Yanks [Blu-ray]

Opening Narration: "From early 1942 until the invasion of Europe over a million Americans landed in Britain. They came to serve on other battle fronts or to man the vast number of U.S. bases in England. Hardly a city, town or village remained untouched." Or as the Brits said about the American invasion of Yanks..."Oversexed, overpaid and over here!" ☺ This is an excellent John Schlesinger portrayal of the interaction of deployed American soldiers with the British - in particular the British women - during the lead up to the D-Day invasion of France. It is set on an American base located near a small northern English town. The film is not rated as highly by the critics as some of his other films - "Midnight Cowboy", "Marathon Man", etc; but I think it tells the WW II story of Americans in Britain better than any other I've seen. It stars a young Richard Gere - whose star was ascending in 1979 - and an ensemble cast that included Vanessa Redgrave, Lisa Eichhorn, William Devane and Chick Vennera...all of whom deliver fine performances, with special kudos going to Gere, Eichhorn and Redgrave. The primary romance is between Gere and Eichhorn (in her first movie role); but the romance between a fortyish Redgrave and Devane also features prominently. There is some battle footage, but not much; this is primarily a romantic drama set in a wartime environment...and secondarily a social commentary about the effect of this kind of deployment on the civilian population. I enjoyed it thoroughly...and highly recommend it! -

An oldie, but a goodie.

This is a different kind of war movie in that is has little to do with war or the military. They are simply backdrops for the real theme of the movie which is, as the title states, the issue of Americans or Yanks in England during the buildup to Normandy who interacted with the locals. The movie begins with Richard Gere's unit arriving in northern England to join others already there. His character is a cook but that is really irrelevant. Very quickly the movie shifts from Army matters to situations in which he and his buddy start to date local women. There are three situations. A supply officer from the unit has been seeing an aristocratic local women who works for the Red Cross. Both are married. The woman's spouse is off to the war. Gere's buddy is a big talker who hooks up with an energetic local girl eager to meet an American soldier. Gere starts to date a reluctant daughter of shop owners who has her own fiancee away at the war. Most of the scenes in the movie are quite gray and the tone of the movie is reserved, if not depressing at times. As one would expect, many cross-cultural and separation themes are covered in the movie. Some of the scenes seem a bit too long and inconsequential while others are very touching and emotion-filled. The movie ends with the Americans leaving and each story having its own set of circumstances under which the cross-cultural couples part.While I would not call the movie one of the most memorable war movies I have seen, it was certainly quite different than most. It made me want to know more about the issue of soldiers overseas who formed relationships with locals and what happened to these long-term. Often we think of war as being a series of famous battles and we forget the long weeks or years of preparation and the time spent getting by in foreign locales. This is a lesser-known Richard Gere movie. I had not even heard about it before seeing it advertised here on Amazon. If you enjoyed his work in An Officer and a Gentleman, you might like this movie. His performance here is more subdued but similar. In spite of the dark tone of the movie, it's definitely worth seeing if you are a fan of stories from the WWII time period.

I only became a Richard Gere fan, once I found out he was a Buddhist so I never thought much of him as an actor. I thought they only rated him so highly because he was so beautiful and didnt bother with him back then. However, between Hachi and Yanks I am finding out he is just too beautiful inside and out not to watch his movies. In this movie he shows such a wide range of emotion and I was shocked to see just how well he can relate sensitivity on the screen. I loved this movie because the story was so interesting and I got to see his gorgeous face so many times. He really is able to convey emotion better than anyone else on the screen. It is a very touching movie and the sets are so well done that you actually feel you are back in time. I really loved it and will go ahead and purchase the film so I can watch it again and again.

This is the first time that I've ever seen Yanks. I was shocked at the quality of the filming, acting and music.The subject matter was extremely interesting, too.Richard Gere is usually typecast as a stud, but in this film, he's more of a normal person, and he plays the part perfectly. This might be his best acting film.The other actors are great, too: Vanessa Redgrave,William Devane, Chick Venerra, Lisa Eichorn and her parent, and her friend. The film is so believable and atypical of Hollywood films because the actors act naturally with no superficialities.The plot is wonderful. My father was in England before the D-Day invasion, and he told me lots of stories about England. I've read that many American GI's actually fell in love and married English women, mainly because of the similarities of cultures and the nature of English women: they were sincere about love.The music score is lush and tantalizing, reminding me of Aaron Copland's music. It greatly enhanced the movie's plot.I had just finished watching and adoring The Americanization of Emily, and watchingYanks was a real treat for me. Why doesn't Hollywood make more natural love story movies like Yanks, instead of weird provocative ones? Yanks should have won Oscars. I give it five stars.Ricky Wallace

Another piece of nostalgia.

Es una pelicula que tenía muchas ganas de tener y me costó mucho encontrar.Al fin la tengo y estoy encantada.Imprescindible para fans del magnífico actor Richard Gere.

I REALLY love this film. It might have something to do with the fact that the two world wars hold a very special place in my heart for family members lost but nevertheless that aside I just love this film as a reminder that there s good and bad in all. This is about 3 USA posted soldiers and of different ranking all based in the UK in a small Yorkshire town that could have been anywhere, and their relationships with local women that they met in that time. It is a gentle romance that I can wallow in when my faith in humanity and male in particular has been dented. I have a family member who was a GI bride and still resides in the USA. In some respects I think it must have been great to live with these guys but like all men, there was good and bad and that is also shown including what was then in the US anyway, the accepted segregation of black and white people very ably demonstrated in a sequence set in a dance hall. Its a bit of wake up call really to think that it was once acceptable. Its a sobering film sometimes - and also very thought provoking at times. I would not say it was a girly film but I would not say its one for the lads either. Its a film I suppose you either love and understand or I suppose you would hate because you can't relate to. Me I love it.

Truly, an extraordinary movie, so heartfelt and moving.The US army is stationed in war weary Britain awaiting further orders - perhaps to be sent out to the battlefields. This is the story of 2 lonely men in the army - one, a soldier (Richard Gere), the other an officer (William Devane).A young soldier in a foreign land, facing the probable test of war, Richard Gere shows great tenderness and gentleness of heart in the role he plays as Matt. These are beautiful qualities of Gere found in most of his movies, which have endeared him to movie audiences around the globe.The acting of both men is very believable and moving, it evokes strong emotions with the historical setting which it portrays.A movie worth owning. Five stars.

J'ai eu beaucoup de plaisir à revoir ce film avec le beau Richard gere. Ce film ce passe pendant la guerre mais on nous montre principalement ces jeunes qui malgres eux quitte leur pays et famille pour aller à la guerre. Bien que mal reçu par les habitants, certains ce lié d'amitié voir plus.. Ce sont de jolie histoires d'amour et d'amitié pendant cette guerre, sans savoir si ces jeunes hommes survivront a la guerre. A voir absolument