Bloody, bloody, bloody.  And bloody good.  See what I did there?  FINE.  But if you can stomach the copious amounts of gruesome battle FX (apparently director Gibson loves slinging blood onscreen.  See: The Passion of the Christ) you’ll find an incredible story of heroism.

Garfield deserves his Oscar nom here, and many other actors do similarly outstanding work.  As Sgt. Howell, Vince Vaughn found the roll he was born to play.  And it’s always a good thing when Hugo Waving and Rachel Griffiths (as Hal’s parents Tom and Bertha Doss) hit the screen.

Kudos to director of photography Simon Duggan for giving this film just the right look and feel, from the sweet 1940s love story at the beginning to the grueling, smoke-filled battlegrounds of the Ridge. Don’t get up when the story ends; there’s lots of real-life footage and interview clips with some of the soldiers.You’ll want to stick around for that.