The Siege of Jadotville (2016) User Reviews

Captivating war drama!

[paulclaassen · 7/10 · 26 September 2018]

Since I'm not familiar with the actual event the film is based on, I can't comment on the authenticity, but can say this is a very well made and captivating film. It was nerve-wrecking at times and quite spectacular, actually. The action scenes were very good and the photography good, as well. I really rooted for the guys, and the film proofs so well (once again) that the guys in suits in their offices has no idea what really goes on in the field, and quite frankly often does not care as long as they win a war.

All the actors were very good and believable, especially Jamie Dornan as Quinlan. Its really a pity the real-life guys had to wait four decades before being declared heroes.

A forgotten story worthy to be told.

[deloudelouvain · 8/10 · 8 March 2020]

I never heard of this battle before, and I'm a Belgian. Apparently this combat story has been held secret from us, or maybe I just skipped a lesson when they teached us that historical fact, that's also possible. Nevertheless, it doesn't really matter, as once again it's proven that war is fought by people that massacre each other but don't know each other, commanded and benefited by people that know each other but that don't fight each other. It's an interesting story, certainly entertaining, even for people that are not into war movies. A poignant story about courage, desperation and combat tactics. The cast was very good, with an excellent Jamie Dornan playing the main character Patrick Quinlan. Richie Smyth did a good job directing this hommage to those men that once came home as supposedly cowards only to be recognized as heroes fifty years later, typical again for the insanity of wars.

Based on a True Unknown Story of Courage

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 10 October 2016]

In 1961, the UN sends an Irish peacekeeper troop commanded by Commandant Pat Quilan (Jamie Dornan) to Katanga, in Congo, to protect the inhabitants of the mining town of Jadotville in the beginning of a civil war. Meanwhile the UN adviser Dr. Conor Cruise O'Brien (Mark Strong) launches a military attack named Operation Morthor against the French and Belgian mercenaries. Soon there is a reprisal from the mercenaries and Quilana and his men are left under the siege of a huge Katangese and mercenary troops. Will the Irish soldiers resist to the attack?

"The Siege of Jadotville" is a great action film with a story based on a true unknown story of courage. The action scenes are spectacular but the political conspiracy could be better explained for viewers that do not have knowledge of this historical event. But "The Siege of Jadotville" is worthwhile watching. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

A war movie that will become a classic.

[xenonkuraz · 9 October 2016]

I have never reviewed a movie before, and I probably will never review another. I always go to IMDb to read reviews on a movie before I watch it, just to decide whether it's worth the 1.5-2 hours of my time.

I must say that I am a war movie buff, and have not seen a decent one since Saving Private Ryan and Heroes of Iwo Jima.

Put simply, this movie had me hooked from the first five minutes. The dialogue is fantastic, the narration is on point and the story line flows very well.

I was gripped to my seat as I watched this film, and I felt a deep connection with each and every soldier on screen. This might come out as a B grade movie, but I assure you it was A+ in my books. definitely worth the 2 hours and I will probably watch it again and again in future.

Those were the dark days

[pietclausen · 6/10 · 1 May 2018]

I happened to be in Jadotville before the arrival of the Irish UN troops. The Katangese did not want the UN to be there at all and supported Moise Tshombe. Even the public aimed their hostility at the UN and praised Tsombe's mercenary forces. In Jadotville we knew that the Irish and trouble was coming, so some friends and I were evacuated to Elizabethville.

I lost touch with happenings at Jadotville and one never knew what really transpired there. It is only now by coming across this film that the truth comes out and why the secrecy was kept for 45 years.

I watched the film with anticipation, which also brought back many memories. I accept that the film was dramatized, but I can assure you it was no fun being there.

True story of Irish UN peace-keepers embroiled in a civil war in Africa in 1961

[jimothy1-439-660258 · 10/10 · 29 September 2016]

Based on true events, this film is a shock to the system because what it reveals had been meticulously covered up for over 40 years. The film highlights one of the most important roles ever played by the Irish Defence Forces as United Nations peace keepers. All the more astonishing given the "battle virginity and inexperience of the Irish troops, the menacing threat and overwhelming numbers of hardened ex-Forign Legion French and African mercenaries there to defend the interests of the powerful international mining companies. Superbly acted by a virtually unknown cast, the tension mounts from the moment the troops find themselves billeted in the uranium rich mining Katanga outpost of Jadotville, in the province of Kinshasa in the southern rump of the fledgling Republic of The Congo.

