Thank you for your movie lists. I can now begin to see many of the ones I didn't.

Thanks for the behind-the-scenes look at The Devil's Arithmetic; I still never managed to find a copy of the film for my kids, even though Avi read the book two years ago and enjoyed it very much.

I'm sure it feels great to win this prestigious award for such a film that took many years' effort to bring to the big screen; yes, you were recognized by your peers, but it's those "personal touch" letters and emails that sometimes have greater impact...or am I wrong?

I love that opening in Patton. It is fabulous

Now, I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country. Men, all this stuff you’ve heard about America not wanting to fight, wanting to stay out of the war, is a lot of horse dung. Americans traditionally love to fight. All real Americans love the sting of battle. When you were kids, you all admired the champion marble shooter, the fastest runner, the big league ball player, the toughest boxer. Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser. Americans play to win all the time. I wouldn’t give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That’s why Americans have never lost and will never lose a war. Because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans.

Now, an Army is a team. It lives, eats, sleeps, fights as a team. This individuality stuff is a bunch of crap. The bilious bastards who wrote that stuff about individuality for the Saturday Evening Post don’t know anything more about real battle than they do about fornicating.

We have the finest food and equipment, the best spirit and the best men in the world. You know, by God I actually pity those poor bastards we’re going up against. By God, I do. We’re not just going to shoot the bastards, we’re going to cut out their living guts and use them to grease the treads of our tanks. We’re going to murder those lousy Hun bastards by the bushel.

Obviously the second part of my comment is also part of the opening as well.

Thanks for the interesting list
I have watched Band of Brothers innumerable times - I think that the most moving episode is "Why We Fight", when the unit liberates the concentration camp.
Did you like The Thin Red Line or Platoon? What did you think of Gettysburg or Glory?
Best wishes for the Yamin Noraim.
Mark

Sharin:

You're welcome. Let me know which films you enjoy from my list.

I read the Yolen book a couple of years ago, and thought at the time it could make a good movie...didn't realize you'd actually done it. I'll have to get the DVD.

Pearl:

Easy to get a copy of my film, as you see just order from Amazon.

Proud of my Emmy, and yes, love getting letters from kids who have been touched by the picture. Means the world to me.

Jack:

Thanks for the opening scene link, I used the link in my blog. And thanks for the quotes from the script. Great stuff.

Mark:

I do not like The Thin Red Line. I think it's a mess. I like Platoon, Glory and Gettysburg.

Have a lovely Rosh Hashanah.

Robert,

That opening is so good I wanted to make sure no one missed it. Ok, so now you now that I didn't click on your link. Should I ask for mechilla now or later. Oy.

I have a few favorite WWII movies and if you haven’t seen them check them out.
Roughly Speaking with Rosalind Russell and Jack Carson
Since you Went Away with Claudette Colbert and Mrs. Miniver.
Show’s how the women remained strong and waited for their men to come home and the resilience of the American Spirit
If you need a laugh check out, “The Doughgirls” with Ann Sheridan and Jane Wyman, Up In Arms with Danny Kaye,To Be or Not To Be or Hail the Conquering Hero.
For action I like Battleground and Edge of Darkness,Destination Tokyo,Fighting 69th,In Which We Serve,So Proudly We Hail and The Way Ahead to name but a few.
As for your movie, I will have to check it out as it sounds very good.

Did they ever make a movie out of Battle Cry? If so, was it any good?

No, Robert, I cannot imagine a film that supports the U.S. while clearly establishing and portraying the enemy as the evil they are. It's past the point of objectivity, unfortunately, and there isn't a rallying cry demanding this either.

I have been reading about DePalma's 'Redacted' and several other 'war' films in the can and on their way to convince millions of Americans that it is Bush's fault and America is one evil empire out to destroy anyone in their path.

So unfortunate.

Tammy:

"Roughly Speaking," "Since You Went Away," "Mrs. Miniver," are all wonderful films.

Never saw: "The Doughgirls," or "Up in Arms." Will check them out.

"To Be or Not to Be" is wonderful.

"Hail the Conquering Hero" is one of Preston Sturges' greatest films.

All the rest of your picks are just classics.

Mark:

"Battle Cry" has never been made into a flim.

David:

Let me know how you like my adaptation. I made quite a few changes, including making the material much more religious. Jane approved of my adaptation completely.

Dana:

Hollywood's upcoming slate of anti-American, anti-military films will flop hugely at the box office. That's an easy call. No one wants to see such revolting depictions of our country, of our troops. Except, maybe in France and the Arab/Muslim world.

Hollywood will not make films that portray the evils of our Muslim jihadists enemies for one simple reason: they don't want to get their heads severed from their bodies.

They saw what happened to Dutch director Theo Van Gogh.

Notice all the Hollywood tributes to the murdered director.

Not one.

The outrage at the Muslim barbarity. And the silence of the Muslim world.

Nope, not a word from Hollywood.

What a stunner.

These are not brave people.

These are not patriotic people.

Nor are they particularly wise people.

Just a bunch of selfish cowards who blithely go along enabling jihad.

Not that well-versed in WWII films, but I liked Guns of Navarone.

Kishke:

Poor Gia Scala, beautiful and talented female star of "Guns of Navarone." She suffered terrible bouts of depression, was an alcoholic and popped pills. Scala finally committed suicide in 1972. She is buried in Holy Cross cemetery in Culver City, Los Angeles.

I feel so sad when I see her in that film. She had so much promise.

I'm not much one for war movies in general, but I love Stalag 17. Bill Holden is fantastic, and the last few seconds in particular are beautifully chilling.

(I saw "The Devil's Arithmatic" one T'sh B'Av years, ago. It stayed in my mind for days afterward.)

Michal:

Good to hear from you. Stalag 17 is one of Billy Wilder's greatest films. I love it too.

Thanks for the kind words about Devil's Arithmetic. Did you see it in Camp Morasha? I know they showed it on T'sha B'av there a few years ago.

