war horse (2011) - steven speilberg

If ever there was a film that can be broken down into two halfs, 'War Horse' is it.  I don't just mean for the peacetime / wartime parts, as that has been done on many occasions. What l am referring to is that the first half of the film really got on my nerves and annoyed me, as it was so over the top as far as a predictable story crammed with annoying over emotional characters could be, to the extent that the film was switched off for the day and nearly not restarted the following day.  The 'Devon' accents didn't help, as they made everyone sound stupid, and it was all too jolly, nice and clean, with the locals even coming to watch a field being ploughed ("Come on Joey - I know you can do it").  Throw in an evil landlord, a heroic past for the drunken father / farmer, and a race on the horse with the poshos in their car, and l was looking for a cat to kick to ease my frustrations (but we have non left).
The second half, once the army horse racing was finished with, was by no means perfect, but at least you started to get immersed and empathetic.  The horse was still the best actor, even if a few were used (such expressive eyes!), and the scenes of him running across the front and along the trenches were superbly done.  You felt more for the horse all the way through the film, and maybe it was a deliberate ploy by Steven Spielberg, but the other actors were (on the whole)  stereotypical caricatures, and undeserving of sympathy from the viewers.  The (human) stars for me were the French grandad (Niels Arestrup) and the German private Friedrich (Nicolos Bro) who loved the horses in his care.  Some beautiful scenery, colours and settings were highlighted, but even though the odd tear may have been shed (obviously by the FPO), there was a huge feeling of disappointment about the beginning, which the second half never quite made up for.
I still wouldn't mind seeing the stage play though.

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usa soldier under fire in afghanistan

This is the footage taken by the camera on the helmet (steady..) of the soldier as he came under fire.  He was hit four times, but saved by his body armour. He then made it down the mountain to safety, but was also hit on his helmet (I'm saying nothing), but has suffered no permanant injuries.  Rather him than me, that's for sure.  More of this sort of stuff can be found here.

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cleopatra (1963) - joseph mankiewicz

A sprawling epic that is waaay too long, was waaay too expensive and  certainly strayed from  historical accuracy (but was generally correct), Cleopatra was also the film that triggered the Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor romance, and nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox along the way. Taylor (as a much too pretty Cleopatra) changes her outfits every three seconds (or so it seems), but stays pretty true to the men in her life, Julius Caesar (Rex Harrison), and later Mark Antony (Burton).  Caesar is betrayed and killed by his own senators ('Beware the Ides of March'), and Antony becomes so smitten with Cleopatra he makes poor judgements, leading to an unhappy ending for all.  Some of the set pieces are spectacular, such as Cleopatra's entry into Rome (despite the Arch of Constantine not being there at the time), and the love story itself can't really be faulted, but (I'll repeat) it is waaay, waaay too long, and it could have done with some serious editing.  Thankfully l didn't have to see this at the pictures / the movies / the flicks / the cinema, as, although it could have been done justice on the large screen, the FPO would have missed half of it going to the toilet, and l'd be complaining of a numb bum  (not for the first time).
However, it's still an extravagant enjoyable waste of your afternoon (if you are sitting comfortably at home).  Also featuring a young Richard O'Sullivan and an excellent Roddy McDowall!

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the men (1950) - fred zinnermann

Marlon Brando's film debut, and a starling performance it is.  He plays a young soldier who is shot at, wounded, and turned into a paraplegic, which he is not happy about at all (in fact he's pretty bitter).  He eventually tries to accept his fate and re-unites with his old girlfriend (and even gets married), but still has major issues (as is to be expected).  the film used some real life paraplegics (The Men) and Brando worked with them beforehand to try and inhabit his role and do the justice. Some dated acting is present and correct, but  Brando and the other injured soldiers are great, and it's well worth a viewing, even if the ending is sudden and sentimental.

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inside hitler's germany - mathew hughes and chris mann

As it says on the front, 'Inside Hitler's Germany' tells of the events leading up to the Second World War and the aftermath of the First World War, and how the populous was treated, educated, encouraged to obey, tow the line, and to hate.  Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party get progressively stronger as depression takes hold, as he promises a better future for the country, and most are prepared to believe him, as there is little else for them that is working.  It obviously all goes wrong and lots of people suffer and die (including the German people), but it's interesting to read of how society can be manipulated and encouraged to discriminate against others, such as, in the German case, Jews, Gypsies, Homosexuals and those with physical or mental ailments, until the final conclusion of the death/extermination camps and Germany's defeat.  This can easily be repeated, so don't forget your history brothers and sisters, or you'll be like a vegetable in this society (Misty in Roots).

