Germans who, thinking they have been tricked, immediately shoot back. The situation immediately goes out of control and Knott's squad shoots all the Germans, but Mundy is fatally wounded and Shutzer is shot but survives. Mundy's final words are to beg the others not to tell Wilkins that the skirmish was intended to be fake. The squad's superior officer arrives, reprimanding them for their conduct, before taking Shutzer back for treatment (they later receive word that he died in the hospital). Left alone again, the four remaining soldiers quietly reflect as they try to celebrate Christmas and clean Mundy's body in a bathtub. Knott makes a $100 bet with the despondent Wilkins that he will survive the war. The squad is soon forced to flee as the Germans attack the area in strength. Carrying Mundy's corpse, the men disguise themselves as medics and escape back to American lines. When there, Knott is informed that Wilkins has been recommended for the Bronze Star and transferred to the motor pool, while the rest of the squad will be sent into the front lines to fight as regular infantry. An epilogue screen tells that after the war, Avakian had married, Miller disappeared and Wilkins sent Knott $10 with a blank Christmas card each year for ten years to pay Knott for having lost their bet. Cast Peter Berg as Bud Miller Kevin Dillon as Mel Avakian Arye Gross as Stan Shutzer Ethan Hawke as Will "Won't" Knott Gary Sinise as Vance "Mother" Wilkins Frank Whaley as Paul "Father" Mundy John C. McGinley as Maj. Griffin David Jensen as Sgt. Hunt Larry Joshua as Lt. Ware Curt Lowens as older German NCO Rachel Griffin as Janice Timothy Shoemaker as Eddie Production Parts of the film were shot in Park City, Utah. Critical reception The film received mostly positive reviews, with an 88% favorable rating on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes based on 40 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "Beautifully filmed and wonderfully acted, A Midnight Clear is a holiday war film in search of a wider audience." A reviewer from the Washington Post lauded it as "a war film completely unlike any other, a compelling accomplishment that's more soul than blood and bullets." Vincent Canby of the New York Times praised the film's solid construction, concluding that "In A Midnight Clear, just about everything works." Writing in the Los Angeles Times, reviewer Michael