In the background the Cold War is at its most dangerous as the Western, Eastern political blocs posture between the emerging United Nations trying to establish its credibility on the international stage. The civil war in this strategically important supplier to the nuclear armaments race is at its height, and an Irish diplomat Conor Cruise O'Brien (Mark Strong) is sent to Katanga to handle the situation on behalf of the UN. It is impossible to fathom how the Irish commandant (Jamie Dornan) in charge on the ground can be expected to keep the peace and hold the area assigned to the poorly equipped Irish troops. While tension mounts locally, high stakes and political posturing take place in the background stretching the ubiquitous tension even further. I'm still pinching myself with the realisation that all this happened within my lifetime and never knew a thing about it until viewing this spell-binding, tension filled action drama.This massively impacting film would be well worth seeing again , if only to focus next time on the drama itself without the distraction or initial shock of the unfolding historical events portrayed.

An Important Recognition of a Little Known Battle

[tabuno · 7/10 · 12 April 2021]

This movie based on a real battle at Jadotville, Congo defended by an Irish-contingent from the United Nations in 1961 has parallels to the more well-known We Were Soldiers (2002) based on the real events of the first major U. S. battle in the Vietnam War that occurred in Ia Drang valley in 1985. In both instances, the Irish and American soldiers were vastly out-numbered and in both cases fought a losing battle. It is important to note that in the rather remarkable fact of the few casualties of Irishmen in the actual The Siege of Jadotville because without this awareness, the battle scenes in this movie might be become unbelievable to watch. There are various scenes that seem to be overly dramatic, however, and the verbal confrontation between the U. N. Secretary and supposedly members of the U. N. Security Council came across as artificial and superficially produced. Whether the more modern explosive events surrounding the la Drang valley battle made for better cinematography or The Siege of Jadotville just lacked the popular luster of war movies, it is really hard to review this movie. However, it apparently it is an important military event for which the recognition of the Irishmen involved in this battle is worth public notice and our belated respect.

A worthy film anchored by Jamie Dornan's steadfast performance

[azanti0029 · 8/10 · 10 October 2016]

Anyone who was lucky enough to see the recent stage play 'A Season in the Congo' in London a couple of years will have a good idea of the backdrop of events here. In time this may too be a feature film. We can only hope.

For those who do not know the background to the setting of these events - Its 1961 in the African Congo and the country is still reeling from the murder of its democratically elected President Patrice Lumumba. Complicit in his death were both the United States and the United Nations to whom Lumumba had appealed to for help when there was rebellion in his army, both had refused, so he turned to the Soviet Union for assistance which brought down scorn from the west. By the time the UN got its act together the country was under the command of Moise Tshombe and Lumumba had been murdered. Belgian Mercenaries working with Condolease troops loyal to Mobutu wanted the UN out and into all this mess arrived a group of Irish Soldiers sent auspiciously under the the guise of a Peace Keeping Mission to a remote location, their actual objective, not immediately clear. The UN, keen to show Mobutu has it was pulling the strings from here on seized several Government controlled buildings in the capital, during which several civilians were killed at a radio station. The UN in turn covered up these events, all the while in a distant outpost the small group of Irish Soldiers face a siege from thousands of troops. Unable to be reinforced and low on ammo water, how long can they hold out?

Thus is setting for the Siege of Jadotville. The European involvement in the Congo is a shameful and embarrassing part of our history which has been all too glossed over and the events depicted here were indeed also covered up themselves. The more films about this subject the better as far as I am concerned. But this is a story about the men on the ground as well as the mess that put them there. Young flush faced lads who have never seen the face of battle before. Their commander, played by Jamie Dornan, knows their in trouble and is quick to improve the defences and the film takes on something of a 'Zulu' quality.

The Casting here has been key Mark Strong is the face of the complex double duelling politic and as always puts in a great performance in his role.

Guillaume Canet heads up the Belgian mercenaries with an appropriate broodiness but the younger cast here, many of them relative unknowns are great. I predict great things to come for several of the actors - including Sam Keeley, Conor MacNeil, Charlie Kelly, Fionn O'Shea and Ronan Raftery to name just a few while Danny Sapani makes for an imposing Tshombe. Characteriasion is a little thin of the ground for some of the characters who become identifiable by what they do (Sniper, Radio Operator) rather than what they say, so its a credit to the cast and director that many of the nameless men manage to make their mark in ones memory. As with most films of this type female roles are somewhat underwritten but such is the nature of the piece. There has been mentions of Jamie Dornan's accent, I personally couldn't find too great a fault in it, it was his acting that constantly drew me on screen. Someone who knows how to do a great deal, just with a look rather than with dialogue. He just gets better in everything I see him in.