Thx re: Battle Cry.
Have any good movies been made re: Israel's various wars?
Also, I thought that Courage Under Fire with Denzel Washington and Meg Ryan was an interesting way to approach a story.

Hello, Robert. My favorite WWII films would also include the fantastic "Enemy at the Gate" with Jude Law, Ed Harris and Rachel Weisz and the wonderfully touching "Empire of the Sun" directed by Stephen Spielberg and starring Christian Bale, and John Malkovich.

All the best and a Happy New Year.
Joel

Robert,
I wish I knew where to get some of these films you recommend. I've also looked for The Devil's Arithmetic, having heard such good things about it; but I couldn't find it. I've always wondered about a film called "The Victors," which might qualify (in respect to your list) as among the WW2 films that are obscure or interesting and worth seeing. I heard it was a promising film but got butchered in the editing room.

Empire of the Sun and Ice Cold in Alex are probably my favourites. And Foreign Correspondent's dead good. The opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan are some of the greatest ever filmed, but the problem with that film is that it peaks at its start. If you start with Omaha Beach, everything afterwards has to be an anticlimax.

I wish someone would make a big film of Operation Dynamo: it's one of the most heroic events in human history, and would make great cinema. Perhaps you should write it, Robert.

Not a WW2 film, but I was very impressed by United 93.

And, you know, the first half-hour or so of The Land That Time Forgot is a brilliant WW2 film. And then they go and spoil it with all that dinosaur nonsense.

Mark:

Nope, not one good movie about Israel's wars. This is a huge crime. I have unproduced scripts sitting on my shelves. Says Hollywood: "Israel is, um, a problem."

"Enemy" and "Empire" are both fine films. Thanks.

David:

You can order my film, The Devil's Arithmetic" through amazon.com. Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/Devils-Arithmetic-Kirsten-Dunst/dp/B0002CX1NY

"The Victors" is a Carl Foreman film from about 1963, big international cast. Never saw it. I'll try and find it. Those big international juggernauts don't usually hold up very well. But you never know.

Jo:

I'm not familiar with "Ice Cold in Alex". Hitchcock's "Foreign Correspondent" is wonderful, especially the one-shot plane crash sequence.

Operation Dynamo, Hmmm

Hollywood's upcoming slate of anti-American, anti-military films will flop hugely at the box office. That's an easy call.

If it's an easy call, then how did these films manage to get bankrolled in the first place? Don't you think they'll succeed hugely with the anti-American crowd abroad?

And if they do fail, who foots the bill? Ever since Art Buchwald and "The Golden Child" I've distrusted Hollywood accounting.

Sol:

Contrary to popular opinion, most decisions made in Hollywood are not sound fiscal decisions, but ideological decisions. Many execs are often seeking prestige, awards at dopey film festivals, applause from their peers. These people live in an echo chamber. They figure that the big blockbusters will make up for the losses. They know full well that these films will take a bath in red ink. Foreign rights are peanuts. There is no distribution in the Muslim world. None. As for Europe, people prefer to be entertained. They hate America, but love our culture, especially our blockbuster movies. Not our small Sundance art house movies—unbearable in any language.

Mr. Avrech,

My shul played it for the younger set. The gas chambers were... it was terrifying. I don't think I was prepared for the realism of it, even having read the book. It's a very, VERY important film, I think, just for this reason. It bites you, and it hurts.

On a sort of unrelated note, have you heard anything about a new doccumentary, "Indoctrinate U"? It sound very interesting.

Robert, you're more optimistic that I. I think the movies will rally the masses who get their news and form opinions based on sound bytes or movies, or stars being interviewed on their opinions...or even more ridiculous, The Daily Show w/John Stewart(!).

Its just easier to let someone else do one's thinking for them.

Michal:

Yes, we went for realism. From the beginning, I insisted that we not sugarcoat the Holocaust. Though the film does end on a greatly hopeful note.

Yes, I have heard of "Indoctrinate U" I believe it premiered at the Libertas Film Festival. I missed it probably because it played on Shabbos.

Dana:

I didn't say the film wouldn't play to the tin-foil hat crowd, or the Daily Kossack Jew-haters. Of course that element will line up for those American-hating flicks. It's the height of fashion. In Hollywood, second only to $800 Christian Louboutain stilettos. They adore films that bring disgrace on our troops. But even they cannot bring an obvious stinker into black ink. Look at Comrade Moore's Sicko. It was DOA at the Box Office . Even his, ahem, sicko partisans could not make that Communist propaganda fly.

Same with all the upcoming anti-American, Anti-Iraq War, anti-American Troop, Jihad-enabling films being released in the next few months. They will die horrible deaths at the box office. I might be wrong, but I doubt it.

Thanks so much for all the wonderful suggestions. Great seeing the huge variety.

We NetFlix where we can and could find a good number there. Many of the rest available from Amazon, including Mortal Storm. Bought Devil's Arithmetic from Amazon some time back, but so far only have let my son see it -- probably being too conservative, but both girls saw/went through some pretty terrible things in Russia that they still have occasional nightmares about.

Have been an avid watcher of war films an especially WWII films from at least my early teens (ca recall seeing "Sands of Iwo Jima" when I was about 8 or 9). Watching war movies in the early 60s on TV (I lived on the coast of Conn. about an hour's drive from NYC and thus within range of NYC's TV stations even with rabbit ears) was a major reason for my developing such an interest in WWII history that I started my own publishing business in 1968 to publish a magazine (which never was financially successful) and now publish books on WWII and other military history topics.

My main reason for writing was to respond to the query about whether or not "Battle Cry" was ever made into a movie. If he was talking about Leon Uris' bestseller, then yes, it was made into a movie, in 1955, directed by Raoul Walsh, and is one of the better war movies in my humble opinion. At the very least it is entertaining. I have read the book twice and seen the movie numerous times. To my knowledge, this was also the first time the general public heard about the use of Navajo code talkers, even though it was a very minor portion of the book and movie.

For a US Navy veteran's opinion of the movie (he was on an attack transport that landed Marines on Iwo Jima) and more details, see:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047860/

Interestingly, it is also available dubbed in Japanese and Navajo.

