Factual error: The beginning of this movie is based on an actual historical occurrence. On December 17th 1944, SS troops of the 1st SS Panzer Division did kill a substantial number of US POWs in a field a few miles away from Malmedy, Belgium. The G.I POWs and main characters in the movie are shown as being members of the 101st Airborne. The problem is the 101st was nowhere near the Malmedy area during any part of the Battle of the Bulge and, indeed, were still in their staging base at Mourmelon, France when the "Malmedy Massacre" took place.
Saints and Soldiers (2003)
Ending / spoiler
Directed by: Ryan Little
Starring: Alexander Polinsky, Corbin Allred, Kirby Heyborne, Larry Bagby
Deacon, Gould and Oberon (disguised as Germans) head towards an encampment of U.S. soldiers thanks to info provided by Deacon's German friend Rudy. Their disguises almost work and they're chased by Germans. The three of them make it close to the encampment and the U.S. soldiers provide some covering fire. Deacon is killed. Of the small group of soldiers seen throughout the movie, the last ones remaining are Oberon and Gould. Oberon shares his vital information on the ammo dump with the soldiers. Gould takes Deacon's Bible and thanks Deacon for saving his life.
A.J.
More mistakes in Saints and Soldiers
Question: We all assume, as I did when watching the movie, that the opening scene really was intended to be the Malmedy massacre. Could it have been that they were just hinting towards that, and that the opening scene (with the array of mixed Wehrmacht and SS, 101st Airborne and other which is historically not matching Malmedy) was simply another incident? Did the director ever intend to create a grossly false Malmedy scene? There were quite a lot more atrocities in that area and time, with executions of prisoners by both sides.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Answer: The massacre was intended to be Malmedy. Artistic license was taken with the participants but what happened is a possible version of events that caused the massacre.
AdmRose