These days, the cinema landscape is plagued by remakes, sequels, and cheap cash-ins that insult the viewer’s intelligence. Whether it’s Disney remaking classics like “The Lion King,” “Aladdin,” and “Dumbo,” or Marvel’s 20th movie that reuses the same formula as the last dozen, Mainstream blockbusters seem to have run out of ideas. In “Overlord,” however, we see a movie with a wide appeal that has a story all its own.

The film’s opening is familiar: a company of soldiers preparing to parachute to the beaches on D-Day. The soldiers are on a demolition mission to destroy a Nazi radio tower located in an old church. The soldiers portray a wide range of attitudes to their situation. Some joke with each other, some are aggravated, and some are scared into silence. The range of emotion serves as a great way to introduce distinct personalities of the characters.

In this scene, the acting is showcased the most. Ford, played by Wyatt Russel, is a brooding, serious captain in charge of the mission. Boyce, played by Jovan Adepo, is a young soldier who is very anxious and afraid of his situation. Adepo’s portrayal is by far the best in the film, showing his transition from scared private to brave leader who binds the group together. However, the rest of the cast is barely passable, with their characters each having indistinct personalities and not much of an arc to develop these personalities.

My mixed feelings about the acting make me unsure whether or not to recommend this movie. It has very high highs and low lows. The most notable of the lows was the pacing. The ending, in which they attempt to destroy the radio tower, and the beginning, are by far the strongest parts with their fast-paced action and great special effects. But the middle section is slow, filled with repetitive, unnecessary scenes, that while not horribly constructed, are not successful in forwarding the plot. The soldiers hole up in the French town with the church, with no idea of how to go about their mission. This feeling carries over to the audience in that we have no idea yet of how this movie will progress. Unfortunately, this isn’t in a suspenseful way, but in a boring and disinteresting way that drags on for about an hour.

What saved this movie for me was the twist that this movie put on the war movie genre. The church with the radio tower ends up containing a terrible secret. Boyce sneaks into this church, separate from the group. This sequence in the church is horrifying, with mutilated creatures littering the church basement. Boyce’s fear feels very genuine, and the audience feels it too as the special effects are well executed. The soldiers hear about these horrors and realize how necessary their mission is, and plan an attack on the church. This attack becomes a great combat sequence and keeps the audience on the edge of their seats until the credits roll.

Despite its ups and downs, “Overlord” redeemed itself and convinced me that it was one of the most interesting action movies of the last few years. I would definitely recommend this movie for anyone wanting a new take on the previously overdone war movie genre.

This film is rated ‘R.