I'm not Welsh, although my father is, and I don't speak the language. It doesn't matter. The thrust of this film is that the hero sacrifices himself, both for his brother, and for his country, to go and fight, despite stating that he doesn't think that he can kill his fellow men. Along the way he comes across bigotry and prejudice; the persecution of his Welshness in the film is just as relevant to our society now, regardless of what culture or language is being mocked and derided. It seems that in early C.20 Britain we were suspicious of a man because he spoke a different language, so he might be a spy. Now we think he might be a terrorist. I guess we don't learn a lot.
The unity and bonding of the young soldiers being sent to fight in what we all know was a horrendous and particularly pointless war is touching, and the pointlessness of the millions of deaths of young men is made abundantly clear. A superb film. I watched it with my mother, and we cried too.
The unity and bonding of the young soldiers being sent to fight in what we all know was a horrendous and particularly pointless war is touching, and the pointlessness of the millions of deaths of young men is made abundantly clear. A superb film. I watched it with my mother, and we cried too.