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ORIGINAL: Tank Commander

ORIGINAL: KG Erwin

ORIGINAL: Neilster



... Given that the vast majority of American-made WW2 documentaries are outrageously ethnocentric...

Here we go with the inevitable American bashing. Thanks, Neilster, you'll undoubtedly succeed in getting this thread locked soon.

BTW, you're welcome for we Yanks keeping the rump of the British Empire alive during the WWII years. [8|]

Erwin - I think you'll find that its your over sensitivity that has just spoilt this thread [:-]

Yeah, it's too bad the British documentories are so outrageuously self righteous.

ORIGINAL: Jeffrey H.

ORIGINAL: Warfare1

Here is a link that describes in great detail the Battlefield Series of documentaries which many consider to be some of the very best ever produced.

Again, pity that few, if any, of these excellent dvds are available for sale here in North America. I would imagine they could vastly increase their sales if they were on sale here.

Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battlefiel ... ry_series)

Couldn't we just buy them in the UK, (via online purchase) and have them shipped over ?

The problem is two-fold:

1) The exchange rate and shipping costs are killers.

2) UK DVDs may not play on a North American dvd player. Often they are incompatible.

A far easier method would be for the company to simply have a distributor here in North America and provide compatible dvds of the Battlefield series.

Hey, to all the Americans here -- before July 4 is over, watch one of these documentaries or a good war movie, and be reminded of the price of independence.

In my search for documentaries I came across a few others that look interesting. Some are for other wars (other than WWII).

If anyone has seen these I would appreciate any comments about whether they are a good buy or not. [:)]

The List:

1) The History Channel: D-Days in the Pacific

2) Century of Warfare

3) Liberty! The American Revolution

4) Ken Burn's The Civil War

5) The History Channel: The Conquerors

6) The War That Made America

7) Great Battles of WWII: Fury in the Pacific

I have yet to see a documentary on WW2 that I liked. Im really picky though... none of the documentaries here in the states give proper due to the east front... heres how a documentary should break down.

Total running time - 180 minutes
East front time - 120 minutes
Everything else - 60 minutes

Besides little spats here and there (Poland for a couple of months, France for 6 weeks, Normandy for less than a year) the war in europe was fought in Russia.

EDIT: And referencing the post above me... Ken Burns documentary on the Civil War is the best documentary ever. Nothing else comes close.

ORIGINAL: MistaCreepy

I have yet to see a documentary on WW2 that I liked. Im really picky though... none of the documentaries here in the states give proper due to the east front... heres how a documentary should break down.

Total running time - 180 minutes
East front time - 120 minutes
Everything else - 60 minutes

Besides little spats here and there (Poland for a couple of months, France for 6 weeks, Normandy for less than a year) the war in europe was fought in Russia.

EDIT: And referencing the post above me... Ken Burns documentary on the Civil War is the best documentary ever. Nothing else comes close.

The Western Allies did a lot of non-land fighting. The battle of the sea lanes went for the entire war, as did the bomber offensive. Their production effort helped to sustain the Russians too.

Cheers, Neilster

ORIGINAL: Neilster

ORIGINAL: MistaCreepy

I have yet to see a documentary on WW2 that I liked. Im really picky though... none of the documentaries here in the states give proper due to the east front... heres how a documentary should break down.

Total running time - 180 minutes
East front time - 120 minutes
Everything else - 60 minutes

Besides little spats here and there (Poland for a couple of months, France for 6 weeks, Normandy for less than a year) the war in europe was fought in Russia.

EDIT: And referencing the post above me... Ken Burns documentary on the Civil War is the best documentary ever. Nothing else comes close.

The Western Allies did a lot of non-land fighting. The battle of the sea lanes went for the entire war, as did the bomber offensive. Their production effort helped to sustain the Russians too.

Cheers, Neilster

I'm also a big fan of documentaries and books on the Desert War in North Africa (1940-1943).

ORIGINAL: Warfare1

In my search for documentaries I came across a few others that look interesting. Some are for other wars (other than WWII).