I wouldn't place "Patton" as the #1 WWII movie, but probably in my top ten (it has many inaccuracies, not to mention its extensive use of post-WWII military equipment). The best WWII movie is "Tora, Tora, Tora", which is done almost documentary style. The model ships they built for that movie were incredible. A number of them were on display at an amusement park (in an antique car museum at the park, of all places) not far from where I live. Saw them in the mid 80s. Not sure if they are still there. They were HUGE. The Japanese aircraft carrier was easily 20 feet long. I'm over six feet tall and the carrier deck was just below my eye level.

Worst blockbuster movies ever made are "Midway" and "Battle of the Bulge". Without the titles telling you what battles they were supposed to represent, you'd almost never know it. A movie like the "Dirty Dozen" is better than either of those turkeys.

The remake of "The Thin Red Line" was a bore -- I actually fell asleep watching that piece of junk. The original wasn't much better, but at least it didn't put me to sleep. I have read the book, definitely not my favorite WWII novel.

Didn't care for "The Big Red One". I never believed the story nor the characters (Mark "Star Wars" Hamill as a WWII GI? Give me a break!) Lee Marvin did his best but even he couldn't rescue this movie.

"Saving Private Ryan" and "Band of Brothers" are definitely in my top ten (even though "Band of Brothers" is technically not a movie). "They Were Expendable" and "A Walk in the Sun" are classics.

You'll recognize one section of "A Walk in the Sun", having since been recreated numerous times in many war movies. Indeed, the overall theme of the movie, a unit of men tasked with a specific mission, how they accomplish it, and their interaction with each other, has been done numerous times since that movie was made at the end of WWII. "The Boys of Company C" and "Platoon" are "A Walk in the Sun" set in Vietnam, although, predictably, they both have negative endings while, typically, "A Walk in the Sun" has an upbeat ending.

This discussion reminds me of something. Several years ago, a screenwriter named Lionel Chetwynd wanted to make a film about Dieppe, which was the (disastrous) dry run for the Normandy invasion. The reaction he got from a network executive speaks volumes about the problems we now face in defending our civilization.

I can't directly link the post I wrote on this, owing to the spam filter, but you can find it by typing "Chetwynd" in the search box at my blog. The title of the post is "Who's the REAL enemy?"

Katherine:

I'm glad you've found my list useful. There are, of course, many other World War II movies that I'd like to recommend and I'll make a point of blogging about these films on a more regular basis.

I'm proud of "Devil's Arithmetic," but yes, some people have been known to be reduced to tears by its storytelling power.

It's a WWI film, but do you like Stanley Kubrick's "Paths of Glory"? An underrated classic in my mind.

I see you added The Great Raid. Loved that film, it was very moving.

I happen to like Midway, and Tora, Tora, Tora is a great one also.

There was a somewhat schlocky movie about the USS Enterprise going back in time to December 1941--forget the title--but the best line in it was "Splash the Zeros". Unfortunately, the carrier got pulled back to its own time before it could prevent the attack on Pearl.

And for sheer zaniness, there's "1941"....

"The English Patient"

(Bzzzzt! Big Red One was 1980, not 2004.) I find it hard to believe any movie with Hamill appearing in it can be a really good one. He's proved to be a magnificent voice actor, but not so good when he's on screen himself. Something doesn't quite sync in his acting, like his body/facial expression and his character don't quite go together. Only his appearance in the first "Star Wars" movie seemed natural.

As for "The Devil's Arithmetic", I didn't watch it because the story was just too much. I have enough nightmares like that, worse now since I've read Vasily Grossman's account of Treblinka. "Paper Clips" is as much as I can take...

Ray:

Thanks so much for your valuable feedback. I'm grateful to you for letting us know about Raoul Walsh's "Battle Cry." I have no idea how that completely escaped my radar. I'll check it out ASAP.

My list of movies is not in order of greatness, if you'll look again you'll see that I say, in no particular order. So, Patton is not my number #1 favorite WWII movie. I actually avoid making such lists. Too confining.

Yes, "A Walk in the Sun" is a fine film that has been quite influential on many modern war films.

Jewboy:

I do like "Paths of Glory" and it is recognized, at least among people I know in Hollywood, as an absolute masterpiece.

David:

Lionel is a good man.

Dr. Carol:

1941 is not my favorite movie, but it has one great shot in it, not for children.

I really love "The Great Escape." It will be viewed as a classic in years to come.

Alice:

English Patient, yes, thanks for reminding us.

Solomon:

Thanks for the correction. I think I typed in the date of the restored version by mistake. My bad. Look, The Big Red One is not for everybody. Neither is Sam Fuller. But there is great power in his best work.

I didn't mind Midway too much, but I thought that Battle of the Bulge was simply AWFUL.
A Bridge Too Far was another of those blockbuster types that I thought was OK.
I did not see either of them yet - have them on DVD in a boxed set - but I've heard that Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima were really good.
Thanks for the info re: Battle Cry - yes, I was referring to Leon Uris' novel.

Mark:

A Bridge Too Far is, for me, an explicitly pacifist movie. I really don't care for it at all.

Dr. Carol, I believe the carrier was the Nimitz and that movie was The Final Countdown, and a real oddball it was too: I like sci-fi films but disliked this one. Perhaps most notable for being the first movie to depict life on a supercarrier, more than twenty years after the first one put to sea.

The most notable scene in "1941" that I recall was punctuated by the line, "Hollywood!" from an awe-struck Japanese submariner. Is that the one you had in mind, Robert? When I see a scene like that, I always wonder how many takes it took to get it right, and how the actors and actresses managed to endure it.

Speaking of Israeli war films, what is your opinion of Cast a Giant Shadow? I've never seen it, but I did read the book the director wrote about making it.

I can't believe I forgot The English Patient. One of my favourite films, war or not, of all time.

Robert, you've not seen Ice Cold In Alex? I am shocked, shocked, I say. It's John Mills's greatest moment.

