Product Details

• Actors: Czechoslovak Legion, Thomas G. Masaryk
• Directors: Bruce Bendinger - The Czech Legion Project
• Format: HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Studio: The Czech Legion Project
• DVD Release Date: March 10, 2009
• Run Time: 47 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B002696XMC
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #135,673 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Video Page-Turner, April 21, 2009

By 

Wegs (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Accidental Army: The Amazing True Story of The Czechoslovak Legion (DVD)

Most of the action of this story takes place on a train. Fitting, because with every anecdote, interview and unearthed image, Accidental Army moves like a train. Its fast pace covering a slew of improbable heroes and ruthless villains. Only WWI and the Russian Revolution could have overshadowed the unlikely birth of a great European nation. But the story of the Czechoslovak Legion is simply too compelling to wind up as an unnoticed historical footnote. It's high time that this story had a proper examination. After all, it has so many fascinating elements. Spies. War. Underdogs. Not to mention treasure from the vaults of the Czar himself.

Accidental Army is that rare story that works as both history and entertainment. And it will be enjoyed by anyone who can't help but root for those who overcome long odds with little more than guts and guile.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The CzechoslovaK Legion - A hidden gem of a story finally unearthed., April 30, 2009

By 

Peter Foukal (Nahant, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Accidental Army: The Amazing True Story of The Czechoslovak Legion (DVD)

My great -uncle served as a major in the Czechoslovak Legion,and I have always felt that the Legion's exploits have been politically suppressed and then simply overlooked, for too long.It's an amazing tale of heroism,political machinations and complex personal intrigues on the Trans - Siberian rail line, that invites comparison with Dr Zhivago and other great stories of all time. Hollywood needs to make a Big Screen movie about this! For now, Bruce Bendinger has done a great job of laying out the basic story on a very nice CD.It presents the interesting facts with wonderful photos chosen from the archives, and explains them with intelligently focussed text. I highly recommend it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Czechoslovak Legion, July 13, 2010

By 

L. Kemena "Colorado Ben" (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Accidental Army: The Amazing True Story of The Czechoslovak Legion (DVD)

This film, footage, and story -- is simply amazing. I'm pleased that more people will be able to learn about this chapter in history -- as the Legion and the lives of these soldiers made a difference.

As is too often true, history is written by the "big-name" victors -- and it takes a few generations to tease out a broader view of reasonable historical accuracy. So many of the victims of conflict are nameless, forgotten and unheralded. But this has always been true -- few will utter our names in three generations.

Thus, this film and it's true-to-life message is inspiring. Inspiring because it's so easy to forget our history. Inspiring because it takes energy, time and resources to accurately remember. Inspiring because sheer survival is often unheralded. Freedom and economic advantage are noble causes -- but so are the simple bonds of family in just making it back home.

The story understands that in the end, many of us are pawns in the "big picture" -- but in our own smaller realm, we must decide whether we are ready to be the "heroes of our own lives". The Legion stepped up to the task -- no matter how confusing or mixed up! The film helps decipher this tension, confusion, and changing rules of war in a way that is understandable and thoughtful.