This is a great film. I encourage everyone to see it.
I just saw the film, and I didn’t see it as a a pro-war polemic; I didn’t see it as an anti-war polemic, either. Which is good, because polemics suck - including those I agree with. I don’t think the movie wanted to say anything great and sweeping about war, either pro or against, only to tell a story within the context of a war, and I think it was a good story, well told, which made it a good movie.
The tradition of big budget anti-war Hollywood movies goes back to 1930’s “All Quiet On The Western Front”, which won Oscars for Best Director and the equivalent of Best Picture.
You can find a clip of the “charge” scene online. It does not make for pleasant viewing.
And not to give anything away, but the ending is not happy.
