Saints and Soldiers

{{Infobox film

| name = Saints and Soldiers

| image = Saints and soldiers.jpg

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Ryan Little

| producer = Adam Abel
Ryan Little

| screenplay = Geoffrey Panos
Matt Whitaker

| story = Geoffrey Panos

| starring = Corbin Allred
Alexander Niver
Kirby Heyborne
Lawrence Bagby
Peter Asle Holden

| studio = Go Films
Medal of Honor Productions LLC

| distributor = Excel Entertainment Group

| music = Jason Bateman
Bart Hendrickson

| cinematography = Ryan Little

| editing = Wynn Hougaard

| released = {{film date|2004|8|6}}

| runtime = 90 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English
German

| budget = $780,000{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=saintsandsoldiers.htm |title=Boxofficemojo.com |publisher=Boxofficemojo.com |date= |access-date=2012-03-21}}

| gross = $1.3 million

}}

Saints and Soldiers is a 2003 war drama film directed by Ryan Little and produced by Little and Adam Abel. It is loosely based on events that took place after the Malmedy massacre during the Battle of the Bulge. The film stars Corbin Allred, Alexander Niver, Lawrence Bagby, and Peter Asle Holden as four American soldiers trying to return a British airman with vital intelligence to the Allied lines.

After researching World War II and the Battle of the Bulge, Little began shooting in January 2003 in Utah. Filming lasted 30 days. Little and Abel were able to save money on production by recruiting a group of World War II reenactors who volunteered their services, costumes, and props. Excel Entertainment released the film at festivals to garner publicity before it was released to the public. The movie won numerous Best Picture awards from over 15 film festivals.

Critical reception was generally positive with praise towards the message, story, performances (particularly of Allred and Niver), production values, and action sequences. Though the screenplay, pacing, and ties to Mormonism were criticized by some reviewers, several film scholars argued that despite the Latter Day Saint (LDS)-related themes, the film appeals to a wide audience.

The movie's success launched its titular film series, including three standalone sequels.

Plot

During the Battle of the Bulge in 1944, the Germans open fire on their American prisoners of war, in what is known as the Malmedy massacre, killing many troops as they try to run away. Medic Steven Gould (Alexander Niver) manages to escape with Corporal Nathan 'Deacon' Greer (Corbin Allred). Gould and Deacon are joined by two other survivors, Shirl Kendrick (Larry Bagby), a member in Gould's division, and Deacon's close friend Sergeant Gordon Gunderson (Peter Asle Holden). The four stumble on RAF pilot Flight Sergeant Oberon Winley (Kirby Heyborne). Winley explains he has important intelligence he has to get back to the Allies and the group decide to try and reach the Allied lines, located some {{convert|20|mi|abbr=on}} away. The group fights against German troops, a winter storm, and personal conflict to return Winley to Allied territory.{{Citation|title=Saints and Soldiers (2003) - IMDb|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373283/plotsummary|access-date=2019-04-24}}

Cast

Corbin Allred as Corporal Nathan "Deacon" Greer
Alexander Niver as Private Steven Gould
Kirby Heyborne as Flight Sergeant Oberon Winley
Larry Bagby as Private Shirley "Shirl" Kendrick
Peter Asle Holden as Staff Sergeant Gordon "Gundy" Gunderson
Ethan Vincent as Rudolph Gertz
Melinda Renee as Catherine Theary – Belgian woman
Ruby Chase O'Neil as Sophie Theary – Catherine's daughter
Lincoln Hoppe as German soldier

Production

=Development=

Ryan Little's first project was the short film The Last Good War, which won a Student Emmy. Little wanted to produce a World War II themed feature film.{{cite news |last1=Eash |first1=Candy |title=Ryan Little |url=https://mormonartist.net/interviews/ryan-little/ |access-date=April 11, 2019 |work=Mormon Artist |date=February 2014}} In 2002, Little teamed up with producer Adam Abel to create the production company, Go Films. After finding a private investor in California, Little and Abel sought to produce the film on a budget of $780,000. The original title of the film was "Saints and War".{{cite news |last1=Toone |first1=Trent |title=Actors, filmmakers celebrate Saints and Soldiers franchise with round table discussion |url=https://www.deseret.com/2014/8/14/20546620/actors-filmmakers-celebrate-saints-and-soldiers-franchise-with-roundtable-discussion/ |access-date=April 11, 2019 |work=Deseret News |publisher=Deseret News Publishing Company |date=August 14, 2014}}

Before the film had a script, the filmmakers scouted filming locations, determining the film's plot based on available locations and props. They researched World War II events and interviewed World War II veterans to develop the story and characters.

=Casting=

Little and Abel quickly cast Corbin Allred and Kirby Heyborne. However, because Heyborne had roles in many other films related to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), they instructed Heyborne to grow a mustache, dye his hair, use a British accent, and smoke during the movie. Because Heyborne did not smoke, he smoked herbal cigarettes and practiced dragging daily for a few weeks before filming. Additionally, Heyborne did not have access to a dialect coach so he became familiar with British accents by watching other films. Heyborne was concerned that this would make him a target for film critics. To save on costs, Little and Abel used World War II reenactors as actors who volunteered to travel to Utah and bring their World War II prop equipment at their own expense.

