Band of Brothers: Season 1

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 28 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 370 Ratings

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9.3

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Band Of Brothers

Now Playing: Band Of Brothers

Season Details & Credits

HBO | Season Premiere Date: September 9, 2001

Starring: Kirk Acevedo, Scott Grimes, Matthew Settle

Summary: Band of Brothers is a 10-part miniseries produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks for HBO. The miniseries follows Easy Company, an army unit during World War II, from their initial training at Camp Toccoa to the conclusion of the war.

The series is based on the book written by the late Stephen E Ambrose. Tom Hanks approached StevenBand of Brothers is a 10-part miniseries produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks for HBO. The miniseries follows Easy Company, an army unit during World War II, from their initial training at Camp Toccoa to the conclusion of the war.

The series is based on the book written by the late Stephen E Ambrose. Tom Hanks approached Steven Spielberg, who just finished production of Saving Private Ryan. Together they approached HBO with their idea. The station was willing to spend a industry record sum of $120m to realize the project.… Expand

Genre(s): Drama, Action & Adventure

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Season 1 Episodes

tbd
S1:E11. The Patrol
Air Date: May 23, 2018
tbd
S1:E10. Points
Air Date: November 4, 2001
tbd
S1:E9. Why We Fight
Air Date: October 28, 2001

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Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

100

M.S. Mason

Aug 15, 2013

An amazing accomplishment. It refrains from emotional manipulation (unlike Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan"). All 10 parts portray human nature as it is - mixed motives, conflicting impulses. It earns every emotion it inspires in us. If it is heartening, it's because it defies cynicism and reveals the realities of courage, compassion, and brotherhood as real men in a horrendous war practiced it. [7 Sept 2001, p.15]

100

Adam Buckman

Aug 15, 2013

After watching the 10-hour Band of Brothers, I'm so drained by the intensity of what I have just beheld that I'm ready to declare this World War II miniseries the finest piece of work ever produced for television. [7 Sept 2001, p.117]

100

Barry Garron

Aug 15, 2013

It is doubtful that any war movie on the large or small screen has captured the varied experiences of ordinary soldiers better than Band of Brothers. Whether it's the sheer terror of facing an unseen enemy or the momentary joy following a successful mission, the mini eschews the typical movie cliches while revealing and reveling in the humanity within each member of Easy Company. It explains in large measure why this group of regular guys and others like them have come to be called the Greatest Generation. [5 Sept 2001]

Scott D. Pierce

Aug 15, 2013

It doesn't even look like a TV miniseries -- it's more like 10 theatrical films that do an amazing job re-creating battles. [7 Sept 2001, p.W01]

Marisa Guthrie

Aug 14, 2013

Band of Brothers stands as a very satisfying adaptation of Ambrose's meticulous and engrossing account. [9 Sept 2001, p.61]

Jonathan Storm

Aug 14, 2013

The production is so technically expert that it's agonizing to watch. And with the emphasis on authenticity, there's almost none of the tension that usually moves drama along. To get through it all, viewers will need to be almost as committed to Band of Brothers as the soldiers were to fighting the war. [9 Sept 2001, p.H01]

Tom Shales

Aug 15, 2013

A glorious bungle. It has been produced on a dauntingly massive scale (by no less than Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks, those old war hands) and is at times visually astonishing...Unfortunately it also suffers from disorganization, muddled thinking and a sense of redundancy. [8 Sept 2001, p.C01]

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User Score

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9.3

User Reviews

tdh1878199410

Feb 13, 2022

Band of Brothers is a visually stunning and emotionally compelling series that accurately captures both the horrors and comradery of war.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Athandel

Nov 21, 2011

An excellent achievement in television storytelling. The amount of time and dedication put into this show by the team at Dreamworks and HBO is stunning.

8 of 8 users found this helpful80

ReelViews94

Mar 23, 2016

The HBO original mini-series “Band of Brothers” is the kind of filmmaking enterprise that makes the word “epic” seem inadequate. The series (smartly) takes a myopic view of the war, focusing on a small group of men instead of giving us a grand tale that encompassed all the different shadesThe HBO original mini-series “Band of Brothers” is the kind of filmmaking enterprise that makes the word “epic” seem inadequate. The series (smartly) takes a myopic view of the war, focusing on a small group of men instead of giving us a grand tale that encompassed all the different shades and theaters of the war effort. It is, for all intents and purposes, a personal story about the trials and tribulations, the victories and defeats, and the heroism and cowardice of a single company in a war that involved hundreds of thousands of companies. The company in question is Easy Company, a tiny fraction of the 101st Airborne Division, the American military’s paratrooper corp. The mini-series, which ran for 10 straight weeks on HBO, was produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, with Hanks serving as writer and director on a couple of episodes.

The men that starts and ends as the heart and soul of “Band of Brothers” is Dick Winters (Damian Lewis), a mild-mannered small-town man who proves to be an extraordinary leader, and Winters’ best friend, Lewis Nixon (Ron Livingston), a rich Easterner who discovers his many inadequacies during the war. The mini-series follows Easy Company from their training to their deployment into France during D-Day, and finally into Germany, where Easy Company liberates Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest — the Third Reich leader’s hideaway mountain retreat.