Actually, I just had a thought. Do the first and third Indiana Jones films count?

Solomon2,

Oh, right--it was the Nimitz. I have Enterprise on the brain (Trekker hazard). Yeah, it was a weird movie.

Slim Pickens was the best part of "1941".

Movies about WWII resistance and underground activities:

"Army of Shadows," by Jean-Pierre Melville, came out in 1969 but has only recently been released in the U.S. I saw it in January, and it is excellent.

"Carve Her Name With Pride," is an old British movie about the Special Operations Executive heroine Violette Szabo. It's hard to find, but there is a more recent documentary about her which is available from the Violette Szabo museum.

There are two German movies about Sophie Scholl, a leader of the small student anti-Nazi movement. "Sophie Scholl: the last days" is the most recent, and "The White Rose" is an older, also very good film.

There were two movies about the Entebbe raid, neither of which I have seen, but that's not a lot for Israel.

I agree with Patton and Band of Brothers. I saw the Big Red 1 sometime ago, but I was busy playing chess with a friend at the time so I can't judge.

The Battle of Britain, The Longest Day, Bridge over the River Kwai, The Great Escape, The Cruel Sea, The Dam Busters, Tora! Tora! Tora! (part directed by Kurosawa), The Eagle Has Landed (OK the last is a totally invented situation).

Of the occupation themed movies I would recommend l'Armee des Ombres (I think by Chabrol, with Simone Signoret). Very disturbing to me were Shindler's List (because of the imagery) and the morally dubious Lucien Lacombe (a French youth who drifts into becoming a collaborator).

The best WWII comedies I think are To Be Or Not To Be and La Grande Vadrouille, with Terry-Thomas on the English side and Louis de Funes and Bourville on the French side.

From Germany, I note Das Boot.

Of the films made under the Nazi occupation, We The Living (made in Italy starring Alida Vialli) and Rome Open City (the clips I've seen are extraordinary, the film was made while the fighting was going on) are the ones I'd want to watch. The most highly-rated occupation-era movie in France is Les Enfants du Paradis, which I gather was partly made underground.

I have mixed feelings about The Big Red One. It didn't quite ring true to me. The moral at the end, voiced by Hamill, was nonsense.

Patton is superb. I understand Patton's family were happy with the film, suggesting it really did capture the man. The only important mischaracterization was that Patton had a high, almost squeaky, voice -- not like George C. Scott's gravelly voice.

The Winter War has been on my Amazon wish list for a long time.

They Were Expendable has some serious historical inaccuracies, and I'm always dubious of war films that bend themselves all out of shape to find an excuse to add a love interest. But, yes, she's as cute as a button.

Band of Brothers is just excellent.

I would add some additional suggestions:

Tora! Tora! Tora! is one of my favorites. Yeah, I know, the critics tell me it shouldn't be, that it's much too dry and documentary. I still love it. The level of historical accuracy is astonishing, as were the special effects (for that day).

I like Gettysburg very much, in spite of Martin Sheen's unconvincing portrayal of Lee. Does he instinctively play any military man as a psychotic colonel?

Battle of the Bulge was a flop. I imagine most viewers will not quibble about the Germans rolling into battle in surplus Patton tanks (ironic, that) but the notion of lining the tanks up and charging is tres 1941 (and British to boot.) The only aspect that resembled anything in the real battle was McAuliffe's "Nuts."

Midway had potential, but but its history is a bit dated, and you wince so hard at the stupid love interest (see: Donna Read in They Were Expendable) that you are likely to miss the good points.

Carve Her Name With Pride, yes, I have that on tape. Worth seeing just for Paul Schofield.

Battle of Britain: I have some mixed feelings. The film just goes on forever, to the point where you are almost as tired of air combat sequences as the actual participants must have been. I can't decide if that's a clever artistic touch, or just a long boring film. The refusal to put subtitles on the German dialogue (at least in the version I taped) is infuriating. Even if we were all bilingual, we wouldn't all choose German.

Bridge on the River Kwai: Magnificent acting, magnificent cinematography, gripping, and utterly pointless. I suppose three out of four isn't bad.

A Bridge Too Far is historically inaccurate precisely when this would put the military in the worst possible light. There was actually a good reason why the British tankers would not push ahead to Arnhem: There was a German or two in the way who might have other ideas, and the only road was a raised road with absolutely no cover that would have been a perfect shooting gallery for any anti-tank gun in the nearby countryside. It would have been pointless suicide. But then this film seems to consider all combat pointless suicide. Besides, I dislike Robert Redford.

The Great Escape: A great film. It is reminiscent in some ways of the earlier The Colditz Story.

The Dam Busters: A fascinating film you will never, ever see on television or cable, because of the name of the flight leader's black dog. Entire sequences were lifted directly into the final scenes of Star Wars, complete with dialog.

The Eagle Has Landed: Another 70s-era film that can't decide what its point is, except that it won't be favorable to the military. Still worth watching for Michael Caine's performance. Jenny Agutter is awfully easy on the eyes, too, even if her subplot is completely ridiculous.

Twelve O'Clock High: A taut psychological drama with some nice aerial combat sequences. I'll watch it again even though I've had a hard time forgiving Gregory Peck for helping with the Borking.

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo: Excellent as long as you have the good sense to turn it off as soon as the crews crash in China. Manages to insert a love interest that is actually plausible.

Er, I guess I'm rambling ...

For some reason The Great Raid brought to mind Cpl. Rubin.

I'd forgotten about the Dam Busters. My understanding is that it was a very accurate dramatization.

The real tragedy of the Dam Busters, however, never made it to the screen: the Brits had developed this wonderful method of precision low-level bombing attack but never repeated the performance ever again. Yes, the attack was costly in aircrews, but its effectiveness more than made up the difference. I recall one commentator estimated that the successful attacks on the German dams chopped four months off the war. Just imagine if similar attacks been staged later upon appropriate targets, their effect may have been at the same order of magnitude.

