The following is a letter written to Edward Zwick, the director of Courage Under Fire, regarding the movie's importance to our society.

Dear Mr. Zwick:

I received a call several weeks ago from a close friend alerting me to "...a movie about the Medal of Honor being produced by 20th Century Fox." My friend thought in my capacity as the President of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and as a recipient of the Medal of Honor from Vietnam, I should do what I could to insure that the movie, no matter what the story, at least did not demean the Medal of Honor. Sad, but that seems to be the start point of our expectations these days.

I contacted a close friend, Gerry Byrne, Publisher of Variety, and through Gerry, I was given the privilege of viewing Courage Under Fire. At the risk of being presumptuous, I want to pass on my personal reaction to your extraordinary movie. At the outset - thank you for having the courage to make this movie in the first place.

Courage Under Fire is a unique movie. It challenges our sensitivities and stimulates our minds without gratuitous violence and sex. As a result Courage Under Fire deserves and demands our attention. It is a movie that has many levels---any one of which could be the subject of a movie itself. As a war movie, and Courage is much more than a war movie, Courage Under Fire accurately teaches us of the intensity, confusion, chaos, fear, pressure and speed of modern combat. For those of us unsympathetic to reports of "Friendly Fire" casualties, Courage clearly teaches us how in the high tech, high speed warfare of today, it is very easy to mistake friend for foe.

On another level, Courage treats the pressures of contemporary organizations with skill. The struggle of the military of how to deal with a skeptical and accusatory press; the difficulty of the "Truth" being unexplainable; the temptation to craft an "Acceptable" version of the events rather than face the truth---all are problems familiar to any large organization. The unique relationship between commander and subordinate in today's Army, a blend of respect, obedience, camaraderie and love, is shown to transcend race and even gender. Perhaps the burden of leadership in the military, that in the end, a commander selects the young men and women in his or her command who must die, has allowed the military to achieve what we in civilian society only dream of---mutual respect.

On a personal level, Courage reaches deepest into our minds. We all have struggled with the temptation to bend the truth for expediency or ease. To leaders, honor is the foundation upon which trust is built and without trust there is no leadership. Honor - what is it? At what price does one give up ones honor? Courage Under Fire forces each of us to examine ourselves. In the end, a leader, military or otherwise, must not bend from integrity. It is an absolute. Once compromised it is gone forever. In matters of honor our harshest critic is ourself and it is to ourselves that we must be true.

Courage Under Fire is a must for all the leaders of our society, military and civilian, young and old. It is a must for all of us. It is a film which if heard and observed, not just listened to and seen, will prompt each of us to pause and take stock of our lives and the society in which we live. It is an experience which brings to life the phrase from the Cadet prayer at the United States Military Academy at West Point, when each Cadet asks for help "...to never be content with a half truth when the whole can be won." Courage Under Fire provided us the answer to the question "Why?"

Again, thank you and I look forward to the privilege of meeting you in the not too distant future.

Respectfully,

Paul W. Bucha
President