The epic tale of an American reconnaissance pilot downed in occupied Belgium at the height of World War II. Hidden by resistance fighters, the pilot falls in love with the wife of the man who will save him. When their affair is exposed, an act of betrayal threatens their lives and the entire resistance movement, forcing the pilot to make a powerful choice that could change the course of the war. Resistance is directed by Todd Komarnicki the screenwriter of 2016's Sully and somehow he is a first time Director that never actually directed another film in his life and i wonder why? Well you see this film is extremely slow paced, the characters are kinda boring as well except Bill Paxton who is easily the best part of the movie but not even he can save a gigantic mess, the war stuff come and go pretty quickly and i honestly didn't care if this movie is 100% historic accurate i cared more about seeing a good movie and unfortunately i did not get that it's not as bad as the Rotten Tomatoes score says but it's not as good as you might have hoped it would be. (5/10)

***SPOILERS***Love story at the hight of WWII in Nazi occupied Belgium involving an American airman Maj. Ted Brice, Bill Paxton, who's the only survivor of his reconnaissance plane who's been protected by local woman the pretty Claire Daussois, Julia Ormond, in the attic of her house in the little town of Delahaut. It just happens that Claire's husband Harie, Phillip Volter, is a member of the Belgium resistance the "Maquis" who's been battling the Nazi oppresses for the last four years and during all that time had no time to have the comfort of married life with the beautiful wife Claire. Something that the American airman Ted, suffering from a broken leg, soon had more then he could handle.As it turned out the crashed US plane had a number of top secret codes in it regarding the top secret planned invasion of Western Europe that the Nazis want to desperately get their grubby hands on. And the only man who can reveal those codes is Maj. Ted Brice who's very existence is at the time unknown to the Nazis. Some complications soon arrive with a member of the resistance gunning down three German solders on the crash site that has the Nazi high command order brutal reprisals, by being shot & hanged, of the local population. This despite having such a good time in the sack as well, in a really hot & steamy scene in the movie, bathtub with Calire has the guilt ridden Ted get on with his mission, in liberating Nazi occupied Western Europe, full blast in him getting in touch with the resistance movement through Claire's husband, who seems to know what's going on between the two, Harie.***SPOILERS*** As things turn out Harie has other things on his mind other the saving his wife's lovers life but like everything else he does it backfired in his face. As for Ted he's caught trying to get in touch with the resistance by the Nazis and brutally tortured by them to get the secret code about the forthcoming invasion of Western Europe by the allies. It's when Claire is arrested and tortured by the Nazis that Ted breaks down and spills his guts to his Nazi captors in what he knows in order to save her life and prevent any farther Nazi retaliation against the local villagers. In knowing that he's doomed to be executed by the Nazis Ted gives them what they want in who killed the three German solders at the crash site to spear the people of Delahaut any more suffering. That suffering the brave and courageous Maj. Ted Brice took upon himself!

That is how young Jean Benoit (portrayed by Antoine Van Lierde) describes the victims of a mass retaliation public hanging conducted by the Nazis after his grocery clerk friend Lucette Oomlop (Sandrine Bonnaire) has machined-gunned three German guards at the wreckage of Maj. Ted Brice's (Bill Paxton) B-24 reconnaissance plane late one night to recover a notebook Ted apparently left behind in his eagerness to scope out the local females. (Too bad he did not heed the message of the Andrews Sisters tune playing on the soundtrack, "Straighten up and fly right!") The tag lines for this maudlin war flick are "an act of courage will decide their destinies" and "an epic tale of courage, passion, and sacrifice." As in Ted seduces his married Resistance hostess Claire Daussois (Julia Ormond), and then drives her all over Belgium sampling the local night life instead of hiding in the barn as he's been told, single-handedly breaking up the cell of resisters who are trying to save him and help the Allies prepare for D-Day? After viewing the movie, people will be shaking their heads "uh-huh" and longing for something as "realistic" as Michael Bay's Affleck-Beckinsale-Hartnett 2001 tear-jerker, PEARL HARBOR. How did writer-director Todd Komarnicki pitch this mess to the studio RESISTANCE bankrupted: THE GREAT ESCAPE meets DIRTY DANCING? Three years after this fiasco, Paul Verhoeven's ZWARTBOEK (THE BLACK BOOK) covered much of this same ground with more authenticity, more drama, and better production values all around. Do yourself a favor and rent that; RESISTANCE should be left dancing in the wind.

The biggest flaw of this so-so resistance drama is the choice of an American actress to play the female lead.Julia Ormond is compelled to speak English -I guess she's not dubbed- with a French accent,which is completely absurd;besides,the story takes place in Belgium,where the accent should be different (I 've often heard Belgian people speak).When René Clément made a similar story in 1963 ("le jour et l'heure"),he chose Simone Signoret as the French woman and American Stuart Whitman for the aviator ,which made sense.And whereas Clement's movie had a dramatic progression (Signoret's character was first a woman who did not care about Resistance),this one has none.Now and then ,the German soldiers appear,just for their reprisals,hangings and tortures.There are some Belgian characters involved but their part is so underwritten that even the hubby cannot display his jealousy.Sandrine Bonnaire tries hard ,to no avail.Only Bill Paxton ,in his restrained and sensitive rendering ,shows some convincing emotion.The film was a flop,and it is sure easy to see why:Resistance has been tackled so many times in France,Europa and elsewhere ,that ,unless you are a genius,you can't make new things out of old.