This is an extremely well made and worthy film that sets right an injustice that history was told not to tell at the time. It makes one wonder how many more such stories are out there. I am sure hundreds, no thousands. Recommended.

Surprisingly good story from an unknown engagement

[dolphinfish · 7/10 · 6 January 2019]

One of the problems with war movies is that they tend to attract reviews from military anoraks, all of whom have biases in favour of one or other army/force/grouping. "Yeah, the SAS would make mincemeat of them", or "they wouldn't last three minutes against the Navy Seals", or whatever. Scroll through the reviews of this movie and you'll find similar here. A certain amount of realism is important, but just how realistic were "great" war movies of the past, particularly the British war movies from WWII?

In reality, very few western soldiers ever fire a shot in anger, so in point of fact, stories like this, where peacetime soldiers are thrust into an actual firefight carry their own realism. Some here have argued the unlikelihood of a five day fire fight where hundreds of the enemy are killed and none of the defenders. Yet, that IS exactly what happened at Jadotville, with estimates of enemy losses ranging from three hundred to one thousand. The broad sweep of the story is true.

With that in mind, the only question is, is the action believable? The answer is, yes, it is. It's amazingly well done on what must have been a tiny (by Hollywood standards) budget. Commandant (Major) Quinlan leads a small troop of Irish UN peacekeepers holding a small outpost in Katanga. After the UN forces assault the Katangan rebels under the orders of Connor Cruise O'Brien (Mark Strong), the UN leader on the ground, the mercenary forces retaliate by attacking the isolated Jadotville outpost. There follows a five day siege in which the Irish defend their position to the last bullet while being left unenforced and unsupplied by their superiors.

The machinations of the UN are well covered, and the oily Connor Cruise O'Brien -- a real person who is not fondly remembered in Ireland -- is portrayed well by Mark Strong, who is a better actor than he is often given credit for, although I would have liked a little more on what happened after Commandant Quinlan arrived home and he had to put up with the insinuations of career soldiers who had never heard a gunshot. Ignore the begrudgers. This may not be a great movie, but it is a good one telling a more or less true but almost forgotten story.

A remarkable story of courage and political machinations....

[s3276169 · 10/10 · 18 October 2016]

I had never heard of The Siege of Jadotville before watching this film.

Its based on a remarkable story of courage of a small group of Irish UN troops who come under attack from a much larger contingent of mixed tribal, coup based government, settler and mercenary forces in the Congo.

The courage demonstrated by the Irish soldiers and their determination to do their job is overshadowed by the political machinations of the UN and the Irish government. The fear, on the part of the latter, of looking incompetent, leads to the soldiers becoming the fall guys, for a situation they did not create and could not, ultimately control. All this, in spite of their heroic efforts.

Whats really surprising is the quality of this production. Its an exceptional film on so many levels. Its reasonably candid, in its appraisal of the situation that existed at the time. Its capably directed, scripted and acted as well, with a very strong cast.

The action scenes that run the length of this film are quite simply, incredible. This film is never, ever boring but what really astounded me is the casualties inflicted by the Irish soldiers with not one of their men lost. Its a testament too, to the ability and insight shown by their commanding officer.

I'm not a huge war film fan so for me to give what amounts to a war film, a 10 out of 10, really is saying something. Take a look, you wont be disappointed.

Crazy true story war film

[nathanmanson · 7/10 · 12 October 2021]

For this to be a true story is genuinely sad. It took until 2005 for them brave courageous soldiers to be given acknowledgement of their bravery, that's absolutely ridiculous. They were branded cowards after fighting for their lives and doing their country proud, that's so sad to hear.

Other then that the film it's self was really well done and it gives you a great insight into that war and what the soldiers went through for their lives and country. You never know how Netflix films are going to turn out, especially true story films but they've done well with this one.

Also for no soldiers to have died that's absolutely incredible, well done to them.

Imagine Zulu... but with the Zulus carrying machine guns, and air support.

