We Were Soldiers

These are the true events of November, 1965.

The Ia Drang Valley of Vietnam.

A place our country does not remember...

in a war it does not understand.

This story is the testament to the young

Americans who died in the Valley of Death

and a tribute to the young men of the People's Army of Vietnam...

who died by our hand in that place.

To tell this story, I must start

at the beginning.

But where does it begin?

Maybe in June of 1954

when French Group Mobile 100 moved into

the same Central Highlands of Vietnam...

where we would go 11 years later.

Maybe the story begins in America...

when the Army first realized

a new kind of war was coming its way.

The White House anticipates a buildup

and wants a victory

over cavemen in black pajamas.

We wouldn't be there if they hadn't already beaten the French Army.

The French Army? What's that?

The problem in Vietnam is terrain.

Jungles, mountains, rivers, maneuver's a nightmare.

That's why we came up with the plan to use helicopters,

leap in and out of battle.

They want you to run the test on the idea.

It'll take a hell of a combat leader.

I know a young light Colonel named Hal Moore.

He led a combat company in Korea.

After that, he volunteered to test experimental parachutes.

Experimental parachutes?

Sounds like just the guy.

-What do you say? Bingo! -Oh...

Tom...

How much you know about our new Colonel?

He was in Korea.

Has a Masters in International Relations from Harvard.

Harvard?

He's not one of those academic pussies, is he?

Hal Moore?

Want me to get one of those?

THE WARS IN INDOCHINA

Come on, Too Tall, give me your best shot!

Did you see that, sports fans?

Did you see that?

Snakeshit drives that one to the moon, baby!

-To the moon! -Hit the cutoff man!

And he's coming around!

Here he comes!

No, he's not.

You're out, Snakeshit!

You're out!

Horseshit! No wonder you can't fly! You can't see!

I believe you're out.

You're a pilot?

Too Tall, sir.

Oh yeah, I can see that.

You call, we haul.

-Can I speak to you a minute, Crandall? -Yes, sir.

-Out! -Safe.

-Out! - He's safe.

-Can I buy you a drink? -Sure.

Oh, thanks.

So your men call you Snakeshit?

That's an affectionate appellation of my comrades-in-arms, sir.

'Cause I fly lower than Snakeshit.

Well, I gotta problem, Snakeshit.

And I think you're the solution.

I've been called a lot of things, Colonel, never a solution.

You know what Air Cavalry really means?

You fly into hostile territory, outnumbered,

10,000 miles from home.

Sometimes the battleground's no bigger than a football field.

And if the choppers stop coming, we all get slaughtered.

Now I figure, chopper pilots won't fly

into hell for strangers, so...

-I'm Hal Moore. -Oh I know, sir.

Why us?

Well, you guys look like shit.

But your equipment is immaculate.

Yesterday was Sunday, you didn't have to be training but you were.

And you got pilots like that Too Tall character.

He's way outside the limits of Army regs...

they wanna fly with you for some reason.

I guess it's 'cause they think you're the best.

It's 'cause I only recruit the dumb ones, sir.

I don't suppose I have a choice in all this.

You sure don't.

Wouldn't miss it for the world.

To The Air Cav.

Good morning, Sergeant Major.

How do you know what kind of goddamn day it is?

Group! Atten-hut!

At ease, gentlemen.

Welcome to the new cavalry.

We will ride into battle.

And this...

will be our horse.

You don't have to catch it.

You don't have to feed it.

But I can assure you...

that neither the new technology...

nor your status as officers...

will keep you above the danger.

Sergeant Major Plumley and I come from the paratroopers...

where the officer is always the first one out of the plane.

Because to follow your instincts...

and to inspire your men by your example...

you have to be with them...

where the metal meets the meat.

Sergeant Major Plumley made all 4 combat jumps

in the 82nd Airborne during World War II.

Sicily, Salerno, Normandy and Holland...

plus one more in Korea.

He answers to me...

and to me alone.

Now I hope you gentlemen like training.

'Cause me and the Sergeant Major...

we love it.

Three strikes and you're not out!

There is always one more thing you can do!

Here we go, boys!

Move! Move! Go! Go! Now!

-Two... -Let's go!

Three.

We're outta here!

-Pretty good, huh? -Pretty good.

There's only one thing wrong.

Let's be sharp, men! We will be the best

platoon in this battalion!

Be ready in there! Let's go! Let's go!

Alright! Your officer's dead! What do you do?

-What do you do? -First...

Alright, he hesitated! He's dead! What do you do?

-Get off the chopper! -Get off of the chopper!

All right, hold off the third one.

Come on in.

Savage, you learn the job of the man above you.

And you teach your job to the man below you in rank.

That goes for every man in this outfit. Understood?

Yes, Sir!

We'll be landing under fire, gentlemen.

Men will die.

Have you said your prayers?

-No? -No.

Come on, I'll say 'em with you.

-Fall in. -Give me that bear.

No!

Alright. Ready. Set.

In the name of The Father, and of The Son and The Holy Ghost. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace...

the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women...

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb...

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners...

Cecile, I don't hear you praying, honey.

I don't wanna be a Catholic.

I want to be a "Nethodist" like Mommy.

You do?

And why is that, honey?

So I can pray whatever I want.

-That's a sin. -No, no, no, no, that's not a sin.

Guess God just made you hardheaded.

That's not a sin.

I'll tell you what, you wanna...

you wanna pray and thank God for our family?

-Yes, sir. -Well that's good, well then let's do it.

Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women...

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

I can hear you laughing, you know, even in here.

I'm not laughing, I'm marveling.

Marveling? Marveling at what?

That you can find stubbornness in your children

and think it comes from anybody but you.

-Oh, yeah? -Mm-hmm.

I'll give you something to marvel at.

He's a wild man!

When I pray...

whatever I want...

I thank God for you.

Beautiful morning, Sergeant Major.

What are you, a fuckin' weatherman now?

Look what I found for the new baseball player.

Sent us another bunch of officers.

Real green. Got to train 'em up.

Makes me think I'm starting a new unit.

They sent new rifles, too. The M-16.

Oh now that's supposed to be a pretty good weapon.

Ah, lots of plastic.

Feels like a BB gun to me.

Believe I'll stick with my pistol.

You think we're gonna get close enough to the enemy to use that?

What do you think, sir?

A leader must remain cool and calm and thinking.

He must learn to ignore...

explosions, the heat, the dust...

the screams of the wounded.

This is normal on a battlefield.