If anyone has seen these I would appreciate any comments about whether they are a good buy or not. [:)]

The List:

1) The History Channel: D-Days in the Pacific

2) Century of Warfare - NOT BUYING

3) Liberty! The American Revolution - BOUGHT

4) Ken Burn's The Civil War - WILL BUY

5) The History Channel: The Conquerors

6) The War That Made America

7) Great Battles of WWII: Fury in the Pacific

Ok, So far I'm scratching 2) Century of Warfare off my list. Although the series spans all of 20th Century warfare, I read a scathing review of it which said the narrator was quite boring and the series only highlighted the major wars.

On the other hand I have read excellent reviews for 3) Liberty! The American Revolution and I ordered it today.

In addition, 4) Ken Burn's The Civil War has been added to my list for purchase based on its overwhelming great reviews.

Straying OT just a bit, one of the most compelling parts of Burns' "Civil War" series, as well as his "Baseball" series, is the voice of the narrator. David McCullough is an award-winning author in his own right, as well as a renowned speaker and lecturer. He was Burns' not-so-secret weapon in these series.

ORIGINAL: KG Erwin

Straying OT just a bit, one of the most compelling parts of Burns' "Civil War" series, as well as his "Baseball" series, is the voice of the narrator. David McCullough is an award-winning author in his own right, as well as a renowned speaker and lecturer. He was Burns' not-so-secret weapon in these series.

Yes, very true.

Here is a review of Ken Burn's The Civil War which basically says it all. And it has become a MUST buy. Incidentally, I found out that this is PBS's highest rated, most watched program EVER.

"In 1990, on Public Broadcasting Stations around the country, a definitive depiction of the war between the North and South was finally unveiled. There was a decent amount of fanfare and expectations were high. The notion of a documentary cooled the spark for some, since many members of a postmodern audience do not buy into the notion that truth is stranger and more compelling than fiction. For others it had all the hallmarks of another night of stoic, staid education: the use of the televisual medium as a glorified college professor. And there were those who felt the length intimidating. Several nights and hours of the same, torpid information pouring out of tired talking teacher types did not suggest deep emotional or entertainment value. But as the mournful, elegiac music began to gently move through the air, and voices, distinct and intense, began to tell their tale, in their own words, something incredible happened. Over nine evenings and eleven hours, a nation was transfixed as its untapped inherent memory was challenged and reshaped by the story told on the screen. The saga of how "One Nation, Under God" decided to test the very limits of each word in that aphorism and the very meaning of its Constitutional integrity became a national phenomenon.

"And with good reason. Ken Burns' The Civil War is a work of such historic magnificence, such staggering beauty and monumental importance that why it is not mandatory viewing for every child in every school in the fifty states is baffling. Deceptively simple in its approach, unbelievably detailed in its execution it is nearly a perfect documentary. It is truly a seminal work and a film of emotional, dramatic storytelling. Any praise that can be foisted upon it is too little, any criticism overly trivial. You will never in your experience see a presentation on war and remembrance as stirring, intricate and involving as this. Deconstructing the struggle, the nation, and its people into well-observed flashes and faultlessly capturing crucial points in time, it rivets the viewer from its first moments and enchants them into a satisfied and hypnotic trance. Each episode creates a story arch, a mini-dramatic entity wonderfully self contained and filled with exceptional lessons and motion picture enjoyment. But it's when they are added to each other that Burns creates his ultimate magic. Over the course of eleven intense, sometimes heartbreaking hours, he manages to make it all clear. He achieves understanding, and sympathy, for a great time of torment and tension within our social fabric."

The rest of the review is here:
http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/thecivilwar.php

Amazon.com:
http://tinyurl.com/36m86d

post deleted

The History Channel: D-Days in the Pacific

I bought this a few days ago and I just finished watching it.

* 276 minutes long

* Epic Marine land battles in the Pacific War in WWII.

* My Rating: 5 STARS/5 STARS - SUPERB

Though most people associate D-Day with the massive invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, a "D-Day" is actually a military term for any amphibious operation, and few theaters during WWII saw as many battles as did the waters of the Pacific, where more than 100 D-Days were waged.