[johnbirch-2 · 10/10 · 1 December 2016]

This is a total surprise of a film. Surprise because this thrill ride has not had a cinematic release (even in Ireland). Surprise because its a war film about Irish soldiers (which possibly puts in a category all of its own). Surprise because its an almost untold piece of history concerning a forgotten war, despite the astonishing heroism involved, mainly because the Irish government and the UN hushed it up.

Indeed maybe that is one explanation. Its a story that the Irish government only finally admitted to and fully acknowledged after the film had been made, 50 years after the events.

But its a story that deserves telling. Really, this is a 20th century Rorke's Drift. Except that the British had it easy in comparison to what these Irish lads (and young lads many are!) faced. Michael Caine in "Zulu" did not have to deal with machine guns, mortars, fighter planes and a lack of ammunition.

Its full of action, but also a tangled web of politics, and unanswered questions like why on earth the small unit is placed where it was at all.

It does not even have a video release, but it is on Netflicks. Don't miss it.

One of those Netflix gems.

[mm-39 · 7/10 · 2 February 2022]

Nothing to watch as winter and Covid has me movied out, and I fished out Netflix. Well not totally fished out! Then I came across The Siege of Jabotville. Mmmm a newer movie with Jamie Dornan. The Siege of Jadotville is one of those hidden Netflix gems. Like Kobri Kia, and Squid games you think this is going be a stinker, but turns out entertaining. The Siege of Jadotville is based on a true story which make for an interesting a believable movie. There is a foreground of new Irish army, and a new U N with Ireland is given a peace keeping mission. The officer Jamie Dornan is tied up, but in a different way, with politics, incompetents, and bad policy. The Irish division is sent to the Congo, in a undefendable position, we see the characters and there dependence on Jamie Dornan leadership. Doubted at first, but vetted under fire. The adversary is an experience French Foreign legion officer with a plan. There is a will of wits and the viewer wonders what will happen next. Out numbered, out gunned and without back up the the Irish division is throwing under the bus. I will not ruin the movie but just say well directed acted and executed. Worth watching on your Netflix radar.

A Missed Opportunity

[keikoyoshikawa · 5/10 · 25 October 2019]

Having had worked in Katanga and being a history buff, I wished this movie would have done much better justice to the bravery and brilliant tactics of the Irish soldiers who managed to fend off a much superior force during the brief secession bid of that province in 1961.

The subject itself has been little explored but it is very fascinating. That a company of poorly supported Irish soldiers was able to fight off a brigade-size unit of Belgian, French, and Rhodesian mercenaries supported by aircraft, without losing a single man during a 6-day siege, is simply nothing short of exceptional.

Much credit for this has to go to Commandant Quinlan, the officer in charge of the company, who was shamefully scapegoated for the failures of the UN peacekeeping force by no less his own government. Although he was posthumously recognized for his skillful defense, I find it sad that he had not lived to see his own exoneration.

As other reviewers have said, this movie is uneven. Given that Commandant Quinlan and his men were treated poorly by their own government and the Irish Army after the siege and their subsequent release from captivity, this should have played a more prominent role in the story telling because it is very much central to the overall story itself.

In addition, the movie should have focused more on the experiences of these men and their backgrounds prior to and after the battle, not just on the battle itself. Perhaps even more storytelling about the politics surrounding the battle would have been welcomed. Thus it was clearly a missed opportunity to show why they deserve praise for their actions during those few days in late 1961 in the newly formed Republic of the Congo.

A side note: It was good to see Jamie Dornan outside his most recognized role as Christian Grey. Kudos to him.

A story worth telling that didn't quite get its message across

[SeriousMayhem · 6/10 · 21 September 2022]

While I appreciated this movie and the story it wanted to tell (a story which certainly is worth telling), I'm not quite sure it managed to succeed entirely in that.

The movie covers a lot of angles and viewpoints, but the end-result is that a lot of it feels shoehorned in. What I missed the most was fluidity; a more seamless and natural progression from scene to scene. You know, an actual movie, and not just a collection of scenes glued together.

It did manage to get most of the story across, but a lot of it felt like filler for in between the battle scenes, because the battle scenes are what makes up most of this movie.

The action wasn't bad and it has some good moments, but overall it's perhaps a bit more generic than it should have been.

I'm also not quite sure how close to the truth the actual battle scenes are, but I find it highly unlikely the battles turned out the way they did if it happened exactly as the movie showed us.

