52 replies to this topic

[colt21a]

"The story of Dr.Wassel"with>gary cooper...........has a good thompson action scene with native girl two martini........

it has not been on t.v.in year's...........in classic black and white...........ron

[M1tommygun]

Like a lot of other people here, I like "Saving Private Ryan", "Band of Brothers", "Kelly's Heros", "Farewell to the King"(some good Thompson scenes), and "Cross of Iron". One thing that really impressed me about "Kelly's Heros" t-34 Tigers were that someone actually tried to make it look like one, and not use some old Mil surplus tank and paint a German cross on it(what Hurridale said). I definitely agree with Hurridale's comments about the four categories 100%. I feel the same way. Some are good to watch once only, and others to watch several times. For the longest time, when I watched any movie I could just sit and watch and feel nothing about the whole story. When I watched Saving Private Ryan for the first time, I was on the edge of my seat the whole movie. I finally got a glimpse, and I mean a glimpse and nothing more, of what it was like and my respect for veterans shot up considerably. Having never been there, all I could ever get was a glimpse. I guess that movie opened a lot of people's eyes as to what many in that generation went through.

I could not stand the new "A Thin Red Line", just for the certain pathetic actors pretending to be heros in it, when in reality they are the bigest pacifist around. It burns me up to see these leftist neo-commie actor/actresses blast the military and this country, and then portray a real hero on the screen.

I remember an early WW2 made film about the battle in Java. I remember some good Thompson sceens. It was the typical 'patriotic' film of that time, with the typical portrayal of the Japs.

I believe I read somewhere that the jadgpanther used in BoB was made, for the series, on a T-34, I think, chassis. They did a fantastic job on it. I to am waiting on the release of "Saints and Soldiers". I am also waiting on the movie based on the book 'Ghost Soldiers' about the 5th ranger's raid on the Jap prison camp at Cabanataun in the Phillipines. The book is fantastic, so I hope the movie will not kill it.

Scott

[Arthur Fliegenheimer]

Watching Audie Murphy play himself in the movie based on his autobiographical book "To Hell And Back" is mind blowing. He looks almost like he did 10 years earlier in WWII. The movie itself is crippled by the mawkish sentimentality and poorly staged battle sequences, (aside from Murph's scenes), even though it was Universal studio's biggest hit for 20 years until "Jaws" came along. If only Universal had let Murph make the movie the way he wanted to. Even though he was the class "A" hero of all time, he was a "B" moive star and so he didn't have any influence with the studio.

[Fencer]

The below are some of my all time favorite WWII movies.
Of course I love Band of Brothers as my all time fav movie.

What about our British cousins?

The Desert Rats

Guns of Navarone

The Dam Busters

Battle of Britain

Piece of Cake

Those poor boys in the Air Force?

Twelve O'Clock High

Thirty Seconds over Tokyo

Fighter Squadron


Oh and Ron, The Story of Dr. Wassel was in color. Remember
the opening scene with the Marblehead plowing through the
waves with flames pouring out of her.

Funny thing about that movie was that at the end, they said
that the guy who died with "Two Martini" was actually alive in
Jap prison camp.

[colt21a]

QUOTE (Fencer @ Feb 21 2004, 05:50 PM)

The below are some of my all time favorite WWII movies. Of course I love Band of Brothers as my all time fav movie. What about our British cousins? The Desert Rats Guns of Navarone The Dam Busters Battle of Britain Piece of Cake Those poor boys in the Air Force? Twelve O'Clock High Thirty Seconds over Tokyo Fighter Squadron Oh and Ron, The Story of Dr. Wassel was in color. Remember the opening scene with the Marblehead plowing through the waves with flames pouring out of her. Funny thing about that movie was that at the end, they said that the guy who died with "Two Martini" was actually alive in Jap prison camp.

in color... holy moses!!! i got to rent a copy,thats how long ago i saw it on t.v. c.b.s.special on black and white zenith...........thanks......ron

[Walter63a]

Many thanks to everyone who participated in this informal inquiry! There is still plenty of room for more opinions, reviews, etc., however!! Regards, Walter

[Coz]

From a "Thompson" point of view, "Windtalkers" and "Saving Private Ryan".