Someone beat me to it, but I would like to mention "12 O'Clock High" as well. "The Battle of Britain" has great action scenes...can say the acting is that great, but I still enjoy it.

"The Caine Mutiny" is n excellent motion picture as well.

Being a Texan, I can't let one of these things go without mentioning "To Hell and Back" with Audie Murphy playing himself winning the Medal of Honor. Not that the movie is that great, but the story it represents is awesome. It was required viewing back home when I was a kid.

"Europa, Europa" based on the life of Soloman Perel. Provokes thought in ways other WWII movies don't. Perel's paradoxical life story seems like it could only be the stuff of fiction. Makes you think about what you would REALLY do in a crisis. It's hard not to spoil it so I will stop writing!

Just remembered Bat 21 with Danny Glover & Gene Hackman

Sol:

Not wild about "Cast a Giant Shadow."

The shot I like in 1941 shows a female er, tushy, in the glass turret of a B17. It's a very funny sight gag.

Jo:

Sheesh, I'm sorry, I never heard of "Ice Cold in Alex." I anxiously look forward to ordering it, and boy, it better be good!

P.S. Stupid title.

David:

"Army of Shadows." Yes, good film. Melville is one of the only French directors I have anything good to say about. But that's because he directed like an American.

Thanks for reminding me.

Antoine:

Thanks for reminding me. "Raid on Entebbe" produced by my old friend Edgar J. Scherick, now deceased, is a very fine film. Solid performance by Charles Bronson in the lead.

You can order the DVD here.

http://www.bestprices.com/cgi-bin/vlink/018619112649.html

Kent:

Great ramble. I've never seen "Carve Her Name With Pride." Have to screen it.

Soccer Dad:

Thanks so much for the wonderful link.

Outlaw 13:

Poor Audie Murphy. He was fine against the Nazi enemy, but defenseless in Hollywood. So sad what happened to him out here. I've always wanted to make a movie about Murphy. Thanks so much for reminding us.

Alice:

I've never seen "Europa, Europa." I don't see a lot of foreign films——unless they're Japanese or Chinese. But if they are French, I get a huge rash even contemplating a screening.

Outlaw 13:

Forgive me, I forgot to thank you for your service. Please stay in touch.

Not French. Great story. SO great. Won Best Foreign Film I believe.

Alice:

It's Polish, right? Well, they have a great filmic tradition. I'll check it out. Thanks.

Jo:

You ask if the first and third Indiana Jones movies qualify as WWII? Sure, kinda, sorta, s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g the definition. Hey, I just realized, we can also refer to #1 as a biblical movie:)

Robert,

What did you think of Saving Private Ryan?

Mo'ah:

Good film, especially the opening section on Omaha Beach, which is just overpowering and the most brilliant sequence in the film.

The Caine Mutiny: Yes, excellent. Not your usual Bogart.

Reminds me of another: The Enemy Below. A little too "love your enemy" but otherwise good. Mind you, I believe in "love your enemy"; it just wasn't believable as depicted here.

Sort of a war film: Mr. Roberts. Hilarious as filmed, which I understand was quite a difference in tone from the play and somewhat upsetting to Fonda.

Robert,

You are welcome!

I know this isn't a WWII movie...but I highly recommend the movie "Gardens of Stone"

It's about a group of soldiers serving at Arlington National Cemetery during the Vietnam war. Starring James Cann and James Earl Jones.

Back to WWII, I recently viewed "Command Decision" with Clark Gable, I found it very compelling and it actually reminded me of some of the things I face as a leader in Iraq today.

I remember watching "Saving Private Ryan" in a theater at Fort Hood, TX...the odd thing was that while most people were absorbed by the film, there were those soldiers who felt the need to critique the military performance of the characters during the movie. The sequence depicting the landing at Normandy was one of the most intense movie experiences I've ever had...masterful work. The rest of the movie falls apart for me during repeated viewings.

"Band of Brothers" on the other hand, I can watch over and over...it's always an enjoyable, emotional event.

For a funny WWII movie, try "Operation Petticoat". How can a pink submarine not be funny?

Operation Petticoat: If I recall correctly, there was in fact a submarine in the Southwest Pacific that had to beat it out of harbor after being primed but before being painted. The Japanese went nuts over the "red pirate submarine."

Submarines also occasionally evacuated nurses and civilians trapped behind Japanese lines.

Of course, combining the red submarine and the nurses with some hi-jinks is pure Hollywood invention.

Just thought I would mention "The Best Years of Our Lives". Agree on "Das Boot" and "Paths of Glory". And if we're talking WWI films, the original "All Quiet on the Western Front" with Lew Ayers is a classic. The remake was pretty good too, as I recall.

I would aslo like to mention an obscure German film called "Die Bruke" (the u needs an umlaut but I don't know how to do it). The English title is "The Bridge". It was released in the US in 1961 and was directed by Bernhard Wicki.

It is the story of how, at the very end of the war, a squad of young teenage friends, drafted at the last minute, is assigned to defend the bridge leading into their town. Unfortunately, they take their assignment seriously, with disastrous results. I suppose there might be a little German self-pity involved, but as a story of children really too young to know what they're doing caught up in a war they didn't start, it is very tragic. I recommend it highly.

I once thought "Ballad of a Soldier" was a good film, but I saw it again recently and it is really nothing but Soviet "look at what good guys we Russians are, heroic and kind" agitprop. Well done, but still agitprop for all that. But, hey, the Russians sacrificed 20 million people to break the back of Hitler's army and turn the tide of the war. They are entitled.

Also, "Alexander Nevsky" is really a WWII movie masquerading as a medieval epic, so I would like to add it to the list. It may be as over-the-top as only a Russian movie directed by Sergei Eisenstein can be, but it is THE pre-eminent example of how to combine music and action, hands down. A shameless propaganda piece, but still one of the best movies ever made.

Of course, we have forgotten the best WWII movie of all: "Casablanca".

"There are some sections of New York I would advise you not to invade"

;-)

Kent:

Of course, "Mr. Roberts." It was a stage play, which, of course I never saw as I'm allergic to the theater: what no close-ups? where's the car chase? But the film is pretty effective. Or it was when I saw it some 25 years ago.

