Review of Men of Honor (2000) by Gail R — 24 Jul 2008

Cuba Gooding Jr. has achieved star status with me. This film is a feel-good flick without losing credibility. The portrayals are stark and gritty. The performances are exemplary. We are treated to the dark side of segregation within the ranks of our Armed Forces. We are treated to the way military life can drive a wedge between husband and wife, how few are willing to do what is necessary to overcome these stressors and how fewer still succeed.

We are forced to peek at the semi-permeable membrane that separates the enlisted from the officers, the membrane allowing the "stuff" to roll down onto the "men", and allows the "brass" to insulate themselves from reality. Fortunately, this is mostly a Hollywood anti-military standard. REALity is more moderated and two-way. Still the accomplishment of Carl Brashear is the stuff they make movies out of... HEY... They DID!

Becoming a Master Diver is difficult enough. The best of the best are winnowed and filtered and as is the wont of all Service Schools, only the strong survive. Inhuman standards and training techniques are employed to ensure as much as possible, the graduates can cut the mustard. Again, as is the reality of life in the Military LIVES DEPEND UPON THESE MEN TO DO THEIR JOBS WELL, under all circumstances, with little/no failure. How's that for a stressful work environment?

Too bad this movie wasn't made more recently. Nowadays, movies that are of little value or interest to me, are 2 ½ to 3 hours long. They wander aimlessly about spewing little more than cliche' after cliche'. This movie could have been an hour longer, treated the audience to greater character development and perhaps told the story a little better. It wasn't and it didn't.

I still liked it and recommend it without hesitation!