George Clooney directed this film based on a book written recently describing the activities of a little known US Army unit in WW II tasked with finding and collecting art treasures stolen by the Nazis during their occupation of Western Europe in 1941-1945. The cast included Matt Damon, Hugh Bonneville, Kate Blanchett, Mr. Clooney, Bill Murray, and the big fat guy-John Goodman.
The characters were chosen for their expertise in the art field as curators, artists, academics, and historians. They landed at Normandy a month or so after the initial assault. The Nazis were being pushed back, but not before loading their trucks with priceless art. Our special task group, of about 8 men, were hot on the trail. The movie follows their search that often ends up in out of the way places: salt mines, copper mines, tin mines, where the Nazis hid the loot, destined for Hitler's grand museum that was to be built in Austria, near his home town.
While a good story, the film stumbles along, trying with some success to build intrigue and good visuals amidst the chaos that was WW II in the final months. Historians would be better served to read several excellent books on the subject. The film was entertaining, but not too convincing a drama.
Rating *** of 5.
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