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Paul Gross, Caroline Dhavernas, Joe Dinicol, Meredith Bailey, Jim Mezon ... see more see more... , Gil Bellows

Inspired by the stories once passed down to him by his grandfather, writer/director Paul Gross explores a defining period of Canadian history in this epic war drama concerning the Battle of Passchenda... read more read more...ele. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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27% want to see it

4,286 ratings

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38% liked it

13 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 53 min.

Directed by: Paul Gross

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DVD Release Date: November 3, 2009

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Flixster Reviews (671)

  • TheDudeLebowski65
    June 8, 2010
    TheDudeLebowski65
    Passchendaele is one of the worst films I have ever seen. This film is terrible. The film starts off well enough, but ends up being long and boring. This is a terrific example of how not to do a war film. This film probably has about 15 minutes of actual combat fighting. Nothing ... read moremore. The acting, and script is terrible. I can't believe that some people think that this is a terrific tribute to those brave men who gave their lives so valiantly for the cause of freedom. This film is a stain on their memory, Paul Gross doesn't know anything on how to make an effective war film, and this proves it. A shameful "war" film about one of Canada's finest hours in battle. This film should be remade and should be told by a director who actually knows the source material.
  • allan913
    March 6, 2009
    allan913
    An incrediable war drama that has it all, romance, drama, action and amasing characters. A splendid, powerful, deeply moving and unforgettable movie. A bold, passionate, well-crafted and patriotic piece of Canadain film. Director and star, Paul Gross gives an honest, riveting and... read more very dedicated performance and also proves to be a promising and visionary filmmaker. Gross crafts a fearless and tremendous historical epic filled with romance and strong battle sequences. A brave solute to the men who fought in the time of the war. One of the best and most excting war films of it's kind since Saving Private Ryan. It's stunning, thrilling and exhilerating. A spectacular and satisfying character driven story. A masterpiece.
  • briandeguelle
    March 2, 2009
    briandeguelle
    This a sweeping epic of love,courage and faith at the time of world war 1.Yes you may you seen it before but it the key players that keeps this from being just other pearl harbour! It is directed with such passion and fine detail that sweeps you in and then theres the intenes ba... read morettle sences that are second to none since Saving Private ryan!!All in all an in grossing film that need to be watched and is another slice of history..
  • danperry17
    February 19, 2009
    danperry17
    Great Canadian actor, great Canadian story, great moment in Canadian history... and yet, it failed to impress. It was formulaic and a little flat all in all, the love story was a little too predominant and the dialogue was awfully stagy. Melodrama in its worst incarnation. It was... read more kind of like Pearl Harbor, in the sense that I couldn't invest in any of the characters because the writing just didn't feel authentic... ironic, in a way, as a lot of this film comes from the true story of writer/director/star Paul Gross's grandfather.

    Passchendaele is well-shot - visually impressive and nice to watch - and that Gross raised the budget to make this film is a Canadian epic in and of itself. Unfortunately, the fruit of his labours falls short of being the Canadian masterpiece it's been trumpeted as.
  • gator681
    September 17, 2011
    gator681
    In "Passchendaele," Sergeant Michael Dunne(Paul Gross, who also wrote and directed) is the sole survivor of a deadly encounter with German forces in World War I. Waking up in the hospital, he is greeted by the warm face of Sarah Mann(Caroline Dhavernas), a nurse. Returning home... read more to Calgary months later, he is greeted by the less than warm faces of a tribunal convened to decide whether or not he should be returned to France to face charges of desertion. Instead, they decide that he suffers from neurasthenia and transfer him to work as a recruiter under Dobson-Hughes(Jim Mezon). While there, Michael turns down the application of David(Joe Dinicol), Sarah's brother, due to his asthma. He is trying to impress the family of his ladylove Cassie(Meredith Bailey) with his suicidal charm.

    "Passchendaele" is a solid antiwar film with a romantic subplot that does nothing to detract from the movie as a whole. As director, Paul Gross reverses the usual tendency of actor-directors by emphasizing the visual over the performances which comes in handy not only in the battle scenes but also in capturing the beautiful Canadian countryside. There are other interesting stylistic choices here like muting the sound at key moments and even cross-cutting between a medical lecture and a love scene which allows for applause at just the right moment. Still, there is just something about Paul Gross on horseback as he makes for a charismatic lead while also breathing depth into his character who has his share of problems and issues.(He's not the only one as it comes out late how oedipal some of this is but don't worry I know a doctor in Vienna who can do something about that.) Those issues involve a meaningless war and how it recruits and churns out soldiers, as the movie also shows off the ugly side of patriotism.
  • fb504437234
    March 18, 2011
    fb504437234
    I remember reading about this movie in the paper before it was released. The article focused on the immense time and detail it took to film the war sequences. I showed this to my roommate and we both decided to go see it and take our female neighbours with us.

    We went in expecti... read moreng a war movie. And for the opening sequence, we thought it was just that.

    20 minutes later though, we realized we were had. And our neighbours laughed as my roommate and I exchanged looks of "What the hell did we get ourselves into."

    I will say this about the movie: the action sequences were very well done. It effectively conveys the muddy hell that was Passchendaele. Also, it shows a side of prejudice rarely discussed: Canadian discrimination towards Germans during World War I and blackballing of WWI soldiers that came home due to the gas attacks.

    That warrants half a star.

    Other than that, it was "Pearl Harbour" Canadian style. But at least "Pearl Harbour" had Alec Baldwin and the "Doolittle Raids." "Passchendaele" is less about Passchendaele and more of a love story. It is a love story not so cleverly disguised as a war movie.

