''Taking Chance'' is a 2009 American

historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romance film, romances, adventure f ...

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

directed by Ross Katz, from a screenplay by

Michael Strobl Michael R. Strobl (born c. 1966) is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer from Stafford, Virginia. Michael joined the service when he was 17 years old, as told in the movie ''Taking Chance'' (2009). After serving in Operation Desert Storm in 199 ...

and Katz, based on the journal of the same name by Strobl, who also serves as military consultant. Kevin Bacon's portrayal of Strobl in the film won him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie, among other accolades. ''Taking Chance'' premiered at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

on January 16, 2009, and aired on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

in the United States on February 21, 2009. The film received generally favorable reviews from critics. At the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards, it earned ten nominations, including Outstanding Made for Television Movie and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for Bacon, and won one for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or a Movie.

Plot

The movie is based on the recollections of U.S. Marine

Lt. Col Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

, a real person, who accompanied the remains of Lance Corporal Chance Phelps, a Marine fatally wounded by gunfire near

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesipho ...

during the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

, from Dover Air Force Base to Dubois, Wyoming in April 2004. He attended both Phelps's funeral and his memorial service, and wrote an essay about the entire experience, the emotions he felt and the people he met. It was published in the blog ''Blackfive'' on 23 April 2004 and was circulated widely on the Internet.

Cast

* Kevin Bacon as Lt. Colonel

* Tom Aldredge as Charlie Fitts * Nicholas Reese Art as Nate Strobl * Blanche Baker as Chris Phelps * Tom Bloom as Navy Chaplain * Guy Boyd as Gary Hargrove * James Castanien as Robert Orndoff * Gordon Clapp as Tom Garrett * Mike Colter as MGySgt Demetry * GySgt Henry Coy as Marine Driver * Joel de la Fuente as Ticketing Agent * Liza Colón-Zayás as Ticketing Agent * Ann Dowd as Gretchen * Tate Ellington as A.V. Scott *

Noah Fleiss Noah Fleiss (born April 16, 1984) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor, making his film debut as the eponymous Sam Whitney in ''Josh and S.A.M.'' (1993). Subsequently, he played the title character in '' Joe the King'' (1999 ...

as Army Sergeant * Julian Gamble as Jeff Mack * Enver Gjokaj as Corporal Arenz ('Sergeant' in film's dialogue) * Brendan Griffin as Major Thompson * Sgt Adam Hayes as Dover Team Leader * Danny Hoch as TSA Agent * Ruby Jerins as Olivia Strobl *

Tom Kemp Tom Kemp (1921–1993) was a prominent Marxist economic historian and political theorist. He was influential in socialist and Trotskyist parties in the UK, and published several influential books on Marxist theory and economic development, in parti ...

as Business Man * John Bedford Lloyd as General Kruger * John Magaro as Rich Brewer * Matthew Morrison as Robert Rouse * Maximilian Osinski as Sgt Neuman * Wolé Parks as Major Schott * Del Pentecost as Minneapolis Cargo Handler * Dominic Colon as Minneapolis Cargo Handler * George Rabidou as Marine First Sergeant delivering U.S. Flag to parent during funeral. * Christina Rouner as Tall Flight Attendant *

Victor Slezak Victor Slezak (born July 30, 1957) is an American stage, television and screen actor who has appeared in numerous films, including ''The Bridges of Madison County'' (1995), ''Beyond Rangoon'' (1995), '' The Devil's Own'' (1997), '' The Siege'' ...

as Sgt Mulcahy * Felix Solis as Philly Cargo Worker * Sarah Thompson as Annie * Paige Turco as Stacey Strobl * Sharon Washington as Mortuary Technician * Julie White as Colonel Karen Bell * Emily Wickersham as Petty Officer Kelley Phelps * William Wise as Larry Hertzog * Tom Wopat as John Phelps * Richard Reed as Rifle detail Staff Non Commissioned Officer

Critical reception

''Taking Chance'' received generally favorable reviews. It holds a 76 out of 100 rating on Metacritic. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 57% rating based on reviews from 7 critics. One review from ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'', said that it "... is one of the most eloquent and socially conscious films the premium cable channel has ever presented," and '' USA Today'', said "A small, almost perfectly realized gem of a movie, ''Taking Chance'' is also precisely the kind of movie that TV should be making." On the other end is ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'', saying "Instead of well-drawn characters or real human drama, we are presented with a military procedural on burial traditions. The film desperately wants the viewer to shed tears for its fallen hero without giving a single dramatic reason to do so." The film was the most-watched HBO original in five years, with over two million viewers on the opening night, and more than 5.5 million on re-airings. Critics often attribute this success to its apolitical nature, not directly depicting nor offering an opinion of the

. Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates wrote in his 2014 memoir '' Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War'' that the film had an "important impact" on his decision to allow the media access to the transfer of fallen service members at Dover Air Force Base in February 2009.Gates, Robert. ''Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War''. (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2014). In Chapter 9: New Team, New Agenda, Old Secretary. During a White House press conference in 2017, former White House Chief of Staff and Retired Marine Corps General

John F. Kelly John Francis Kelly (born May 11, 1950) is an American former political advisor and retired U.S. Marine Corps general who served as White House chief of staff for President Donald Trump from July 31, 2017, to January 2, 2019. He had previousl ...

, who was next to Chance when he was killed and is the father of First Lieutenant Robert Kelly who was killed in action in Afghanistan, recommended that the Washington press corps watch the film in order to understand the solemnity and dignity of the process of returning fallen military service members to their families.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Official website for ''Taking Chance''
on

Arts of War on the Web review, February 20, 2009
* {{YouTube, o4Rl6qqPOnc, KMIR6 NBC story on PFC Chance Phelps
''Taking PFC Phelps home'', by LtCol Michael Strobl, USMC (Ret)

''You're his witness now''
Marine Corps Times 2009 films 2009 drama films 2009 television films 2000s historical drama films American films based on actual events American historical drama films Drama films based on actual events American drama television films Films about American military personnel Films about funerals Films about the United States Marine Corps Films directed by Ross Katz Films scored by Marcelo Zarvos Films shot in California Films shot in Montana Films shot in New Jersey Films shot in Newark, New Jersey HBO Films films Iraq War films Television films based on actual events Television Academy Honors winners 2000s English-language films 2000s American films