The story of the first major battle of the american phase of the vietnam war, and the soldiers on both sides that fought it, while their wives wait nervously and. According to hal moore, we were soldiers is the only movie to get it right. At the risk of sounding egotistical, my book series we were soldiers too has impacted my life the most. Harold moore and his men as they are send to fight at the first major american battle in vietnam. During midnovember 1965, moore then a lieutenant colonel led 450 officers and men from the us armys 1st cavalry division into the ia drang valley, a trackless waste near vietnams border with cambodia that served as a communist sanctuary and infiltration route into vietnams central highlands. Who were the 234 dead listed on panel 3 east of the wall whose memory hal moore and joe galloway honored with their book. When i wrote my autobiography, the outpouring of gratitude i got from cold war veterans was overwhelming. The portrayal of the vietnam war in randall wallaces we were. Leadership qualities and ethical dilemmas in we were soldiers onceand young, by hal moore 3 history. General moore makes the connections necessary with 2nd lieutenant, jack geoghegan chris klein so that the organization has effective dynamics. Oct 20, 1991 the lead author, hal moore, was a lieutenant colonel in the 1st calvary division, one of the units at the front of the battle about which we were soldiers once and young is written.
They were immediately surrounded by 2,000 north vietnamese soldiers. We were soldiers once contains a wonderful summary of this british leaders influence on the. The unit gets ambushed by north vietnamese army forces who kill the commanding officers and the unit is overrun. Fabarication applies particulary to a false but carefully invented statement or a series of statements, in which some truth is sometimes interwoven, the whole usually intended to deceive. We were soldiers leadership analysis 2 abstract there are too many times that leadership is projected into movies and people usually look at these main characters as heroic or the good guy. Moore is a family man and lives on base in the vietnam conflict era. Army and the nva in ia drang valley we were soldiers onceand young. Hal moore, were dropped by helicopter into a small clearing in the ia drang valley. We were soldiers hangs on to the less problematic figures of the war movie the concerned commander, the tough, loveable sergeantmajor, the dedicated subaltern.
Within an hour after arriving at lz xray, 450 american and 2,000 north vietnamese soldiers were fiercely engaged in battle. One soldier recalls, we stood in formation, with some units hardly having enough men to form up. Inadequate training, the hasty formation of certain units, the constant. We were soldiers once and young ia drang the battle that changed the war in vietnam, shake hands with the devil and fingerprints through time a history of the guelph police are three books that were written from the popular history perspective. This thesis suggests that we were soldiers portrays the american. Based on the bestselling book, we were soldiers once. Ia drang the battle that changed the war in vietnam.
The movie acted by mel gibson as the starring, takes the audience into the vast ia drang valley based in southern vietnams central highlands. We were soldiers too cold war book series home facebook. The lead author, hal moore, was a lieutenant colonel in the 1st calvary division, one of the units at the front of the battle about which we were soldiers once and young is written. Viewers learn about moore as a family man at the beginning of the film before moving to the ia drang valley in vietnam just a short while after the familys move to the fort.
The protest that developed was the largest and most effective antiwar movement in american history, according to melvin small in the oxford companion to american military history. A womans memoir of stepping out of line, author ryan leigh dostie narrates her personal experiences as a soldier in combatat work and at homeengaged in a battle to survive not only war, but the most personal betrayal imaginable, rape by another soldier. Mapping things out and identifying power players is key. We were soldiers too, is a series of books recognizing those veterans who served during the cold war. The film chronicles the famous battle of ia drang valley in south vietnams central highlands. The movie that i selected for my critique is called we were soldiers, a movie set in november of 1965, during the vietnam conflict. The battles of the ia drang contain all the elements for a great book, butin spite. We were soldiers, a film produced in 2002, takes place in 1965 beginning in fort benning, georgia, following the family of lieutenant colonel hal moore, played by mel gibson. Rachel smith we were soldiers film analysis the film we were soldiers depicts the 1965 battle of ia drang in vietnam. We were soldiers is a 2002 american war film that dramatizes the battle of ia drang on november 14, 1965. The real story of mel gibsons we were soldiers, the. The lzs were about 30 minutes round trip from the base, and the 16. If you are the publisher or author of this book and feel. A gutwrenching account of what war is really all about, which.
Based on a memoir, the story follows the armys 7th cavalry as they engage in the first major conflict. And young, the film tells the story of the first battle of the vietnam war from the perspective of two participants, a u. It focuses on the role of the first and second battalions of the 7th cavalry regiment in the battle of the ia drang valley, the united states first largeunit battle of the vietnam war. Ia drang the battle that changed the war in vietnam harold g. Analysis of we were soldiers speech by natalie maiorana on prezi. These 10 compelling and enlightening war books span from the revolutionary war to the iraqi war. Introduction in november 1965, the 7th cavalry regiment of the u. In november 1965, some 450 men of the 1st battalion, 7th cavalry, under the command of lt. Steered by randall wallace, we were soldiers is a mustwatch informative piece that tables the story of the americans involvement in the vietnam war of 1965. The north vietnamese attack is repelled, and the surviving soldiers of herricks cutoff platoon, including savage, are rescued. In november 1965, some 450 men of the first battalion, seventh cavalry, under the command of lt.
To honor fallen comrades, a journalist and a soldier return to vietnam battlefields more than 30 years later. We were soldiers starts out with a french unit on patrol during the final year of the first indochina war in the year 1954. Marine corps selects one book that he believes is both relevant and timeless for reading by all marines. First, to bring to light and to honor the memory of command sergeant. American troops were transported by helicopter to clear landing zones and set up the command center of the operation at a large termite mound in landing zone xray lz xray. We were soldiers once came out the year i left the army 1992 and for a few years i had gotten away from reading any subject after wwii so this incredible book got by me. This historical vietnam war movie is a great to show in any history class. We were soldiers once and young is a 1992 book by lt. We stood in formation, with some units hardly having enough men to form up.
