The Monuments Men (2014)

Genre

Comedy | Drama | War

Director

George Clooney

Country

USA | Germany

Cast

George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh Bonneville, Cate Blanchett, Sam Hazeldine, Dimitri Leonidas, Grant Heslov, Miles Jupp, Justus von Dohnányi, Nick Clooney

Storyline

During World War II, the American Professor Frank Stokes (George Clooney) recruits 6 men who are each art experts and they are tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return them to their owners.

Opinion

If you want to see George Clooney play George Clooney, Matt Damon play Matt Damon, Bill Murray play Bill Murray, John Goodman play John Goodman, and Jean Dujardin play the clichéd French man, this film is for you. Otherwise stay away from it, it is just a huge disappointment.

"The Monuments Men" had the potential to be a great picture, one of those films that entertain the audience, yet transmit some values, and provides food for thoughts. Instead, it is just an empty film that doesn't know what to be.

The film is based on a compelling true story - men at war risking their lives not to destroy something or kill somebody, but to save, preserve the best of human creativity for those yet to come, men who did fight to save people's identities -, but it is poorly written and poorly directed. 

At his fifth directorial work, George Clooney wants to impress everyone by making a Spielberg kind of film, making his own "Saving Private Ryan", and shows us what it means to sacrifice the lives of many for the life of one, but does fail to answer to the main question the film presents us with: is it worth to sacrifice a man's life to save art?

"The Monuments Men" alternates between comedy and drama with the same delicacy an elephant can have in a china shop, and with the same simplicity with which friends become strangers. The horror of war is not in the least perceived, and even in the most dramatic moments George Clooney does not renounce to snatch a few laughs. It pays no respect and makes no honour to those men.

Also, George Clooney and his A-list cast are enjoying themselves like they were on vacation, which would have been appropriate if this was another Ocean's movie, but it is completely out of place since this is a war movie. And what is Cate Blanchett even doing here? She is always great, but she really doesn't have much to do here other than speaking with a French accent and looking irritated the whole time.