New Releases Movies
Taking Chance
Taking Chance
Based on the true experiences of Lt. Colonel Michael Strobl, who wrote eloquently of them in a widely circulated 2004 article, Taking Chance is a profoundly emotional look at the military rituals taken to honor its war dead, as represented by a fallen Marine killed in Iraq, Lance Corporal Chance Phelps. Working as a strategic analyst at Marine Corps Base Quantico in VA, Lt. Col. Strobl (Kevin Bacon) learns that Phelps had once lived in his hometown, and volunteers to escort the body to its final resting place in Wyoming. As Strobl journeys across America, he discovers the great diligence and dignity in how the military, and all those involved with preparing and transporting the body, handle their duties. Equally important, he encounters hundreds of people affected by Chances death, a vast majority of whom never knew him. This collective grieving eventually causes Lt. Col. Strobl, a veteran of Desert Storm now assigned to office duty, to probe his own guilt about not re-deploying to Ira
Rating: (out of 319 reviews)
List Price: $ 19.97
Price: $ 12.00
Related Products
Gary Marsh to Exit as Disney Branded Television President,
‘The Many Saints of Newark’ Magical and Burdensome, Reviews
‘Shang-Chi’ Adds $21 Million as Box Office Slows Down
‘The Eyes of Tammy Faye,’ ‘The Card Counter’ Revive Indie
‘Trust Me, You Don’t Want This’
-
Movies News5 years agoVenom struggle scene footage with out CGI is sure to make you giggle
-
Celebrities8 years ago
TV Query: Can ‘Lucifer’s’ Tom Ellis play the piano in real life?
-
Movies News8 years ago
Aubrey O'Day Reveals Pauly D Has His Penis Pierced: ''We've Been Having Rea…
-
Celebrities8 years ago
‘Vikings’: Who’s the man with one eye? We know the answer
Andrew Lubin
October 4, 2010 at 12:08 am
Review by Andrew Lubin for Taking Chance
Rating:
As I sat and watched as my Marine son did 2 tours in Iraq in 2003 – 2005, I wondered about our many KIA’s coming home…how would they be treated? Did other Americans even care ? Now everyone knows the sacrifices these young Marines made, and everyone knows how Marines take care of their own. More important, we know that these young men will not be forgotten. Well done, Mr. Bacon, and thank you for sharing the story, LtCol Strobl.
Lon C. Cogley
October 3, 2010 at 11:45 pm
Review by Lon C. Cogley for Taking Chance
Rating:
THIS MOVIE WAS VERY DIFFICULT FOR ME TO WATCH.I FOUND MYSELF AN EMOTIONAL WRECK WHILE VIEWING IT.
.DURING OUR SEVEN MONTH TOUR WE(OUR BATTALION)SUFFERED THE LOSS OF OVER 15 MARINES TO COMBAT AND TOO MANY WOUNDED TO REMEMBER.IN COMBAT THERE IS NO CLOSURE WITH THE PASSING OF WARRIORS.THE MISSION IS THE PRIORITY AND THATS ALL THERE IS TO IT.I COULD GO ON FOR DAYS ABOUT IT.BOTTOM LINE IS THIS FILM WAS THERAPEUTIC FOR ME AND HELPED PUT SOME CLOSURE TO THOSE WE LOST.WHEN A MARINE WAS KILLED IN COMBAT, THE MISSION CONTINUED AND IT COULD BE DAYS OR WEEKS BEFORE YOU RETURN TO THE FOB(FORWARD OPERATING BASE).WHEN YOU DID RETURN, THE FALLEN S’ BELONGINGS WERE GONE AND ALL TRACES OF HIM AS WELL.JUST THE MEMORIES REMAINED AND THE NEXT PATROL.WE NEVER GOT TO SEE OR EVEN SPECULATE AS TO THE PROCESS OF RETURNING THE FALLEN WARRIOR TO HIS HOME.YOU QUICKLY BECAME A FATALIST AND LEARNED TO TURN ON AND OFF EMOTION ON COMMAND. I COULD NOT CONTROL MY EMOTION WHILE WATCHING THIS.IT JUST POURED OUT.IT TOOK SEVERAL VIEWING ATTEMPTS BEFORE I COULD ACTUALLY COMPLETE WATCHING THE FILM.KEVIN BACON’S PORTRAYAL AS A MARINE OFFICER WAS OUTSTANDING AND AN ACCOMPLISHMENT IN AND OF ITSELF.THIS FILM SHOULD BE MANDATORY VIEWING FOR EVERY AMERICAN CITIZEN.IT ONLY SKIMS THE SURFACE OF RAW EMOTION, BUT DOES A GREAT JOB AT IT.I CAN’T RECOMMEND IT ENOUGH.COMBAT VETERANS MIGHT WANT TO CONSIDER THE COMPANY THEY KEEP AS THEY WATCH THE FILM THOUGH, IT CAN BE ROUGH.THANK YOU.
