Best War Movie Ever

Discussions on WW2 and pre-WW2 related movies, games, military art and other fiction.
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knieptang
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#106

Post by knieptang » 01 Jan 2005, 19:35

I would also like to recommend:

Die Abenteuer des Werner Holt
Antikriegsdrama, DDR 1964

Link(German language): http://www.prisma-online.de/tv/film.htm ... erner_holt

Another one of the DEFA-productions in black & white, like "Fünf Patronenhülsen", or "Nackt unter Wölfen" (A Concentration-Camp-Drama), and "Karbid und Sauerampfer".

The "Antikriegsfilme" of that period, especially from the GDR/DDR and Russia are masterpieces, you will see no "Hollywood-Bumm-Bumm", just the real horror, merciless.

Regards Michael

BTW, if you know the movie "Die Brücke" from Bernhard Wicki, "Die Abenteuer des Werner Holt" comes very close to the theme, a very remarkable movie, outside of german TV/Cinemas mostly unknown, I wonder, was this movie ever translated to other languages, I dont think so...?

Draygan
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#107

Post by Draygan » 02 Jan 2005, 02:34

One more WW2 movie I enjoyed to add to the lists here:

The Train

Tells a tale of fiction about the last days of occupied Paris and a German colonel's obsession with the art that he has "collected". Unwilling to surrender any of it back to France, he orders all of it taken back to Germany on a train as the Allies approach. It soon becomes a cat and mouse game between the resistance and the Germans as they struggle over France's "national honor" before it is lost forever. I thought it had good acting on all sides with Burt Lancaster as a French resistance fighter who doesn't see the point in sacrificing men for "paintings" when they could be helping the Allies, and Paul Scofield who plays the German colonel intent on taking the treasures back to Berlin for himself. Directed by John Frankenheimer.

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knieptang
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#108

Post by knieptang » 02 Jan 2005, 21:40

Draygan, you are absolutely right, "The Train / Der Zug" is a very good movie, one of Burt Lancasters best performances, Paul Scofield as a fanatic german colonel more than amazing.

Also Jeanne Moreau, Michel Simon and the german actor Wolfgang Preiss, Preiss played german officers in many well known movies, a great actor, Preiss passed away on 26. November 2002.

Der Zug: http://www.prisma-online.de/tv/film.htm ... 63_der_zug

Wolfgang Preiss: http://www.prisma-online.de/tv/person.h ... ang_preiss

Regards Michael

Lars EP
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#109

Post by Lars EP » 03 Jan 2005, 18:14

I thought no-one was going to mention Idi I Smotri (Come and See). Thanks Knieptang.

It is for me the best - and the worst - WW2 film ever made. Period. I saw in the cinema when it first came out, and I was speechless. It is a must, but I am impressed that you have actually seen it three times. I've seen ít twice, and it was almost worse second time, because you knew the horrors to come, but they where not less horrible for that. A nightmare embodied on celluid. Anything else is really thin water in comparison.

But other good WW2 films are:
Die Brucke
The Thin Red Line
Das Boot
Stalingrad
Kelly's Heroes
Patton
The Eagle has Landed

A Bridge too Far is to much a documentary. Nice, interesting, but no drama.

First 20 minutes of SPR is outstanding, unfortunately the rest sucks.


Other good war-movies:
Path of Glory
All Quiet on the Western Front (both versions)
Apocalypse Now (NOT the redux. The original is far better. There was good reason to cut out all that crap.)
Lawrence of Arabia
Full Metal Jacket
Blue Max

Regards --- Lars

knieptang
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#110

Post by knieptang » 03 Jan 2005, 23:10

Concerning "Idi I Smotri", a few years ago I saw a nearly two hours long documentation about the shooting of this movie, it was a russian docu with german subtitles, to sorry I did not copy this on VHS.

Does anybody know the name of the docu, or a good link about this, the actors had a hard time during the shooting, in the scene were the cow is hit with the boy laying on the ground, they used a machinegun with REAL bullets to kill the cow, this scene was really dangerous for the young actor!