The ultimate guide to the epic campaign orchestrated by American forces in the Pacific, this two-volume set includes the following documentary features:

DEATH AT THE TIDELINE: Follow America's earliest amphibious invasions, including the ill-equipped landing on Guadacanal;

CLOSING THE JAWS: America's forces gain new expertise and power, and Nimitz and MacArthur have the enemy on the run;

THE FINAL GRAVEYARD: Relive the battles that pierced Japan's defenses and brought the war to a close;

THE BLOODY HILLS OF PELELIU: Incredible combat footage documents one of the deadliest battlegrounds of the Pacific;

BIOGRAPHY: ADMIRAL CHESTER NIMITZ: Discover the story behind the man who turned a shattered fleet into a devastating naval powerhouse;

BIOGRAPHY: GENERAL DOUGLAS MACARTHUR: Learn how this fabled general was able to defeat a seemingly unstoppable Japanese war machine.

For the Pacific War enthusiast this is a MUST buy. At 4 1/2 hours long it felt much longer. Not because it was boring; on the contrary, it was because it was so well done. It packed in a great deal of information and combat footage.

With HBO's The Pacific War currently in production, this is an excellent 2-disc documentary set that you will want to watch again and again. Most of the footage is in color or it has been colorized.

Amazon.ca:
http://tinyurl.com/35pf29

Amazon.com:
http://tinyurl.com/3al96a

Thanks for the above recommendation. I'll put this on my want list.

I can recommend the BBC series "Secrets of World War II"

The world at War was excellent. It was designed with specific battles that changed the course of the war which they consulted on with historians. There are also quite few episodes that deal with domestic issues in the US, USSR, Britain and Japan. I wouldn't say its heavily Anglocentric, its heavily Eurocentric admitedly. The Battle of Britain is barely mentioned and the whole of North Africa gets only one episode. If you want an overview of WWII then this is the outstanding documentary. If you want detailed military/battle history look elsewhere.

I have never seen a "documentary" on WW2 which was free from gross exaggerations, half truths, and out right lies. I would love to see a study done which could focus on the facts of a battle regarding both sides without the unnecessary adjectives and innuendos about the enemy. There is little difference from a modern "documentary" and a wartime propaganda film.

If there is something new out there, I'd be happy to check it out.

ORIGINAL: Warfare1

I was just wondering what WWII documentaries my fellow wargamers would recommend.

New war movies are few and far between, so I am looking for some great documentaries to watch during the summer months.

I hear that World at War is good. However, when I read up on it, mention was made that it is biased: ie more attention is placed on British actions vs American ones. So that Patton is never mentioned and that the Pacific war is given short treatment. Is this a fair assessment?

Thanks.

Go to YouTube and type in Wochenschau

ORIGINAL: Warfare1

I was just wondering what WWII documentaries my fellow wargamers would recommend.

New war movies are few and far between, so I am looking for some great documentaries to watch during the summer months.

I hear that World at War is good. However, when I read up on it, mention was made that it is biased: ie more attention is placed on British actions vs American ones. So that Patton is never mentioned and that the Pacific war is given short treatment. Is this a fair assessment?

Thanks.

I wouldn't go so far to say it shirks the Americans. That would be a misstatement. It does gloss over many aspects of the war and it tends to jumble up the historical sequence a bit.

But on the good side, it's very heartfelt and genuine and there are face to face interviews with pivotal people that are veritable treasures in our modern time.

On the whole it's light on action and a bit remorseful but not in a bad way. I do agree that it needs augmenting for someone looking for a US perspective. But we have so much nowadays from that angle that you should find some good material.

The World At War is a British documentary.  One would expect it to cover the war from that perspective a bit more than others.

One should remember that the United Kingdom (and the British Commonwealth) was the only country other than Germany that was basically in the war as a major combatant from start to finish.  There was a lot of war to cover.

While I agree that the land war in Europe was won or lost on the Eastern Front, one cannot say that nothing else was going on.  The war in Africa, Italy, Pacific, Southeast Asia, China, the Air war, and the war at Sea were certainly major campaigns even after the fall of France.

One should remember that the Soviets invaded Poland, the Baltic States, and Finland while the United Kingdom was already at war with Germany.  The Soviet Union also did not fight a two front war which Germany, the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom did.

The World At War is the standard for World War II documentaries if one is looking for a general overview of the events and battles of the war.  The narration by Laurence Olivier was also very good.

Of course, it also brings back many memories for those of us who watched The World At War for the first time back in the mid 1970's.

The "World at War" is by and far the best WW2 documentary ever made!