All that said, its greatest flaw: a missing emotional connection. The movie could have done with about half an hour more runtime to flesh out and develop the characters so that you're actually going to care for them. I didn't care in the end and that's a real shame for a movie like this. That's what this movie was about, right? The people fighting that battle, not the battle itself. Along with the rushed ending, it feels like a missed opportunity.

Not bad, not good. 6,5/10, rounding down.

Hidden gem!

[viper-57726 · 9/10 · 19 January 2017]

What a movie, came out of nowhere and was sitting on my list for a long time before i downloaded for a flight due to lack of anything else to watch. Seems Netflix has a promising future in the movie department now too.

Draws understandable comparisons with Zulu, but the real shame is behind the true story here and the reason why it's not a widely known about event.

Ignoring the real events (which were incredible and worth further research) the movie really stands on its own as a thoroughly entertaining war film. Tensions builds nicely and results in a whole load of impressive action sequences.

Credit to Dornan who is unfortunately going to be more known for the whole 50 shades nonsense, hopefully once he gets past that he wont be held back on more decent roles.

Bravery and dignity

[redtiago · 7/10 · 25 January 2022]

Context: Siege of Jadotville took place in September 1961, during the United Nations intervention in the Congo Crisis in the Republic of Congo (Léopoldville), in Central Africa. Company "A", 35th Irish Army battalion of ONUC contingent was attacked by National Front for the Liberation of Congo troops loyal to Prime Minister Moise Tshombe of Katanga State. Irish troops were besieged in the town of Jadotville (present-day Likasi) and resisted Katangese attacks for six days while Irish and Swedish reinforcements unsuccessfully attempted to reach the town.

The Irish company was eventually forced to surrender after supplies and ammunition ran out, but not before inflicting severe casualties on the enemy. They were held as prisoners of war for approximately one month. It was the last United Nations Operation Congo (ONUC) peacekeeping mission to use Swedish and Irish troops in hostile action.

Film:

The film portrays the unvirtuous political intricacies and the heroic resistance of the Irish soldiers, dubbed cowards and traitors. His bravery and dedication was only recognized years later.

Effective both in the technical aspects and in the rawness and brute truth, with which the facts are narrated.

The narration of the political intricacies does not take away the dynamics of the narrative and raises the level of understanding, and also obviously of indignation, of this sad episode under UN purview .

In purely cinephile terms, it is a good film, showing the bravery, courage and dedication of a company of green, but well-trained soldiers, faced with an experienced enemy that is far superior in number. Fighting until it was no longer possible, having to surrender but with all dignity, contrary to the politicians who got them into this mess.

About time the record was set straight

[anthonymcevoy · 10/10 · 1 October 2016]

My critique may dismissed as an Irish mans view of an Irish story but I was very cynical of this movies ability to do justice to the facts. I am a fan of good war movies but detest whizz bang movies. This is not a whizz bang movie but the action sequences are up there with the best. The best way to describe this movie is using the Finnish word "Sisu". I grew up in 1960's Ireland. We all heard about Niemba, but unless you were an adult at the time you probably never heard of Jadoville. I saw the documentary and was flabbergasted that this had been covered up. I read the book and my blood boiled. So I knew the story. This film is tightly written, brilliantly acted by everyone and the action sequences are superb. I imagined the film would be "interesting" but pedestrian. Not at all. Everything is tight, suspenseful and believable. You are sucked in by the movie. A little known skirmish....with great characters, with a nasty backdrop of geopolitics very adroitly explained by the screenwriters....superb cineamatography and great acting. Hard to better....a must see film.

standard true war story

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 27 June 2019]

It's 1961. Newly independent Congo is in the turmoil of a civil war fueled by the Cold War and mining riches. The UN sends Irish peacekeepers to the town of Jadotville in the middle of a rich uranium deposit. Moise Tshombe is the smiling murderous leader of the State of Katanga. He recruits 1000 French mercenaries from De Gaulle. Irish Commandant Pat Quinlan (Jamie Dornan) is inexperienced like the rest of his men. Sergeant Jack Prendergast (Jason O'Mara) is the hardened one. Irish politician Conor Cruise O'Brien (Mark Strong) leads the mission and orders an aggressive takeover of the Katanga capital. The situation spins out of control and Jadotville comes under seige by overwhelming forces.

