Review: ‘The Monuments Men’

I don’t think I’ve ever described a WWII movie as breezy before, but if ever there was a breezy war movie, this is it.

Based on true events during WWII, George Clooney heads an ensemble cast that’s less Oceans 11 and more The Dirty Dozen – or in this case, “The Dirty Half-Dozen”.

It’s a fascinating premise: during the war, Hitler had the grand idea of building a massive ‘Fuhrer Museum’ as a place to display the greatest works of art in the world. To fill the space, he sent troops to scavenge every significant artwork as they swept across Europe.

Upon hearing of this wholesale theft, a group of middle-aged art curators were given the task of recovering the stolen art and returning it to the rightful owners. As presented by Clooney, this was the greatest treasure hunt of all time and the performers attack their mission as if it is all a jolly jape and no one will get hurt.

But of course war is hell, and the summer camp atmosphere fades as the realities of the danger they’re in hits home.

This is a solid film, rarely dull, but rarely exciting enough to elicit even a muffled gasp. Clooney obviously has enormous admiration and respect for the real life Monuments Men, but respect does not make for an engaging film.  With a large and diverse cast it’s hard to emotionally engage with the characters, so when one inevitably dies there’s no cause for tears or sadness. Even the other Monuments Men seem strangely unaffected by the loss of one of their own.

The cast are all wonderful, but sometimes the script is so over-the-top in its schmaltz you can see the actors struggling to say their lines with a straight face.

So while this is undoubtedly a story worth telling, I’m not sure this should be the definitive version. Comedy and drama mix uncomfortably here, making this film uncertain on a tonal level. Oh, and the ending is pure sap.

6/10

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