We were soldiers is a 2002 american war film directed by randall wallace and starring mel gibson. Galloway, it dramatizes the battle of ia drang on november 14, 1965. Almost as soon as they arrived, american forces were engaged in a series of constant contact. Armys 7th air cavalry in 1965, when american troops were first becoming directly involved in fighting north vietnamese soldiers. Fighting in sweltering heat, and greatly outnumbered, u. It recounts the fighting in the ia drang valley in. The history book is based on the vietnam war, which took place in 1965. Harold moore, were dropped into a small clearing in the ia drang valley. We were soldiers leadership analysis 3 we were soldiers leadership analysis in the film we were soldiers, the leader of the unit is lt. Gen hal moore, the battle in the ia drang valley, and the hardships that the americans went through in an exciting dramatization. The new york times bestseller, hailed as a powerful and epic story. The book as well as the film were created in order to pay tribute to those who fought and those who died in this gruesome and devastating battle. We were soldiers very accurately follows history in terms of the characters. At that moment, he could have led us back into the ia drang.
The orchestral music is using a crescendo in the background which. We were soldiers, directed by randall wallace and starring mel gibson, takes us along with the u. Leadership qualities and ethical dilemmas in we were soldiers. These two also worked together on another movie, which would prove to be a good example of leadership practices, called braveheart. It details the insertion of the air cavalry hueys into vietnam in 1967 its the book that the movie, we were soldiers was written from and its a first hand account by a man that wa actually there. The preceding three of the main characters are very accurate representations of the actual soldiers in the battle. It is based on the book we were soldiers once and young 1992 by lieutenant general ret. We were soldiers analysis running header we were soldiers. Plot summary for we were soldiers we were soldiers. Galloway the random house publishing group, 1992 steve heiser u. With mel gibson, madeleine stowe, greg kinnear, sam elliott. Rather than being a characterdriven narrative that reads almost like a novel, like stephen ambroses books, we were soldiers is a painstaking, minutebyminute, personbyperson account of the battle. The real story of mel gibsons we were soldiers, the battle. My reading has always been in the fiction realm and yet my writing is nonfiction.
When it comes to certain movies though, there are characters who stick out more than the rest. The commandants choice for 1993 was we were soldiers once. But hollywood isnt sure in which war by maurice isserman, professor of history, hamilton college. Then, nguyen huu an orders the execution of all surviving french soldiers to discourage any further french involvement. Aug 19, 2008 to honor fallen comrades, a journalist and a soldier return to vietnam battlefields more than 30 years later. Three days later, only two and a half miles away, a sister battalion was brutally slaughtered. The battle of ia drang was said that it was the battle that changed the war in vietnam. We were soldiers once and young we were soldiers once and young is a history book written by lt. Mel gibson is a star in this movie that is directed by randall wallace. Language the diversity is reinforced by the mid shots showing the soldiers together, enhancing the idea of the different cultures of the soldiers coming together to bravely go into battle.
Following publication of their bestselling account of 1965s horrific clash between the u. Ia drangthe battle that changed the war in vietnam, 1992, moore, the battalion commander, and galloway, the only. With many wins and loses throughout the war there were over 58,000 american casualties by wars end. We were soldiers is a powerful and gritty war film from writerdirector randall wallace. The second author, joe galloway, was a upi the book opens with five pages listing those killed in the pleiku campaign in october and november 1965 when the war in. Jun, 2003 fiction we were soldiers once and young xray part. Leadership qualities and ethical dilemmas in we were. Aug 10, 2016 based on the book we were soldiers onceand young by joe galloway, the film is as much about battlefield bravery as it is about the closeness of frontline units like the infantry. Galloway, is a major contribution to the literature of the vietnam war. Leadership qualities and ethical dilemmas in we were soldiers onceand young, by hal moore 1 leadership qualities and ethical dilemmas in we were soldiers onceand young, by hal moore day 1. Based on the book we were soldiers once and young 1992 by lieutenant general ret. Theyre sure to provide military buffs hours of education and enlightenment. The story of the first major battle of the american phase of the vietnam war, and the soldiers on both sides that fought it, while their wives wait nervously and anxiously at home for the good news or the bad news.
Moore has shown many leadership traits throughout the entire film. Ia drang the battle that changed the war in vietnam by lt. I suppose like many people i can thank mel gibsons movie for bringing this book back onto my radar. We were soldiers once contains a wonderful summary of this british leaders influence on the battle and the people around him, but ill leave you to discover this and give a more general comment. This 2002 vietnam war film dramatizes the battle of ia drang which took place on november 14, 1965. Is the movie we were soldiers based on a true story. Supplemented with maps, the memoir is a vivid recreation of the first major. Browse we were soldiers movie resources on teachers pay teachers, a marketplace trusted by millions of teachers for original educational resources. The aircraft attack with bombs, napalm, and machine guns, killing many pavn and viet cong troops. Three of the top traits you see in moore are missionfirst vision, delegation and realism. Soldiers once is a no description barred story of two battles between the usa and north vietnamese. A friend sent me a veterans report on the 10th anniversary of 911 focusing on the role that rescoria played in saving all but 6 of 2700 staff under his hse care you can see his youthful picture on the front of version of the book carrying the m16. A journey back to the battlefields of vietnam harold g.