    The script is so cheesy and bad that even James Cameron would say "WOW! This sucks!" Gross sunk $20 million into this movie, you'd think he would have hired a decent screenwriter or some decent actors.

    These are two hours of my life I want back.

    That being said, I would like to write a response letter to Paul Gross.

    Dear Paul Gross,

    Fuck you too.

    Sincerely,
    Sean Devine
  • BlueTorch
    November 11, 2008
    BlueTorch
    Billed as Canada's great war movie, Passchendaele spends very little time focusing on the details of this war, but instead the repercussions of war and how it affects the principle characters.The first half the movie is set in Calgary, in the time of war. The second half transpo... read morerts us off to the Passchendaele battle. Both parts are done very well; mind you, the war scenes are moreso the "Ra Ra, look what we Canadians can do" type, However, there are a few issues keeping Passchendaele from being the historical piece it aims to be.

    First, the romance. I have no problem with romance in a war movie, but Paul Gross wrote himself some pretty terrible dialogue for these scenes. Secondly, the ending sequence. I don't mind Christian symbolism in a movie but, come on. Seriously. Also the romantic conversation about the painting had my eyes rolled firmly into my head throughout. The ~very~ last scene in the film is powerful.

    So, in the end, you get an enjoyable war movie, but not a film which will go down as being historically important as Gross had aimed.
  • DrLappos
    January 22, 2010
    DrLappos
    Not a bad film at all. Little slow, little weak and the action scenes seemed to revolve around lots of soldiers getting blown up then spun up in the air....It just seemed a little light weight for my liking in both the love stakes and the warfare. Shame cause other than that it w... read moreas okay.
  • mvieaddict
    February 14, 2009
    mvieaddict
    Set during the height of the First World War, Passchendaele tells the story of Sergeant Michael Dunne (Paul Gross), a soldier who is brutally wounded in France and returns to Calgary emotionally and physically scarred. While in the military hospital in Calgary, he meets Sarah (Ca... read moreroline Dhavernas), a mysterious and attractive nurse with whom he develops a passionate love. When Sarah's younger asthmatic brother David (Joe Dinicol) signs up to fight in Europe, Michael feels compelled to return to Europe to protect him. Michael and David, like thousands of Canadians, are sent to fight in the third battle of Ypres, a battle against impossible odds, commonly known as "Passchendaele". It is a story of passion, courage and dedication, showing the heroism of those that fought in battle, and of the ones that loved them.

    This film is not about the war's specifics, as much as it is a film about people. The characters are rich, and their acting informs the film throughout. The battle of Passchendaele may be one of the contexts surrounding the characters, but it is the characters that dominate the emotional flow of the film. This is a portrayal of human beings, who are thrust onto the battlefield, while still remaining human. It is the story of people trying to hold on to the relationships that are living in all of us, when confronted by the tribulations of a World War. The 'sex scene' excludes passion, as a couple in love fears for their lives and safety. In turbulent war times, their primary concern is mantaining their relationship. Each moment might be their last opportunity to share the intimacy they have longed for.

    The acting was superb. The performances were so convincing that the notion that I was just sitting watching a movie didn't even occur to me until the credits began to roll by.
    This film was easily one of the best war films that I've seen in quite some time after Saving Private Ryan.

    I'll definitely be keeping my eyes open for any future films by Paul Gross. Passchendaele stands as an impressive testimonial to his talents.
    I highly recommneds this film to anyone, 4 & a half stars.
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Critic Reviews

Liam Lacey
October 17, 2008
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

The scenes may be embarrassing, but at least Gross can't be accused of playing it safe. Full Review

Kirk Honeycutt
October 3, 2008
Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter

A war movie that can't make up its mind whether war is bad or something one can be proud of.

Peter Howell
September 5, 2008
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

Passchendaele hearkens back to war films of decades past, when patriotism, valour and integrity were presented without irony. But it is infused with the stoicism of people who know it is their job to ... Full Review

Eddie Cockrell
September 5, 2008
Eddie Cockrell, Variety

Toronto fest opener crudely welds the grisly verisimilitude of Saving Private Ryan to the contempo cultural revisionism of Pearl Harbor but can't forge the disparate tones into a powerful whole. Full Review

David Jenkins
September 4, 2009
David Jenkins, Time Out

As a director, Gross paints in big, emotive strokes, and though his dialogue often feels too tied to historical fact, this old-fashioned, patriotic war movie has its heart in the right place. Full Review

Catherine Bray
September 4, 2009
Catherine Bray, Film4

A kind of Canadian World War I version of Pearl Harbor recast with TV actors and made on a tenth of the budget - yet for all that more endearing than Pearl Harbour. Full Review

Wendy Ide
September 4, 2009
Wendy Ide, Times [UK]

It's hard to overstake how unimaginably dreadful is Passchendaele, a First World War drama that does Canada's already ropey film-making reputation no favours whatsoever. Full Review

Andrew Pulver
September 4, 2009
Andrew Pulver, Guardian [UK]

Director-star Paul Gross may have noble intentions, but his film is plodding, to put it kindly: filled with over-scrubbed sets, glutinous tinkling music, and desperately pedestrian dialogue exchanges. Full Review

David West
September 4, 2009
David West, Filmstar Magazine

It is impossible not to be moved by the nightmare of the trenches, but Passchendaele is a frustratingly uneven movie. Full Review

Allan Hunter
September 4, 2009
Allan Hunter, Daily Express

A romantic weepie that tugs at the heart strings... In our more cynical age it just feels incredibly corny and obvious although the final 20 minutes amidst the mud and carnage are well-staged. Full Review

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