Through the 10 episodes, the focus shifts between different men of Easy Company, and by series’ end, everyone has been given their time in the spotlight. The remarkable thing is just how well the series works as a single series. At the beginning the characters blend together because there are so many of them, so many names and faces to remember, that they become indistinguishable. By the time the series wraps up with Episode 10, we have intimate knowledge of all those who have survived — and those who didn’t. Because the series is based on true accounts, all of the characters are based on real men, and those who die in the series actually died in real life. This gives the series a grounded and very gritty feel. These people actually died — or lived — through this hell.

The series is based on a nonfiction book by noted World War II historian Stephen Ambrose. Each episode, besides focusing on different groups of men within Easy Company, uses a round robin of directors and writers. Some names are more famous than others, but each one has a very good grasp on the subject matter, and the directors all employ similar filming styles. It helps that the series employs only two cinematographers in Remi Adefarasin and Joel Ransom. The two men provide the series with a constant look and feel, giving the impression of one long 10-hour movie instead of a 10-part mini-series.

The series’ maintenance on a constant vibe is also a testament to producers Hanks and Spielberg. The different episodes range from the storming of a French town to the hellish stand of Easy Company in the Bastogne forest under heavy German barrage. Each episode has its own unique view of the war, but the down-and-dirty and the you-can-die-at-any-moment feel remains throughout. Because the series was filmed for HBO, the language is raw, and so are the violence and massive bloodshed. In a word, “Band of Brothers” doesn’t flinch from the horrors and miseries of war, and those with a squeamish stomach will have plenty to close their eyes at. Everything is here, shown in brutal color. Death comes suddenly and without notice, and survival is a miracle of circumstances.

Besides Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston, other actors of note are Donnie Wahlberg, formerly of the New Kids on the Block, who shows up as an embattled soldier with an unyielding determination to not only survive, but keep his fellow “brothers” alive as well. There’s Matthew Settle as Ronald Speirs, a Captain who may or may not have murdered dozens of German POWs in cold blood. Speirs embodies the stone-cold courage and psychosis of a man born for the single purpose of fighting wars.

Another very smart move by the producers was to invite the real-life survivors of Easy Company to narrate the beginning of each episode. In each one, we see these grizzled men talking about the horrors of the war, the friendships they built, and the brotherly love they shared for the men of their unit — strangers who became closer than brothers. It’s all real and completely honest. The producers also refuse to identify the real-life men of Easy Company until the very end, in Episode 10. This keeps the audience who hasn’t read Ambrose’s book from guessing who will die and who will survive. It works, and the death of various characters was shocking and sad, and the survivals of others were stunning and euphoric.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Sovereignlol

Feb 9, 2014

This is hands down the best series i've ever seen. Band of Brothers tells a deep story of real members of the 101st Airborne Division, and trust me. It tells that story good.

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

Ravenous

Nov 19, 2010

Band of Brothers is one of the most thoroughly enjoyable mini-series ever produced. The story of these memorable characters is one that eclipses perhaps any war story over shown on television OR the big screen.

3 of 3 users found this helpful30

drlowdon

Apr 2, 2013

Based on the book by Stephen Ambrose Band of Brothers is a ten-part series following the actions of Easy Company starting with their initial boot camp training in Currahee.

Although the show follows Easy Company into the major battles and events of the European Campaign, each battle isBased on the book by Stephen Ambrose Band of Brothers is a ten-part series following the actions of Easy Company starting with their initial boot camp training in Currahee.

Although the show follows Easy Company into the major battles and events of the European Campaign, each battle is shown from a different perspective to movies such as Saving Private Ryan with D-Day for example seeing the paratroopers land behind enemy lines without most of their weapons and supplies.
Slightly less 'Hollywood' than Saving Private Ryan and featuring some incredible acting performances Band of Brothers is a gritty and emotional portrayal of arguably the darkest time in European History.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

SimboTheKing

Jul 14, 2020

Disclaimer: I only watched up to episode 6 (still over half the series)

I really wanted to like band of brothers but the more I watched the more I just found it sooooo boring. On a technical level it is truly amazing - the way many scenes are staged and shot are some of the best I've everDisclaimer: I only watched up to episode 6 (still over half the series)

I really wanted to like band of brothers but the more I watched the more I just found it sooooo boring. On a technical level it is truly amazing - the way many scenes are staged and shot are some of the best I've ever seen on TV. However, the story and plot are where it becomes so weak. For me, every episode felt exactly the same. They focus on a character, a load of war **** happens, some random guy will die that got introduced in that episode (usually a soon-to-be famous actor), then eventually the main troopers are fine and dandy. It just gets so repetitive and the fact that all 6 episodes I watched felt very similar just left me feeling constantly bored.

I really don't understand how this has got such critical acclaim (outside of its production). It is literally all production with nothing else to write home about.

Basically, if you like it when things go BOOM then this series is for you … Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SEE ALL 43 REVIEWS

Seasons & Episodes

87

Series Overview
Season 1

86
- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: September 9, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E11. The Patrol
  Air Date: May 23, 2018
- tbd
  S1:E10. Points
  Air Date: November 4, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E9. Why We Fight
  Air Date: October 28, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E8. The Patrol
  Air Date: October 20, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E7. The Breaking Point
  Air Date: October 14, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E6. Bastogne
  Air Date: October 7, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E5. Crossroads
  Air Date: September 30, 2001
- 9.3
  S1:E4. Replacements
  Air Date: September 23, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E3. Carentan
  Air Date: September 16, 2001
- tbd
  S1:E2. Day of Days
  Air Date: September 9, 2001
- 8.0
  S1:E1. Currahee
  Air Date: September 9, 2001