Regards Michael
Last edited by knieptang on 04 Jan 2005, 02:53, edited 1 time in total.

knieptang
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#111

Post by knieptang » 04 Jan 2005, 02:50

Two links for "Fünf Patronenhülsen", a very good movie concerning the spanish civil war, once again one of the famous DEFA productions from the early 1960s

English review: http://www.ihffilm.com/ihf/r569.html

German review: http://www.defa-sternstunden.de/filme/5patronen.htm

This movie includes famous actors like Geschonneck, Mueller-Stahl, and Krug, and many others, to me one of the best movies about this terrible war in spain, a MUST-SEE.

Regards Michael

knieptang
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#112

Post by knieptang » 04 Jan 2005, 03:40

To complete this list of movies, another movie should be mentioned:

Nackt unter Wölfen

A horrific german made movie, the last days in a german concentration camp, a truely piece of art, a more than touching movie, to me a masterpiece, besides "Schindlers List" surely the best movie about that time.

A few links:

http://www.defa-sternstunden.de/filme/nacktwoelfe.htm

http://www.prisma-online.de/tv/film.htm ... er_woelfen

"Nackt unter Wölfen" is one of the sadest and touching movies I ever saw, I am not ashamed for tears...

Regards Michael

GEB
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The 24th Hour

#113

Post by GEB » 05 Jan 2005, 01:51

The 24th hour features Anthony Quinn as a simple Romania peasant caught up in the outbreak of WW2 when the local constable (who has the hots for the peasants wife) tell the Nazi invaders that Quinn is a Jew. The movie follows Quinn to a labor camp and on into a factory labor job where he is "discovered" by an SS euginicist as a prime speciman of a "lost tribe" of pure Arians. Drafted into the SS, he is made a newsreel and magazine poster boy featured on the cover of Signall with well spun accounts of his heroic combat record. (which of course never happened, he's just a simple farmer trying to survive.) So of course he ends up on trial at Nurmburg when the magazine with his SS picture and heroic exploits are revealed. Eventually aquitted he returns to Romania to try and find his wife and family.

Really a great film about the tragedy of war. It was a joint production of Italian and Austrian film studios. I've only seen it once on late night TV, perhaps 15 years ago. I've never seen it available on video, but I've often wondered if it is really as good as I remember it being.
Has anyone else seen this film?

knieptang
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#114

Post by knieptang » 05 Jan 2005, 02:08

GEB, you are right, a famous movie, known in Germany as Die 25. Stunde (La 25e heure)

Anthony Quinn as "Johann Moritz", a very stunning performance of this great actor, a masterpiece, also a MUST-SEE.

Link: http://www.prisma-online.de/tv/film.htm ... _25_stunde

Thank you very much for this advice, GEB, it is very welcome to me!

Regards Michael

btw, what a nice thread, thanks for all this...!

knieptang
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#115

Post by knieptang » 05 Jan 2005, 03:00

Quinn/Moritz:

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R.I.P. Mr. Anthony Rudolph Oaxaca Quinn

Link: http://www.prisma-online.de/tv/person.h ... hony_quinn

Michael

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scheer26
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#116

Post by scheer26 » 05 Jan 2005, 05:01

The Bridge on the River Kwai
All quiet on the western front
Kelly's heroes
The great escape
Stalingrad
Das Boot

There are more but can't list them all.

knieptang
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#117

Post by knieptang » 06 Jan 2005, 02:14

Another movie I can recommend very well is: Rom, offene Stadt - Roma città aperta

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Link: http://www.deutsches-filminstitut.de/ca ... cf0565.htm

This masterpiece, directed by Roberto Rossellini 1944/1945 is another MUST-SEE, a very good example for the italian "Neorealismus" of that time.

There are many links in italian and french language about this movie, to sorry I do not understand both languages...

Regards Michael

knieptang
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#118

Post by knieptang » 06 Jan 2005, 03:15

And another one: Einer kam durch

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German actor Hardy Krüger, as Franz von Werra, this movie made Krüger famous all over the world.

Link 1: http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Per ... aBFv-R.htm

Link 2: http://www.realfictionfilme.de/filme/vo ... /index.php

Besides "Hatari" to me the best movie starring Herr Hardy Krüger, a man with a very special "background", as most here will know...

Regards Michael

knieptang
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#119

Post by knieptang » 06 Jan 2005, 05:40

I do not answer any more questions about Krüger, not by PM, and not in this thread, thank you. Michael

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Zitadelle
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#120

Post by Zitadelle » 06 Jan 2005, 09:16

Yea my vote goes for Stalingrad... although i always did like The Longest Day as well...

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