=Filming=

Principal photography took place in early 2003 over 30 days in Utah, Wasatch, and Salt Lake counties in Utah. Camera angles were carefully positioned to avoid showing the Wasatch mountains on camera to create the illusion of being in the Ardennes.{{cite news |last1=Clark |first1=Cody |title=Worldwide release of 'Saints and Soldiers' is culmination of uphill battle for local filmmakers |url=https://www.heraldextra.com/lifestyles/worldwide-release-of-saints-and-soldiers-is-culmination-of-uphill/article_a5e94351-9810-5fef-bcb5-4d802c576a7a.html |access-date=April 11, 2019 |work=Daily Herald |publisher=Herald Communications |date=August 6, 2004}}

Filming was done in January to use the available snow, but production had to use potato flakes when there was not enough snow. Moreover, a tight filming budget required actors to do their own stunts. Snow and freezing temperatures were challenges to filming, which was worsened by the period clothing costumes.

=Historical inaccuracies=

Several members of the 101st Airborne Division are depicted as being present at the massacre. In reality, the 101st was held in strategic reserve by SHAEF{{cite book |last1=Cole |first1=Hugh M. |title=The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge |date=1965 |publisher=Center of Military History, United States Army |location=Washington, D.C. |page=305 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wV3szNsMCvMC&q=operation+market&pg=PA305 |access-date=April 16, 2019}} at this point in time to recover from combat in Operation Market-Garden.{{cite web |last1=Carter |first1=Ian |title=The Story of Operation 'Market Garden' in Photos |url=https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/the-story-of-operation-market-garden-in-photos |website=Imperial War Museum |access-date=April 16, 2019}} The 101st did not reach the front until December 18 (the massacre was on the 17th), and was sent to Bastogne, far to the south of where Kampfgruppe Joachim Peiper operated.{{cite book |last1=Merriam |first1=Robert E. |title=Dark December: The Full Account of the Battle of the Bulge |date=2017 |publisher=Enhanced Media Publishing |location=Los Angeles, CA |isbn=9781387175321 |pages=104, 127 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_VMyDwAAQBAJ&q=joachim+peiper&pg=PA127}} Most of the victims were from the 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion.{{cite book |last1=Morelock |first1=Jerry D. |title=Generals of the Bulge: Leadership in the U.S. Army's Greatest Battle |date=2015 |publisher=Stackpole Books |location=Mechanicsburg, PA |isbn=9780811711999 |page=356 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hZrXBgAAQBAJ&q=285th+Field+Artillery+Observation+Battalion&pg=PR11}}{{cite web |title=Massacre at Malmedy: War Crimes Trial |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/background-and-overview-of-massacre-at-malm-eacute-dy-2 |website=Jewish Virtual Library |publisher=American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise |access-date=April 17, 2019}}

Distribution

=Rating=

Saints and Soldiers was originally rated "R" by the MPAA, solely for war violence and related images.{{cite news|last=Wadley|first=Carma|title=R rating stuns 'Saints' makers: They promise to pursue a PG-13 for WWII drama|url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/590041363/R-rating-stuns-Saints-makers.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110317111148/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/590041363/R-rating-stuns-Saints-makers.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 17, 2011|access-date=22 May 2014|newspaper=Deseret News|date=5 February 2004}} The director, writers, and producer wanted a "PG-13". Some criticism has been leveled against the MPAA rating board with regard to their rating independent films more harshly than those of the large studios. (See also "LDS cinema and MPAA ratings".)

While the MPAA never communicated any specific scenes that warranted the rating, Deseret News film critic Chris Hicks speculates that the reason may be due to two scenes, one in which depicts Nazis executing prisoners of war and another that shows a closeup of a leg wound.{{cite book |last1=Hicks |first1=Chris |title=Has Hollywood Lost Its Mind? |date=2013 |publisher=Workman Publishing |isbn=9781938301209 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2dC4DwAAQBAJ&q=saints+and+soldiers+r+rating&pg=PT37}} Producers made edits to receive the PG-13 for commercial distribution, and was officially granted such on March 30, 2004.

=Release=

The first screening took place at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, to an audience of U.S. Naval officers and their spouses. The film opened at film festivals nationwide.{{cite news |last1=Turan |first1=Kenneth |title=Faith is under fire in a well-made 'Saints' |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-oct-15-et-saints15-story.html |access-date=April 11, 2019 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=October 15, 2004}}

