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Courage Under Fire

Courage Under Fire

Drama · Thriller · Mystery · 1996

A US Army officer, who made a "friendly fire" mistake that was covered up, has been reassigned to a desk job. He is tasked to investigate a female chopper commander's worthiness to be awarded the Medal of Honor. At first all seems in order. But then he begins to notice inconsistencies between the testimonies of the witnesses...

Movie details

Courage Under Fire

“A medal for honor. A search for justice. A battle for truth.”

1996 Drama · Thriller · Mystery 1h 56m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.6 / 10

Community rating

A US Army officer, who made a "friendly fire" mistake that was covered up, has been reassigned to a desk job. He is tasked to investigate a female chopper commander's worthiness to be awarded the Medal of Honor. At first all seems in order. But then he begins to notice inconsistencies between the testimonies of the witnesses...

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Courage Under Fire?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Edward Zwick

Written by

Patrick Sheane Duncan

Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington

Lieutenant Colonel Nathaniel Serling

Meg Ryan

Meg Ryan

Captain Karen Emma Walden

Lou Diamond Phillips

Lou Diamond Phillips

Staff Sergeant John Monfriez

Michael Moriarty

Michael Moriarty

Brigadier General Hershberg

Matt Damon

Matt Damon

Ilario

Bronson Pinchot

Bronson Pinchot

Bruno

Seth Gilliam

Seth Gilliam

Stephen Altameyer

Court is in session

Put Courage Under Fire on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.