This is a rather standard war movie especially with its battle actions. It has the thrills of the standard old war movie with the wave attacks. One expects better tactics from the enemy. This doesn't go that much into the personal lives of the soldiers. In a way, I appreciate that. The movie introduces a romantic interest but quickly cuts her out. It's as if somebody had a change of opinion about injecting a romance into the battle. The ending does come as a surprise. The truth needs some way to spice up the tension.

The fogginess of War

[GyatsoLa · 8/10 · 2 October 2016]

I was delighted to see the release of that genuine rarity - an Irish action/war film. And that its based on one of the great untold (or at least undersold) stories of valour makes it all the more intriguing. And its wonderful to see the 'Jadotville Jacks' finally having their story told.

I'm slightly reluctant to report that the film itself is something of a mixed bag. Its a particularly difficult story to tell because so many of the events are mired in historical controversy. Even a Graham Greene or John Le Carre would struggle to make sense of the conflicting real life plots of that period. Ultimately, nobody really knows why it was thought to make sense to isolate the soldiers in Jadotville and then fail so miserably to support them, or for that matter why the Katangans were so determined to dislodge them. We only know that the soldiers were victims of geopolitical plotting far from the battlefield. The films tortuous script tries hard to illuminate the multiple double dealings going on in the background, but ultimately this becomes tiresome and excessively literal.

The film tries very hard to be both a historical record, reasonably faithful to the events, and also a kick ass action film. Thats a very hard trick to pull off, and it doesn't quite manage it. Primarily, I think the problem is an excessively literal script - full of little walk in parts from historical figures making portentous and suitably ambiguous statements, with some clunky domestic scenes that try to illuminate the men behind the soldiers stranded in the town. Some of the dialogue is frankly a little painful. Thankfully, this is balanced by genuinely superb action scenes and a great narrative pace. I couldn't help thinking that this is a film that could have done with two different directors - the actual director who shows great talent and skill filming in Jadotville, and another who could handle the other parts of the film with a bit more subtlety and empathy.

It is a pity that it seems the film will not have a wide cinema release, because it deserves to be seen in the cinema. Certainly the audience in the cinema where I watched it were very enthusiastic about it (not least the ladies behind me who regularly expressed their appreciation of Jamie Doran quite loudly). But with luck it will be widely seen on Netflix.

A solid film lacking much substance

[tyleramato-28680 · 6/10 · 23 November 2016]

"The Siege of Jadotville" is the unknown story about an Irish peacekeeper troop commanded by Commandant Pat Quilan to Katanga, in Congo, sent to protect the inhabitants of the mining town of Jadotville in the beginning of a civil war. "The Siege of Jadotville" had potential to be really good but ends up just being a solid film, the direction by first time director Richie Smyth is very good, and Jamie Dorman of Fifty Shades fame gives a great performance as Commandant Pat Quilan, sadly, that's about all I can credit this film for, the score is awfully generic and out of place, everyone who aren't apart of the peacekeeper troop are portrayed as villains, and the sound design is lacking. With a bigger budget maybe this film could have turned out to be really good, but as it stands I really can't recommend this film to anyone, as I said, it's a solid film, it's just lacking any real substance to be worth a watch, unless the story sounds interesting to you, go ahead, if not, don't bother, as I said it lacks a lot of substance and leaves more to be desired.

Irish UN Peacekeepers in the Congo during the Cold War

[seanbmurphy · 9/10 · 21 September 2016]

I am a big fan of action films, any action film such as World War 2, 007, Stallone, etc. You name it I've seen it, When I heard they were making a film about Irish UN peacekeepers in Africa I was keen to see this film. I don't think I've seen a film about Irish peacekeepers or any peacekeepers come to that so I thought it would be an interesting take on the genre. I read that it was going to be a limited release so I was worried that it wasn't good enough to get a general release. Luckily the release wasn't too limited as I was able to see it in one of the local cinemas and my fears turned out to be unfounded.

The UN soldiers were dropped in the middle of a civil war in the Congo that was partly caused by the Cold War between the USA and the USSR, fuelled by their interest in the uranium mines located in that country. Generally it feels like an update of Zulu where there is a small isolated army post being overwhelmed by wave after wave of African soldiers. These attacking soldiers were led and guided by foreign mercenaries in the pay of mine owners who were disgruntled that the UN were dictating who would lead the country and hence who they would deal with. The spears and rifles of Zulu were replaced by more modern machine guns, sniper rifles, mortars and bazookas. There was no expense spared by the special effects' department on explosions that bring to life the combat. There are some events in the film that seem highly unlikely such as the first attack but I'm guessing as it's based on a true story reflecting the hectic nature of real fighting that these strange events did happen.

