AllMovie

Richard Loncraine (Richard III) directed the second installment of HBO's acclaimed Band of Brothers mini-series, "Day of Days." The action begins just before D-Day, and finds the men of Easy Company on a harrowing night-jump over Normandy. Their first mission is to take out German artillery so the invasion force can land on the beach the next day. As the C-47 planes are bombarded from the ground, the paratroopers of Easy Company anxiously await the order to jump. After their plane's co-pilot is hit, the pilot quickly gives Lieutenant Winters (Damian Lewis) and his men the green light to jump, but they (and the rest of the surviving paratroopers) are far from their drop zone. Winters lands in the woods, and is quickly joined by John Hall (Andrew Scott), a baby-faced private from Able Company. As they look for more men from their respective units, Winters, despite the fact that he lost his rifle in the jump, is able to keep the nervous young soldier calm. "We're not lost, private," he reassures him, "we're in Normandy." Soon they meet up with some other men, including Guarnere (Frank John Hughes), who is angry over the recent news of his brother's death in Italy, and Malarkey (Scott Grimes), who's obsessed with finding a souvenir Luger for his kid brother back in Oregon. The makeshift platoon, under Winters' direction, successfully ambushes a German supply cart. Eventually, they reach their rendezvous point, where the scattershot remains of several airborne companies have gathered. Here, Malarkey finds a surprising connection with a captured German. Meanwhile, with their commanding officer unaccounted for, Winters takes command of Easy Company, and leads a small team of men on a daring assault of a cluster of German artillery units.