From a pure WWII movie, got to love "Band of Brothers" , "Cross of Iron" (RIP James Coburn), Ryan .
" Enemy at the Gates" and "The Big Red One".

I liked "Kelly's Heroes" and "The Dirty Dozen", but realism was last on the list....

[Roland, Headless Thompson Gunner]

Cant list any that arent there already but have to make a few comments...

B of B is my new all time favorite. I thought there were a few hollywood scenes like when the guy shows up in the middle of the first day's firefight to take the 88's and says "where's HQ", sticks his head up and gets shot. Then I read the book and that turned out to be true, poor guy came out of nowhere and bought it. WIth they would make a Pacific theatre mini-series like.

Saving Private Ryan, Came out of that one shaking from emotion but now after seeing it a few times I have a few quarrels. Why a made up story? They could have found 100 real life Capt Millers to get the same points across. And I just want to shoot Upman. When he finally fires his Garand at the end and shoots the prisoner they let go, he lets his buddies run off. Were they supposed to go tell the the rest of the Wehrmacht that a Upman was the new sheriff in town?

Patton was very well done but in reality Patton had a high and squeaky voice unlike G.C Scott. Many said his vulgarity was an attempt to cove it up.

The Longest Day - Check out the two best photograph scenes in the movie. First the aerial from the german plane as he stafes the beach and then the one shot aerial of the taking of the casino. That casino scene has to be one of the all time single take shots made. It too has a lot of Hollywood but the one I thought was the worst was when the GI's march past the Krauts in the dark and dont see each other. Turns out that was true.

Battle of the Bulge. Defintely over the top hollywood but my dad took me to see that in on a big panavision screen when it came out so I still watch it every time it comes on. I like how they take out Tiger with little bazooka so Henry and get a look inside. Funny how the other krauts didnt notice.

Also heard many years ago that Gen McAuliffe denied ever making the "Nuts" comment but its history now.

U-571 (I liked the U-90210 comment) They made the germans look stupid and cowardly which they most certainly were neither. They would never have taken a U-boat while the germans cowered in the aft.

And how about the movie Castle Keep with Burt Lancaster? I hadnt seen that until it started showing up on AMC. I still not sure I've got that one figured out.

[DDAYJune6]

Tom hanks and Steven Speilberg are making another 10 part series on HBO about the ww2 pacific campaign

http://tv.zap2it.com/tveditorial/tve_main/...1|,00.html

Edited by DDAYJune6, 27 February 2004 - 09:36 AM.

[Roland, Headless Thompson Gunner]

I guess they read this message board as well. Good on 'em

[Arthur Fliegenheimer]

QUOTE

That casino scene has to be one of the all time single take shots made.

Roland,
The movie with the single longest no cut-away shot is Orson Wells's opening scene in his 1958 film "Touch Of Evil."


Best scene in "Castle Keep" is Lancaster and O'Neal firing that cool mounted .50 Browning.

[Roland, Headless Thompson Gunner]

The browning was cool but weren't they shooting at a little armed observation plane? What was the deal with that movie, were they all ghosts or something?

Of course the single longest one take has to be Hitchcock's Rope. They only stopped when they ran out of film.

[Arthur Fliegenheimer]

Roland,
Actually in "Rope", the mighty craftsman Hitch managed to use cuts when characters walked into the camera, and when the screen went dark for a split second, Hitch made the cuts. He aslo used a long uninterrupted tracking/dolly scene in "Frenzy" when the camera backs out of the strangled ex-wife's office, down the stairs, and across the crowded street.

Yah, they were the fallen dead perpetually fighting battles. The sort of allegorical image that was to be even more prevalent in post Vietnam movies.