There are only a small number of recognisable stars and that may have hampered the chances of a general release but the largely unknown cast give it their all. I felt, however, that Mark Strong was sadly under-used and that he was on the fringes of the main action. The leading actor, Jamie Dornan, is more associated with the Fifty Shades films than with being an action hero but he is impressive as a soldier out of his depth trying to turn his training and his knowledge of fighting techniques into real fighting and doing the best for his men. Less than a week ago I saw him play an assassin, in Anthropoid. He's well-suited to playing the weary fighter and is convincing as an officer facing combat for the first time.

It was an enjoyable mix of action and mayhem featuring a band of soldiers with their backs against the wall and fighting for survival. It's well worth checking out.

Could have been a 10

[gbghykwg · 7/10 · 17 August 2021]

It's a solid war movie about a battle in a forgotten conflict. Even better: it's not simple pro US / anti communist propaganda. That's rare and refreshing. It's exciting to watch and tells an important story that had been covered up for long. Go watch it. But...

My issue is that the film doesn't respect the historical reality. Plenty of stories are untold about Charles de Gaulle, a man who came to power because of a military coup which marked the end of the fourth republic and later repaid the favour by pardoning right wing ex militaries who had gone rogue and engaged in terrorism. But he did not send the legionnaires to the Kongo. They actually turned into mercenaries after trying to coup against de Gaulle (yes history is wild) and having to withdraw from Algeria. If you need to include backup from a former colonial power, maybe look at Belgium instead, that would make more sense.

I understand that movie wants to give a quick overview on the context before throwing the audience into battle. The phone call at the beginning is a cheap and quick way to do so. But here's a better idea: drop the wife at home. This would free up the 5 minutes needed to tell the real story of the legionnaires and why they were there. We don't need to know that the main guy has a wife at home (all humans have families), especially when she serves no function except saying goodbye and hello.

Hell this might even give us time to tell the audience that the cover up led to suicide for some of the soldiers because of the shame that was cast onto them. Clearly the intention of this movie is to do justice by this military unit, and that's certainly a part of it, even though it might hurt some patriotic feelings in Ireland.

I'm not french, but my grandfather served in the legion. His stories about the wars were honest and included the war crimes which they committed. No hurt feelings here except I'm a nerd for history and this movie has missed some great chances for accurate education. The good news is that it could be fixed with very little editing.

Well-Intentioned, But Forgettable

[RustyShacklefordd · 5/10 · 25 November 2016]

There isn't anything that is particularity bad about The Siege of Jadotville, but rather that it just feels rather uninspired compared to other war films of it's kind. It's a shame too because it's a film that's trying to tell an important story that hasn't received the recognition it deserves. The first half-hour builds up the plot, but forgets to really build or develop it's characters leaving us with little to invest in emotionally. The acting isn't bad, but none of the performances are that impressive either. The war scenes themselves are actually what keeps the movie from falling completely flat. They are well-shot, but there's nothing about them that makes them all that impressive either (although it probably doesn't help I watched this right after seeing the fantastic Hacksaw Ridge). Overall, if you don't have anything else to watch and enjoy war movies then you might want to consider giving this a watch, but otherwise it really isn't worth it. There are much better and more entertaining war movies out there for you not to waste your time on this one. It's an admirable effort, but you'll forget about it shortly after viewing.

A (more) modern day Zulu - battle at Rorke's Drift

[david-fernandez · 5 April 2017]

Set in the 1960s a 150 strong and very green U.N. Irish regiment holds off a Congo / French mercenary military force which is 20 times their number defending a remote radio station camp.

This actually did happen and there was U.N. political incompetence and U.N. political tragedy after the president of the Congo was assassinated for nationalising the mineral rich Cobalt and Uranium mines in the area which paid mercenaries and the new corrupt president and his army vowed to defend for the companies and keep them as private entities.

These Irish soldiers were seriously left to die almost by the U.N. in a political game which saw them face impossible odds and in the face of adversity they showed immense bravery. The movie ends in a rather sombre mood which makes us realise that there is often more honour amongst soldiers than there is with politicians.