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wartime bombing and the munich bomb

 Dresden

 Nuremberg

Burning bodies in Dresden

Cologne

The above photographs are from 1945, and show some of the aftermath of bombing raids over Germany during the war.  Nowadays, you can't imagine what it must have been like to have bombs dropped on you on a regular basis, and it's also amazing that the flattened cities were rebuilt so quickly, when you think of all of the work that must have been involved.  It must have taken ages just moving all of the rubble and demolishing unsafe buildings.  This also applies to English cities as well, and l remember lots of bombed out places when l was a kid in Liverpool. 

To give an idea of what it must have been like, a war time bomb was discovered in Munich this week, and the safest way to get rid of it was to detonate it.  The video demonstrates how powerful just one bomb could be, let alone a whole bombing raid.

We have got it soooooo easy.

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the stupidly handsome paul newman

I've said it before on the blog when reviewing films, but Paul Newman was one handsome dude.  These photographs are from when he joined the U.S Navy in about 1943, and l tell you this now brothers and sisters, it's a good job he went up in planes for the Navy rather than being sent to sea, as there would have been a few fellows after some late night action with him once the loneliness crept in and they were a long way from land (because that's what they do).

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johnny got his gun - dalton trumbo (1939)

A bit of an American classic this one, and well worthy of it's reputation.  Johnny Got His Gun tells the fictional story of Joe Bonham, who wakes up after being involved in an explosion while fighting in the First World War, only to slowly realise that he has had his limbs amputated, and also lost his sight, speech and hearing.  There is some great free flowing and hallucinatory writing from Dalton Trumbo, mixing thoughts and memories together, as our hero struggles to cope with his isolation and despair.  It's moving, emotional and political, and certainly anti war, and the joyous moments after Johnny realises he can be understood through morse code, up to the denial of his requests are some of the best passages l have ever read.  Trumbo was blacklisted and wrote under other names, and is probably best known for the screenplay to 'Spartacus', but this book has to be his crowning glory, and should be compulsory reading for schoolchildren.  Fantastic stuff.

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cast a giant shadow (1966) - melvin sharvelson

The fictionalized story of how David 'Mickey' Marcus helped defend the State Of Israel in the Arab - Israeli war in 1948, with a top notch cast (Kirk Douglas, Frank Sinatra, John Wayne, Yul Brynner etc), the premise of Cast a Giant Shadow certainly sounds good. Unfortunately, it is pretty boring, too long, and has the dubious gift of making the non fictional aspects of the story look fictional.  Not worth wasting your time on.

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the rest of the japanese war posters

The rest of the Japanese war posters (the rest are in an earlier post below).

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world war 2 propaganda posters from japan

These are Japanese  propaganda posters from the Second World War, and they are up for no other reason than they are a fascinating slice of history, and their design and colours are great.  More to follow.

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the african queen (1951) - john huston

After her fellow missionary brother dies (Samuel Sayer - played by Robert Morley), after an attack by the Germans in German East Africa at the start of the First World War, Rose Sayer (Katharine Hepburn) persuades Charlie Allnut (Humphrey Bogart) to take his steamboat down the treacherous Ulonga- Bora river to try and destroy a German gunboat with homemade torpedoes, as it is based in the lake at the end of the river, and preventing English counter attacks. Despite their differences, love blossoms (of course) as they overcome the dangers and obstacles in their way.  The African Queen is a classic, and Bogart is superb, even if you can't watch him nowadays without imagining people imitating him.  He won a well deserved Oscar for this in 1951, but l wasn't that keen on Hepburn's performance, and she looked too emaciated.  In the past, l have been amongst the reeds shown in the film, as they are in Dalaman, Turkey, and they sure are plentiful.  If l'd been aware that it had been filmed there at the time, l'd have leapt overboard and re-enacted some scenes, cigar and whisky in hand, leeches or no leeches, so it's probably a good job l didn't know.  I have however, wrestled naked in the amphitheater there, so it's not all bad (apart from the poor sods who viewed it).

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