Four American soldiers and a downed RAF pilot are trapped behind enemy lines in WWII Germany with information that could affect an upcoming offensive. Battling the winter elements, and armed with only one rifle, it's learned that one of the men, Nathan "Deacon" Greer, is a Mormon. None of them think much of it, except for the medic, Steven Gould (Alexander Niver), who has lost whatever faith he once might have had to the horrors of combat. At first openly hostile to Deac—well played by Corbin Allred—Gould becomes more curious as the stress of their situation bears down on them.
But don't misunderstand; this is not a Mormon movie. Deac could just as easily be Catholic, Jewish or Muslim. This is a war movie, first and foremost, a story of how men's characters are tested under the most extreme of circumstances.
The four GIs are lone survivors after what became known as the Malmedy Massacre, in which 86 American POWs were mowed down by German machine-gun fire on the second day of the Battle of the Bulge. The foursome manage to evade capture, disappearing into the snowy woods of Belgium. They soon come across British pilot Oberon Winley (Kirby Heyborne) with intelligence that could help the Allies outflank the Germans. To make matters more difficult, Winley is a complete prig and he's written his notes in a code known only to him.
Confounding expectations, the men do not become friends but rather earn each other's respect through the course of the film. Much of the movie is spent watching these relationships develop, and it's that time which makes the final confrontation—a well-choreographed battle in an abandoned, half-destroyed building—so engrossing.
The press release materials that arrived for the movie make a big deal out of the great lengths the production company made to ensure historical accuracy in all the props and costumes. I'm sure if I were a WWII buff, I'd be thrilled. But the movie succeeds because of its true merits, not because of pretty window-dressing. The script, by Geoff Panos and Matt Whitaker, is taut, realistic and engaging. New director Ryan Little demonstrates a sure and steady hand, showing great promise as he delivers a film that deftly avoids any overt moralization.