Outlaw 13:

I know "Gardens of Stone" pretty well. Francis Ford Coppola directed. Darn effective film. Ron Bass wrote the script. He later won an Oscar for "Rainman."

I have not seen "Command Decision" in many a moon. I loved it as a kid. So on your recommendation I'm going to screen it again.

Omaha Beach of "Private Ryan" is the greatest war movie ever. After that it's like, huh? What is this, "A Walk in the Sun?" but with a harder edge?

"Band of Brothers" shows how much better TV has become than features.

"Operation Petticoat." Sigh. Confession: I've never watched the entire movie. I watch like a half hour, get incredibly bored and go: my brain cells are exploding waaaaay too quickly.

Stay in touch and stay safe. Again, thanks so much for your service. There are those of use in Hollywood who are actually proud of you guys and think the world of you. Heck, there are at least, um, wait, lemme count... twenty-three of us:)

Ephraim:

"Die Bruke," huh? I've heard about this film on and off for a few years, but I've never seen it. Now you've got me interested. I'll see if I can find a DVD. Thanks.

I've seen "Ballad of a Soldier." It's Commie propaganda. Look, the Soviets didn't just sacrifice 20 million people. Stalin murdered a good number of them.

Whatever.

"Alexander Nevsky." I dunno. I really have mixed feelings about Sergei. In college all these earnest, chain-smoking Marxist students and professors just went on and on and really it was just a bit much. Watching his stuff is like being hammered into submission. And every composition is so artsy and self-conscious.

And yet, the battle on the ice is kinda, um, cool.

I dunno. Sergei's films are also cut so fast, they gimmee a migraine. I feel like telling him: slow down, what's the rush?

But that's just me.

The British mini-series, Piece of Cake, was a tremendous six-hour depiction of the men of Hornet Squadron during the Battle of Britain.

Based on the book of the same name, it was considered controversial because of the warts-and-all portrayal of the pilots who defeated Goering's Luftwaffe.

Like Band of Brothers, Piece of Cake spends as much time on the men as it does on the battles, makes you care about them, no matter how flawed or cruel (I'm talking about you, Moggie!), and makes you compulsively hit the "Play" button to begin the next episode.

Of course, there are the Spitfires. The series features fantastic shots of the fighters taking off and landing on the lawns of an estate supposedly in France; beautiful, just beautiful. And the depiction of aerial combat is both thrilling and horrifying.

Check it out.

Die Bruke showed up on my Amazon recommendations and I ultimately decided not to put it on my wish list. Maybe I should change my mind.

A bit off-topic, but I'm still wondering why my selection of Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan for my Amazon wish list led to a recommendation for a book on breast reduction surgery. It's much easier to understand why, after I put an expensive pair of binoculars on the wish list, the Amazon recommendation engine recommended a bunch of expensive jewelry for my wife. ;)

I linked to your post on my blog and received this comment about one of your choices; it seems like a reasonable criticism.

I disagree about They Were Expendable. The unavoidable problem with the movie is that it glorifies Douglas MacArthur's shameful abandonment of his troops.

I know his apologists will tell you that he wanted to stay and only left because of a direct order issued by FDR in the interest of preserving a national icon. He should have stayed, and his humiliating treatment of General Wainwright at the end of the war revealed his personal sense of shame at his own behaviour.

But even if we accept that he only left because he was ordered to leave, why did his wife and child AND nurse AND butler AND personal staff stay so long that they also had to be evacuated at the last minute?

The movie skips the unavoidable fact that the Donna Reed character certainly went into a Japanese prison camp for four years, to endure the most degrading captivity imaginable. And ALL of the nurses could have left Corregidor in the PT boats if Dougout Doug had sent his wife home when the war started and if he and his staff had stayed to fight it out.

I love John Wayne movies, but I can't watch that one without a barf bag. Watch Sands of Iwo Jima instead.

Mike:

Thanks so much for your comment. I have no argument except to say that the film was made at a specific time in history. I like the film as a film, while recognizing that it does advance a certain, um, agenda.

I also love the film "Patton," and yet the film never touches on Patton's virulent Jew-hatred.

Stay in touch. I'll be posting again on more war movies that I love.

Robert:

I agree, Eisenstein is an acquired taste. The sensibility is so, I don't know, Russian. I agree with you about all of those "earnest, chain-smoking Marxist students and professors" but it doesn't affect my appreciation of the art that went into "Nevsky".

You are quite right that every composition is "artsy and self-conscious". That style of mise en scene really what I like about "Nevsky". It is an opera, a huge, propagandaistic, self-congratulatory Kabuki production with all of the outrageous excess such a thing implies. I don't pretend to be an expert on Eisenstein; I just like "Nevsky". The combination of action and music has, for all of its bombast, never been better; the actors, in many cases, appear to be moving with the music, almost like a ballet. It is not in the least naturalistic; clearly the actors came from a tradition of stage acting. When you emote for the last rows in the balcony when the camera is in your face, things are going to get strange. But its shameless over-the-topness and complete lack of nuance (Germans evil, evil, evil; Russians just one step lower than the angels) is what I like about it. It's stricly an exercise in style. And I like the music.

Like I said, it is obviously Stalin's warning to Hitler not to invade. As such, it is propaganda. But with a great score.

Hitler lost the war because he thought that he could do what Napoleon couldn't. I hold no brief for Stalin, the Soviet Union, or Communism, and one can argue about Soviet brutaility until the cows come home, but I think the war, in large part, was won in Russia. Hitler bled his armies to death out there. If he had never invaded, they would be speaking German in France today.

I'm a bit surprised that there hasn't been a movie about MacArther of the quality of Patton. Gregory Peck did an unconvincing performance in a film that hinted at the controversies without really exploring them.

A good version would need to mention, in addition to the bugging out with his family:

* MacArthur's completely unrealistic plan to defend the Philippines on the beaches, which left his supplies way too far forward when he had to accept reality and retreat into Bataan.

* MacArthur's inexplicable refusal to allow his aggressive air commander to attack Formosa, which ultimately resulted in the destruction of his air forces. There are hints that MacArthur toyed with the idea of trying to declare the Philippines neutral.

* MacArthur's decision not to overrrule Philipine law forbidding rice to be shipped across provinicial boundaries. This meant leaving six month's worth of rice for the Japanese at Cabanatuan while the Bataan defenders starved.

* The "bonuses" given MacArthur and a couple of his senior staffers by the Philippine President at about the time MacArthur decided to evacuate the Philippine President to relative safety on Corregidor.

* The real secret behind MacArthur's brilliant New Guinea campaign: The code breakers were telling him exactly where the Japanese were, and where they weren't.

Etc.

I am not much of a MacArthur fan. Give me Nimitz any day.

Ephraim:

Look, I'm never going to try and argue anybody out of liking a movie. One of my favorite movies of all time is a Danish film called "Day of Wrath." Karen takes one look at one frame and immediately goes comatose.

The film experience is highly personal.

I know some people who think "Potemkin" is just moving beyond words. I think it's just plain dopey.

Anyway, like I said, I like the battle on the ice, even though the SFX really stink. Those commies couldn't even come up with a decent budget for their premiere propagandist.

Typical.

Kent:

I think MacArthur needs a really brilliant and enthusiastic screenwriter to come along and resolve the contradictions in his personality. That's what Coppola did with Patton. It's not easy. Hmm, maybe if MacArthur was a Jew-hater, that might help.

I'm not a big fan, so I'm out.

Robert,

thanks so much for the recommendation of "The Mortal Storm." We were able to find it used on Amazon (don't think it's out in DVD) -- and all watched today. Terrific way to start "studying" WWII. Great dinner discussions. Highly recommnend it.

We're planning to squeeze in Mrs. Miniver tomorrow before Shabbat.

I love all the recommendations -- just ordered "Battle Cry" from NetFlix.

Well, probably the real reason I like "Nevsky" is because I'm a sucker for any good medieval epic with a good battle scene and where the guys (at least some of them, anyway) wear real armor.

I like the original "Ivanhoe" with Elizabeth Taylor, Robert Taylor and George Sanders for the same reason. Robert Taylor couldn't act, but the jousting was phenomenally well done, and the final battle was well done as well, as far as these things go. And they were wearing real armor not that spray-painted woven stuff.

And, of course, you are right: film is a very personal thing. It's sort of hopeless to argue about it.

Katherine:

I'mso glad you enjoyed "The Mortal Storm." It's really wonderful and too little seen. Hollywood should use it as a template for a film about the threat of Islamo Nazism.

Yeah, that'll happen.

Mrs. Miniver, oh boy, better have lots of Kleenex ready. Greer Garson is luminous.

Waiting for my copy of "Battle Cry."

Ephraim:

I love medieval epics too. Hey, I should do a blog about great medieval films!

Robin Hood. Hmmm.

Elizabeth Taylor is really pretty, and she's Jewish... sorta. And Robert Taylor looks great in tights. I love when he's playing the, um, ukelele, wandering around Europe looking for King Richard. "Yoo-hoo, Richie, you in that tower by any chance?"

Strong recommendation: "The Last Valley" The only film ever directed by novelist James Clavell. Starring Michael Caine, Omar Sharif, and Florinda Balkin. Takes place during the Thirty Years Wars. The story of vicious medieval mercenaries taking over a peaceful peasant village in a hidden valley. An obscure and amazing gem.

Here's the link to the DVD:

http://www.amazon.com/Last-Valley-Michael-Caine/dp/B0001GF2GA/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/105-2151244-0862861?ie=UTF8&s=dvd

Greetings WW2 movie lovers!


Feel free to browse my private collection at ww2dvd.net with many "commercial free" trailers and historical context of these movies.


Enjoy,


Stefan

Stefan:

Thanks so much for checking in. I cruised through your site and it's nicely organized. Great resource. Best of luck and please do stay in touch. I'll be publishing another list of WWII movies very soon.

A blog about great medieval films would be pretty short. There aren't that many.

The Errol Flynn "Robin Hood" is a great heap of rollicking fun, and the swordfight with Basil Rathbone at the end is one of the best.

A blog about great swashbucklers might be an idea, though....

Ephraim:

The trick is to find a handful of great medieval films that might have escaped public attention.

I agree, it's a real challenge. Most are really terrible.

I'm going to start up a list and screen some films.

Good swashbucklers are even harder to list. Most are pretty dopey.

BTW, silent films should increase the quality of both lists, don't you think?

There is one medieval epic that most people don't know about, a Polish film directed by Alexander Ford (1960, I think) called, in English, "Knights of the Black Cross". It is a retelling of the Battle of Grunvald (also called the Battle of Tannenberg) that took place in 1410 between the crusading order of the Teutonic Knights who ruled their own independent state on the one hand, and the combined forces of Poland and Lithuania on the other. The Teutonic Knights were decisively defeated.

The film is, essentially, a Polish version of "Alexander Nevsky" and is kind of a ripoff. But the sets and costumes are great and there is a great axe-and-shield duel as well as a rousing battle at the end. I've only been able to locate a dubbed version, unfortnaely. I remember it being better in Polish.

"El Cid" with Sophia Loren and Charlton Heston is pretty good, as is "The Warlord", also with Chuck. "The Vikings" With Kirk Douglas and Tony Cutis is OK as well. None of these are great films, of course, but they're entertaining enough.

There is, of course, "The Seventh Seal" but I'm not sure it really qualifies.

I'm trying to locate a copy of "The Black Shield of Falworth", with MOT Bernie Schwartz (aka Tony Curtis) so I can settle an argument with my friends over whether he actually said "Yondah lies duh castle of my foddah" in his inimitable medieval Brooklyn accent.

Yes, most swashbucklers are stupid, but none of them are supposed to be taken seriously. It's all a matter of who buckles the best swash. Douglas Fairbanks was before my time, so I'm an Errol Flynn fan. In addition to "Robin Hood" he made a number of good swashbucklers, one of the best being "The Sea Hawk".

For sheer fun, it is hard to top the original "The Prisoner of Zenda" with Robert Coleman and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. as Rupert of Hentzau.

Ephraim:

Alexander Ford is a good director. I'd like to see that film. Yup, it's slim pickings. I like "El Cid" too.

Need to do some serious research.

Has anyone seen "A Walk in the Sun"-one of the best WWII movies. Also "Hell is for Heroes" with Steve McQueen, Fess Parker, and, believe it or not, Bob Newhart.

I agree that "Thin Red Line" was awful. One of the few movies I actually walked out in the middle of.

Recent war movies out of Hollywood have, in the main, been not so much anti-war as they have been anti-American.

I actually liked "Platoon". It got the color and tone right, and the night battle was realistic. I think I may have seen a different version of "Platoon" than everyone else;the one where Sgt. Barnes is the hero.

"We Were Soldiers" was the only recent war movie that wasn't anti american. Mel Gibson may be a vile antisemite but he did a good job of portraying the humanity of soldiers and their families. He got the battle about 80% right and portrayed the American G.I.s as the heroes they were. Of course I may be a bit prejudiced as a participant.

Oh, I forgot. One Israeli war movie that comes to mind is "Hill 21 Doesn't Answer"

Raphael --

Did you fight at LZ X-Ray with COL Moore?

Raphael:

We've discussed "Walk in the Sun" in this thread at several points, yes. A classic.

"Hell is for Heroes" is lots of fun. McQueen is, as always, wonderful.

"Hill 24" is sort of an Israeli movie, but it's not so hot. I strongly recommend the made for Israeli TV film "Adjusting Sights" about the aftermath of the Yom Kippur War. A beautiful and touching film, based on a very fine novel. This and the film "Ushpizin" are the best movies to come out of the wretched, inbred, left wing Israeli film community. Both films are deeply conservative, religious and both are technically superb.

Hey, Robert.

> Hey, I just realized, we can also refer to #1 as a biblical movie:)

Heh heh heh.

On a more serious note, I just remembered another great WW2 film: Au Revoir Les Enfants.

Jo:

Never saw it. Have to catch it some day.

>There is, of course, "The Seventh Seal" but I'm not sure it really qualifies.

I stumbled across this very late one night on cable, became enthralled, but could not stay awake for the ending. (It was 3 in the morning.) I knew by then that I was either going to love or hate the ending. I haven't quite worked up the courage since then to see the whole thing through.

So, those who have seen it: Am I going to love the ending, or hate it?

Kent:

I'm not a Bergman fan.

1. His films are pretentious and boring.

2. He was a Nazi sympathizer in his youth.

3. Pedophile Woody Allen loves Bergman's work.

4. I hate Woody Allen's movies. I mean, really hate.

5. I confess that I also fell asleep during "7th Seal" so I can't tell you about the ending. Couldn't care less.

6. But don't take my word for it. Watch the film, let us know.

7. If you want to see great Scandinavian movies I strongly suggest "Day of Wrath," and "Ordet" directed by the great Danish director Carl Dreyer. Especially if you are a serious Christian.

4. I hate Woody Allen's movies. I mean, really hate.

Ah, good. I'm not the only one.

I saw "Sleeper" when I was very young and remember being mildly entertained. I saw it more recently on cable, concluded that it was about the stupidest film I had ever seen, and wondered where my brain was when I was younger.

Kent:

Film history will record that Woody Allen's scripts are consistently sloppy and unresolved. morally repugnant, not funny, dramatically and dead. His camera work is also the most leaden of any major director working in motion pictures.

He exploits his crew, making htem work for scale while he reaps millions in profits.

His films never make any money.

And he's a criminal; a pedophile.

TRYING TO LOCATE THE NAME OF A ROBERT TAYLOR MOVIE I SAW DURING WORLD WAR II. HE IS A U.S. ARMY OFFICER THAT IS CAPTURED BY THE GERMAN NAVY.
THE GERMAN U-BOAT COMMANDER IS TRYING TO GET
TAYLOR TO DEVULGE TOP SECRET MATERIAL BUT HE WON'T DO IT.
THE GERMAN COMMANDER TELLS TAYLOR THAT THEY HAVE CAPTURED HIS YOUNG NEPHEW AND THEY WILL KILL HIM IF TAYLOR DOES NOT TALK. TAYLOR SAYS THAT THEY CAN DO ANYTHING THEY WANT BUT THEY WON'T GET A THING OUT OF HIM.

Daniel:

I have never seen this film and I've looked up Robert Taylor's filmography and have not found any film that matches your description.

Maybe someone else has more information. Sorry, but I'm drawing a blank.

I am looking for a movie where they put marbles in the captains stomach. Cant remember much more than that. Any help or direction would be greatly appreciated. Oh. It was made in the 50's I think.

How can you omit "Das Boot", a gripping war drama depicting the gruesome state of fear that a U Boat crew is subjected to. Also "Stalingrad", vividly shows the carnage of war and the unnecessary wasting of human lives.

Roger:

I'm not wild about Das Boot. Sorry.

When I wrote the article I had not seen Stalingrad. Since then I have seen it and like it very much.

I'll be posting a new list pretty soon and you can beat up on me once again for what i choose to omit:)

marbles in the stomach... I think you are looking for the movie Ensign Pulver, with Burl Ives.

Great Site.
I remember watching a (b/w? possibly subtitled) ww2 movie which concludes with two young resistance fighters trapped in a cellar. The germans try to get them out with gas but eventually flood the cellar. Right before they drown, they shoot each other in the back of their heads. It's a really moving story and one I'd like to see again. problem is I can't recall the title. Any clues?

Justin:

Thanks so much. I don't know the film you're talking about, but gee it sounds very Andre Wajda, the great Polish director. Try his filmography.

Justin, The film is called 'Operation Daybreak'.