Saints and Soldiers represents the first LDS film produced after 2000 to be exhibited in film festivals before general release to gain publicity.{{cite journal |last1=Wollheim |first1=Peter |title=Latter-Day Screens: A History of Mormons and the Movies |journal=Afterimage |date=2006 |volume=33 |issue=6 |page=28 |doi=10.1525/aft.2006.33.6.26 |id={{ProQuest|212086102}} }} It was the highest-grossing film released by Excel Entertainment, an entertainment section which targets an LDS audience.{{cite news |last1=Healey |first1=Jake |title=9 religious-themed Netflix selections for Sunday |url=https://universe.byu.edu/2015/10/13/9-religious-themed-netflix-selections-for-sunday/ |access-date=April 11, 2019 |work=The Daily Universe |publisher=Brigham Young University |date=October 13, 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.ldsfilm.com/Excel.html |title=Excel Entertainment Group: Corporate Bio |publisher=Ldsfilm.com |date= |access-date=2012-03-21}} It grossed over $1 million.{{cite journal |last1=Samuelsen |first1=Eric |title=Finding an Audience, Paying the Bills: Competing Business Models in Mormon Cinema |journal=BYU Studies Quarterly |date=April 1, 2007 |volume=46 |issue=2 |page=225 |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3850&context=byusq |access-date=April 11, 2019}}

=Critical reception=

The reaction to Saints and Soldiers was generally positive. The Washington Times called the film, "one of the sharpest and most compelling entries of the early 'Mormon cinema' era".{{cite news |last1=Terry |first1=Josh |title=New 'Saints and Soldiers' spotlights WWII tank battles, racial conflicts |url=https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/aug/14/new-saints-and-soldiers-spotlights-tank-battles-ra/ |access-date=April 12, 2019 |work=The Washington Times |publisher=The Washington Times LLC. |date=August 14, 2014}} The New York Times wrote that the film's, "impressive cast of largely unknown actors...[and] meticulously researched film tells its story with quiet conviction".{{cite news |last1=Stevens |first1=Dana |title=Asking Familiar Questions on the Battlefield |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/15/movies/asking-familiar-questions-on-the-battlefield.html |access-date=April 12, 2019 |work=The New York Times |date=October 15, 2004}} However, Variety insisted that the script had "letdowns", including anachronisms in the dialogue and other story incongruities, yet they commended the production value considering the film's low budget.{{cite news |last1=Eisner |first1=Ken |title=Saints and Soldiers |url=https://variety.com/2003/film/reviews/saints-and-soldiers-1200537760/ |access-date=April 12, 2019 |work=Variety |publisher=Variety Media, LLC. |date=November 24, 2003}}

The Seattle Times added that "the film is intended as a propaganda piece for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but the messages are very subtle, and the movie does have a place in the new WWII genre", and is "appropriate for mainstream audiences".{{cite news |last1=Fry |first1=Ted |title="Saints and Soldiers" tells the story of Mormon hero in WWII |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/saints-and-soldiers-tells-story-of-mormon-hero-in-wwii/ |access-date=April 12, 2019 |work=The Seattle Times |date=March 29, 2005}} Furthermore, scholar Travis T. Anderson, affirmed that films made by LDS filmmakers such as Saints and Soldiers and Napoleon Dynamite can still develop "widespread attention" or "critical acclaim". He continued by stating that neither appeals to an exclusively LDS audience nor alienates non-LDS audiences.{{cite journal |last1=Anderson |first1=Travis T. |title=Artistry and Aesthetics in Contemporary Mormon and Iranian Film |journal=Brigham Young University Studies |date=2009 |volume=48 |issue=2 |pages=113, 124–125 |jstor=43044698 }} Moreover, scholar Terryl Givens argued that Saints and Soldiers can be interpreted specifically or universally. Givens claimed that the screenwriting created a film that is authentically Mormon yet reaches to a myriad of audiences.{{cite journal |last1=Givens |first1=Terryl L. |title="There is Room for Both": Mormon Cinema and the Paradoxes of Mormon Culture |journal=BYU Studies Quarterly |date=2007 |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=15–16 |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3849&context=byusq |access-date=April 17, 2019}} Although ties to Mormonism in the film have been criticized by some, Gideon O. Burton called the film, "among the most-praised films of the Fifth Wave [of Mormon cinema] to date".{{cite journal |last1=Burton |first1=Gideon O. |title=The Fifth Wave: Cultural and Commercial Viability (2000-Present) |journal=BYU Studies Quarterly |date=2007 |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=140–141 |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3847&context=byusq |access-date=April 17, 2019}}

=Home media=

Saints and Soldiers was released on video and DVD in May 2005.{{cite web |title=Saints and Soldiers |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/saints_and_soldiers |website=Rotten Tomatoes |publisher=Fandango |access-date=April 12, 2019}}

Legacy

Saints and Soldiers won the 2004 Jury Award for Best Feature at the Stony Brook Film Festival. Furthermore, the film won the award for best picture at 13 other film festivals. The film was nominated for Best First Feature at the 20th Film Independent Spirit Awards in 2004, losing to Garden State.{{cite web |title=Film Independent's Spirit Awards |url=https://guides.lib.udel.edu/filmfinders/independentspirit |website=University of Delaware |access-date=April 11, 2019}}

=Sequel=

A standalone sequel titled Saints and Soldiers: Airborne Creed, was released on August 17, 2012.{{cite news |last1=Clyde |first1=John |title='Saints and Soldiers: Airborne Creed' falls short of original but still delivers |url=https://www.ksl.com/article/21749251/saints-and-soldiers-airborne-creed-falls-short-of-original-but-still-delivers |access-date=April 11, 2019 |work=KSL |publisher=KSL Broadcasting |date=August 17, 2012}}