J. Young
October 3, 2010 at 11:45 pm
Review by J. Young for Taking Chance
Rating:
I’m a Marine Mom and I found this movie very moving. It was well made and Kevin Bacon did an excellent job portraying his character. I think it showed the honor our fallen hero’s receive and deserve.
Robin Benson
October 3, 2010 at 11:28 pm
Review by Robin Benson for Taking Chance
Rating:
A deeply moving story and another plus for HBO. To my mind you just don’t see too many movies that have this kind of honesty. One that comes to mind was The Straight Story. Taking Chance, though, is a completely different theme dealing with death, respect, honor, patriotism, family and love. Fortunately all of this is handled in a straightforward no-nonsense way and thank goodness it was. Hollywood really doesn’t have too much of a reputation for presenting a simple truth without twisting it into something else.
The story unfolds very much like a documentary I thought. Kevin Bacon plays Lt. Col. Michael Strobl as the military escort taking the body of a dead soldier home to be buried. His performance was just right as was everyone else because the story was greater than all the parts combined. Particularly rewarding to watch, while the coffin, covered by the flag, was at airports or on the highway, was the way ordinary people took it upon themselves to pay their respects to someone they didn’t know but who had died for his country: for them.
I don’t know if this kind of movie is awards material. I think the story, in its simplicity and honesty, puts it way above the hype, razzle-dazzle and celebrity PR nonsense that surround awards. It’s just too good to be commercialized in that way. It would be wonderful if its stature was achieved by word-of-mouth alone.
See it and be moved!
Donald M. Bishop
October 3, 2010 at 11:24 pm
Review by Donald M. Bishop for Taking Chance
Rating:
I viewed this film at a pre-screening, and I left the theater deeply moved. It’s a simple story made into a heartfelt film — Marine Lieutenant Colonel Michael Strobl (perfectly played by Kevin Bacon) accompanies the remains of Private First Class Chance Phelps from the mortuary at Dover AFB in Delaware to his home in Wyoming.
The Marine’s death in Iraq occurs in the tense first minute of the film, with viewers only hearing the radio chatter and the explosion on a black screen. The screen comes to light with PFC Phelps’ remains being sent to the U.S. The care of the remains and the personal effects makes visible and gives dignity to the anonymous work at Dover AFB.
The story takes the viewer into some seldom-seen corners of America — from airport cargo facilities to the mountain highways of Wyoming — and shows everywhere the reverence for the fallen. When the escort gives Phelps’ watch, dog tags, and wooden cross to his parents, eight days after his death, even men will feel the tears coming. Finally, as LtCol Strobl (who had not yet been to Operation Iraqi Freedom when he accompanied Phelps’ remains home) thinks over the experience, there’s a meditation on where duty lies for a Marine Corps officer.
Director Ross Katz, Kevin Bacon, and HBO have given us a profound film that grants us a rare look not at America’s prosperity, or freedoms, or politics — but rather America’s soul.
-30-