In Love and War (1996)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Richard Attenborough

Writers (WGA):

Henry S. Villard (book) and
James Nagel (book) ...

Release Date:

24 January 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

In war they found each other...In each other they found love...

Plot:

Reporter Ernest Hemingway is an ambulance driver in Italy during World War I. While bravely risking his life in the line of duty...

Plot Keywords:

Ernest Hemingway | Driver | Ambulance Driver | Nurse | Based On Diary

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Mackenzie Astin	...	Henry Villard
Chris O'Donnell	...	Ernest 'Ernie' Hemingway
Margot Steinberg	...	Mabel 'Rosie' Rose
Sandra Bullock	...	Agnes von Kurowsky
Alan Bennett	...	Porter
Ingrid Lacey	...	Elsie 'Mac' MacDonald
Terence Sach	...	Porter
Carlo Croccolo	...	Town Mayor
Tara Hugo	...	Katherine 'Gumshoe' De Long
Gigi Vivan	...	Italian Child
Giuseppe Bonato	...	Grandfather
Allegra Di Carpegna	...	Loretta Cavanaugh
Diane Witter	...	Adele Brown
Mindy Lee Raskin	...	Charlotte Anne Miller
Tracy Hostmyer	...	Ruth Harper

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color (Rankcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Brazil:14 | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | Germany:12 (w) | Netherlands:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:18 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Bassano del Grappa, Vicenza, Veneto, Italy

Company:

Dimitri Villard Productions

Trivia:

Several scenes were filmed in or near the Italian village Vittorio Veneto, including the battle scenes. Many of the extras playing the soldiers in the movie were airmen from nearby Aviano Air Base that volunteered to star in the movie.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At the beginning of this WWI movie an Italian marching band is playing the "Beer Barrel Polka". The song was not written until the late 1920's and is Czech.

Quotes:

Ernest Hemingway: It won't work. Take a look. He's ancient. He must be close to 40.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Game-On: (#3.2)" (1998)

Soundtrack:

Beer Barrel Polka

Excellent film, but just one thing..

This is an amazing film with an ending that is so true to life... It deserves a 9/10 for portraying a side of reality which Hollywood rarely dares to show.

One piece of criticism I have is that there is an implication at the end of the film that Hemingway suicided because of his failed relationship with Agnes. However, it is unlikely that this is the case. After writing brilliant pieces of literature, especially in the late 1920s, Hemingway's writing took a downward turn and he could no longer meet the high standards in the literature world that he, himself, had set. Depressed, he was often writing under the influence of alcohol in an attempt to 'enhance' his work. Nonetheless, these pieces were still unable to please his critics, and it was during this stage in his life that he committed suicide.

For interest: Ernest and Agnes occasionally wrote to each other afterwards, but one of Agnes' boyfriends burnt the letters that Ernest wrote to her, including the his reply to her letter breaking up their love relationship.