- 0:00:35 Introduction
- “These are the true events of November, 1965. The Ia Drang Valley of Vietnam, a place our country does not remember in a war it does not understand. This story is a testament to the young Americans who died in the Valley of Death, and a tribute to the young men of the People's Army of Vietnam who died by our hand in that place.†-- Joseph Galloway
- 0:03:17 Take No Prisoners
- Vietnamese soldier: Do we take prisoners?
Lt. Nguyen Huu An: No. Kill all they send, and they will stop coming.
- 0:04:25 Experimental Parachutes
- General: The White House anticipates a buildup and wants a victory . . . over cavemen in black pajamas.
General Kinnard: We wouldn't be there if they hadn't already beaten the French Army.
General: The French Army? What's that? The problem in Vietnam is terrain -- jungles, mountains, rivers. Maneuver's a nightmare. That's why we came up with a plan to use helicopters. Leap in and out of battle.
General Kinnard: It’ll take a helluva combat leader. I know a young liked Colonel named Hal Moore. He led a combat company in Korea and after that he volunteered to test experimental parachutes.
General: Experimental parachutes? Sounds like just the guy.
- 0:12:47 Col. Moore’s Procedure
- Col. Moore: Savage, you learn the job of the man above and you teach your job to the man below you in rank. That goes for everyman in this outfit. Understood?
- 0:28:37 Understrength
- Col. Moore: Forgive me, sir, but let me get this straight, we form a division using techniques that have never been attempted in battle, against an enemy with 20 years of combat experience on his ground, 1200 miles away from our ground, and right before the army sends us into the fight, they take away a third of my men. The most experienced third including the officers.
- 0:32:10 Col. Moore’s Address
- Col. Moore: Look around you. In the Seventh Cavalry, we got a captain from the Ukraine, another from Puerto Rico. We've got Japanese, Chinese, blacks, Hispanics, Cherokee Indians, Jews, and Gentiles. All Americans. Now, here in the States, some men in this unit may experience discrimination because of race or creed. But for you and me now, all that is gone. We're moving into the Valley of the Shadow of Death, where you will watch the back of the man next to you, as he will watch yours. And you won't care what color he is or by what name he calls God. They say we're leaving home. We're going to what home was always supposed to be. But let us understand the situation. We’re going into battle against a tough and determined enemy. I can't promise you that I will bring you all home alive. But this I swear before you and before Almighty God -- that when we go into battle, I will be the first to set foot on the field, and I will be the last to step off. And I will leave no one behind. Dead or alive, we will all come home together. So help me God.
- 0:40:55 The Mission
- Col. Moore: What do you estimate the enemy strength?
Executive Officer: We appraise their numbers as manageable, Colonel.
Col. Moore: You have no idea.
Commanding Officer: We have no idea. Simple orders, Hal, find the enemy, and kill them.
- 0:43:18 First Major Battle
- “It was a Sunday. November Fourteenth, 1965. Before that day the soldiers of North Vietnam and those of America never met each other in a major battle.†-- Joseph Galloway
- 0:48:15 Enemy Base Camp
- Interpreter: He says this is base camp for the whole division. Four thousand men.
Col. Moore: Where?
Interpreter: That mountain. Same army destroyed French. And he says they want to kill American very badly . . . just not been able to find any yet.
- 1:16:45 Word Back Home
- Barbara Geoghegan: Julie, I just went by to see Cathy. Everybody knows. No chaplains or counselors . . . cab drivers?
Julie Moore: The Army wasn't ready.
- 1:22:20 Galloway’s Purpose
- “You know, sir, Galloways have been in every war this country’s ever fought. When it came to this one I didn’t think I could stop the war. I just thought maybe I’d try to understand one. Maybe help the folks back home understand. I just figured I could do that better shooting a camera than I could shooting a rifle.†- Joseph Galloway
- 1:22:58 Col. An Speech
- Col. Nguyen Huu An: We fought well today. We tested their tactics and learned their capabilities. Their artillery is effective so we must get so close they can’t use it. We will grab them by the belt buckle.
- 1:29:55 Col. Moore’s Confidence
- Trooper: We're being overrun!
Col. Moore: Nah, boys, we're gonna win this fight.
- 1:32:00 Noncombatant
- Galloway: Uh, sir? I-I'm a noncombatant, sir.
Plumley: Ain't no such thing today, boy.
- 1:35:20 Broken Arrow
- Diplomatic: Broken Arrow?
Intelligence Officer: It means an American unit's in danger of being overrun . . . calls in every available combat aircraft for support.
Diplomatic: Oh my God . . . there's no hiding it now.
- 2:03:48 Final Tears
- Col. Moore: I’m glad you made it, son.
Galloway: Thank you, sir, you too.
Col. Moore: I’ll never forgive myself.
Galloway: For what, sir?
Col. Moore: That my men . . . that my men died, and I didn’t.
Galloway: Sir, I don’t know how to tell this story.
Col. Moore: Well, you got to, Joe, you tell the American people what these men did here. You tell them how my troopers died.
Galloway: Yes, sir.
Col. Moore: Thank you.
- 2:06:10 No One Behind
- Sgt. Maj. Plumley: All our men living and dead are off the field sir.
- 2:07:10 Tragedy
- Col. Nguyen Huu An: Such a tragedy. They will think this was their victory. So this will become an American war. And the end will be the same except for the numbers who will die before we get there.
- 2:08:00 Unfinished Business
- Joseph Galloway: In Saigon Hal Moore’s superiors congratulated him for killing over 1800 enemy soldiers. Then ordered him to lead the men of the 7th cavalry back in to the valley of death. He led them and fought beside them for 230 more days.
- 2:09:35 Fighting for Each Other
- Joseph Galloway: Some had families waiting, for others their only family would be the men they bled beside. There were no bands, no flags, and no honor guards to welcome them home. They went to war because their country ordered them to. But in the end they fought not for their country or their flag. They fought for each other.
