer/producer Will Richter were thinking of making a WWII documentary when they heard that HBO was producing a miniseries based on Stephen Ambrose's book, Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne From Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest. The Easy Company paratroopers were an elite unit, and one of the most honored units in military history, but, fighting on the European front for nearly two years, they suffered a 150 percent casualty rate during the war. Cowen proposed tracking down and interviewing the surviving members of Easy Company for a companion piece. Cowen interviewed 44 veterans, compiling nearly 200 hours of footage. Bits of these interviews were used to introduce segments of the miniseries, and edited, along with rare archival footage of paratroopers, into this documentary, Band of Brothers: We Stand Alone Together. The men calmly describe their harrowing experiences and the bonds they formed in combat. Their courageous commanding officer, Richard Winters downplays his own heroism, lamenting that maybe if he'd done a better job, there might have been a few more men going home. Cowen also took two of the men, William Guarnere and Edward "Babe" Heffron, to the woods of Bastogne, where Easy Company held the line in the Battle of the Bulge, and where Guarnere lost his leg during heavy shelling by the Germans. Guarnere remembers his friend, Joe Toye, losing his leg at the same time, and shouting, "Jesus Christ! What do I have to do to die?!" Cowen also filmed reunions of the company, and interviews with relatives of some of the men, like Toye, who are no longer around to tell their own stories. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Points
In the tenth and final episode of HBO's critically acclaimed WWII miniseries Band of Brothers, Easy Company enters the Bavarian town of Berchtesgaden, once home to Hitler's top officers. They find the town deserted and rush on to capture Hitler's famed "Eagle's Nest" before the French can get there. Here they learn of the German army's surrender. Amid the celebrations, Winters (Damian Lewis) brings his alcoholic friend Nixon (Ron Livingston) to Herman Goring's house, where he presents a "gift" of Goring's impressive liquor collection. The company moves on to Austria, where they learn that those without enough "points," awarded for combat experience, will be sent to fight in the Pacific. Despite all that they've been through, few of the men are eligible to go home. Winters and Nixon request an immediate transfer to a unit that is going to the Pacific, but they are denied. "I think your men have earned the right to keep you around," the commander tells Winters. Winters continues to work to keep the men of his company out of harm's way. Meanwhile, the troops are restless. Liebgott (Ross McCall) takes Webster (Eion Bailey) to the home of a man he believes was a labor camp commandant. Despite Webster's concern about Liebgott's lack of proof, when the man tries to escape, he is killed. As the occupation of Zell Am See, Austria continues, one member of the company is killed in a car accident and another is shot in the head by a drunken soldier from another company. As Winters explains in his narration, "They didn't have the points. What they did have were weapons, alcohol, and too much time on their hands." But the series ends with the happy news that the Japanese have surrendered, and the surviving men of Easy Company can return home. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: The Last Patrol
The eighth episode of HBO's Band of Brothers is seen from the point of view of David Webster (Eion Bailey, who played Jann Wenner in Almost Famous). Webster returns to Easy Company after a relatively minor injury kept him inactive for four months. Although Webster fought at Normandy, and with Easy during Operation Market Garden, he missed the ordeal the others faced at Bastogne, and on his return, he quickly realizes that it's not the same company. Many were killed or wounded at Bastogne, and those that remain resent him for not being there. Liebgott (Ross McCall) is particularly hostile, and complains that while others who were injured found a way to get back to the front, Webster took his time recovering. The company is also joined by Lieutenant Jones (Colin Hanks, executive producer Tom Hanks' son), fresh out of West Point. The war appears to be drawing to a close. The company is still on the front line, in the French town of Haguenau, and the Germans are stationed across a small river. Both sides are encamped in relative comfort, and neither side seems eager to engage the other. On the orders of the regiment's commander, Winters (Damian Lewis) picks 15 men for a dangerous night patrol across the river to capture German prisoners for interrogation. The exhausted Malarkey (Scott Grimes) is picked to lead the patrol. Webster assesses the situation and convinces the gung-ho Jones to volunteer to take Malarkey's place, and also offers to replace Liebgott as the mission translator. Winters picks Martin (Dexter Fletcher) to replace Malarkey, and allows Jones to go along as an observer. The raid is considered successful, despite the loss of a man, and Winters is ordered to send his men out on another patrol the following night. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
Band of Brothers: Why We Fight
The men of Easy Company come face to face with the horrors of the Holocaust in "Why We Fight," the ninth installment of the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers. The episode opens with the company in Germany, where they find no enemy resistance. In fact, they find warm beds and hot meals in the houses they commandeer. Many of the men go about looting the German homes and farms for food and valuables. Spiers (Matthew Settle) is particularly industrious, sending several shipments home. At least one soldier is lucky enough to bed down with a willing fraulein. A new replacement, O'Keefe (Matt Hickey) arrives, and gets a typically cool reception from the veterans. Major Winters (Damian Lewis) is keeping a close eye on his friend, Nixon (Ron Livingston), who was recently involved in a jump in which nearly all the troops were killed. To make matters worse, Nixon gets the news that his wife is divorcing him. He starts devoting all of his energy to tracking down bottles of his favorite booze. It's clear to these men that the war is almost over, and they begin discussing their plans. Liebgott (Ross McCall) talks about going back to the cab company and finding "a nice Jewish girl," while Webster (Eion Bailey) plans to finish school at Harvard. The men have grown increasingly cynical about what they've accomplished in Europe. Then they make a gruesome discovery -- a small concentration camp in the woods of Landsberg. Several of these combat-hardened veterans break down when they see the condition of the prisoners. Winters and his men are shocked to learn that the men who have been starved and murdered at the camp are not criminals, but Jews, Poles, and Gypsies. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi
