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[Movie] Old WWII Movie & TV Classics

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Gamburd

Gamburd

Grizzled Veteran
Mar 14, 2007
415
22
Detroit, MI
#1
1) Gung Ho! (1943):

I thought this film was one of the better American WWII era action movie films.

A group of 200 Marines are selected to invade Makin Island in the Pacific and destroy their objectives within the course of a day.

I know it's not BoB: Pacific, but I thought this film was entertaining and told a good story.



Gung Ho! stars Randolph Scott as Lieutenant Colonel Thorwald (Carlson) and a young Robert Mitchum ('The Longest Day', 'The Winds of War') as the Marine "Pig Iron":


YouTube - Gung Ho!': The Story of Carlson's Makin Island Raiders





If anyone wants to add / share any old WWII movies or TV programs to the Thread, be my guest.
 
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#3
2) Why We Fight (1942-1945) Series of seven documentary propaganda films; Director: Frank Capra; Animation by Disney Studios.

Why We Fight is a series of seven propaganda films commissioned by the United States government during World War II to demonstrate to American soldiers the reason for U.S. involvement in the war.

Later on they were also shown to the general U.S. public to persuade them to support American involvement in the war. Most of the films were directed by Frank Capra, who was daunted yet also impressed and challenged by Leni Riefenstahl's propaganda film Triumph of the Will and who worked in direct response to it.

The series faced a tough challenge: convincing an only recently isolationist nation of the need to become involved in the war and ally with the Soviets, among other things.

In many of the films, Capra and other directors spliced in Axis powers propaganda footage - recontextualizing it so it promoted the cause of the Allies instead.
Click to expand...


This website has all seven films:

[URL]http://www.cosmolearning.com/documentaries/why-we-fight-1942-1945-995/[/URL]

But I think watching them on Youtube is a little bit better:

YouTube - Why We Fight: Prelude to War (Frank Capra)




List of All Seven 'Why We Fight' Films:
  1. Prelude to War (1942) (51:35) (Academy award as Documentary Feature) - this examines the difference between democratic and fascist states, and covers the Japanese conquest of Manchuria and the Italian conquest of Ethiopia. [1]
  2. The Nazis Strike (1943) (40:20) - covers Nazi geopolitics and the conquest of Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland. [2]
  3. Divide and Conquer (1943) (56:00) [3] - about the campaign in Benelux and the Fall of France
  4. The Battle of Britain (1943) (51:30) [4] - depicts Britain's victory against the Luftwaffe
  5. The Battle of Russia (1943) (76:07) part 1, part 2 - shows a history of Russian defense and Russia's battle against Germany
  6. The Battle of China (1944) (62:16) [5] - shows Japanese aggression such as the Nanking Massacre and Chinese efforts such as the construction of the Burma Road and the Battle of Changsha
  7. War Comes to America (1945) (64:20) [6] - shows how the pattern of Axis aggression turned the American people against isolationism.
I'm just putting these up because everyone here is interested in WWII; no political axe to grind; just want to share them with everyone.
 
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#4
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#8
From JC while working on Mare Nostrum, that the trailer doesn't do good justice for actually:
YouTube - Ice Cold In Alex ... John Mills ... UK Theatrical Trailer (1958)

One that I like (fictitious plot, but it has great views of a M3 Lee!).. made in '42/43
YouTube - Humphery Bogart in Sahara - COMPLETE Movie Part 1/7


Not old, but of the desert war period, I also really like 'El Alamein - In the line of Fire' (2002)... the 1969 'The Battle of El Alamein' is ok, but suffers from the typical problems alot of the war films of that period did
 
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#9
'December 7th' (1943)

Directors John Ford ('Stagecoach'; 'The Grapes of Wrath'), Gregg Toland (cinematographer; worked on 'Citizen Kane' with Orson Welles):


A film that borrows personification characterization found in theater.

Uncle Sam, symbol of the American government, discusses the civil liberties and rights of Japanese-Americans in Hawaii with his conscience, 'Mr. C' on the eve of the Japanese aerial attack on the U.S. Navy Base at Pearl Harbor.


This longer version of 'December 7th' was never released until decades later due to statements in the film that were deemed too critical of the U.S. Navy.


Instead, a substantially shorter 32 minute version of the film was released in theaters.

'December 7th' won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject in 1943:


According to the Amazon.Com description: In 1943 John Ford gave the great cinematographer Gregg Toland (Citizen Kane, The Grapes of Wrath) an opportunity to direct his first film.

What was intended to be a short documentary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor grew into a veritable epic, framed by a debate between Walter Huston's Uncle Sam and Harry Davenport's Mr. C on the true nature of the Pacific paradise. Hawaiian history, rah-rah patriotism, and arguments over the loyalty of the Japanese-American population are capped by a stunning re-creation of the battle so convincing that feature films borrowed footage from it for decades.

Arch and dated, it's a fascinating slice of history that until a few years ago was never seen by the public.

Toland's criticisms of the American Navy caused it to be withheld until Ford could cut the 82-minute feature into a half-hour short, removing the history and analysis and concentrating solely on the battle and the recovery.
Click to expand...



YouTube - Gregg Toland's December 7th


Iron Europe a WWI mod for TWI's RO:HOS​
 
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#15
I didn't think Battleground! was that great. It's not as cheesy as alot of the old war movies but it's still cheesy. Plus the ending was entirely abrupt. It's like it was gearing up to this big climax and then it was just a quick montage and the movie ended. If you have to watch an old movie then this isn't a bad choice but there are much better modern alternatives.
 
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#16
Where Eagles Dare is the best old school WW2 movie IMO... in some ways I prefer it to the recent "realistic" ones... (SPR, etc.)

YouTube - Where Eagles Dare - Main Theme

Didn't want to post a trailer as I feel both the official and all the unofficial ones give away far too much of the plot. This is just the opening credits + beautiful shots and a great theme.

If you feel like watching a quality commando movie, watch this.
 
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#17
The Immortal Battalion (The Way Ahead, 1944):

Several British men from different classes and occupations are drafted, receive military training, and then fight in North Africa.

Stars: David Niven, Stanley Holloway, James Donald, and John Laurie.

The film was written by Eric Ambler and Peter Ustinov and directed by Carol Reed.

The movie was edited and renamed The Immortal Battalion in the United States and is the title I know the movie by.


However, this is the original unedited British film.


http://www.archive.org/details/The_Way_Ahead_1944

http://www.archive.org/details/The_Way_Ahead_1944
 
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#19
LemoN said:
YouTube - Die Brücke Teil1.
Click to expand...
I prefer the remake
faceg.gif
 
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