MAX MANUS

True war story
In Norweigen, Swedish, German and Russian with English subtitles

F.Y.I.
During World War II Germany invaded Norway on April 9, 1940. Their primary reason for doing so was their dependence on Swedish iron ore which was shipped from the Norwegian port of Narvik. By securing access to Narvik the Germans could obtain the supply of iron ore they needed for their war effort without being concerned with a British naval blockade of Germany. By occupying the entire country German reconnaissance aircraft could operate far over the North Atlantic to attack convoys heading to Great Britain.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Aksel Hennie: 20-something-year-old Max Manus
Nicolai Broch: his friend Gregers Gram
Ken Duken: Gestapo commander Siegfried Wolfgang Fehmer
Agnes Kittelsen: Ida “Tikken” Linderbrække
Knut Joner: Gunnar Sønsteby, member of the “Oslo group”

REVIEW
A good old fashioned war movie about the resistance movement in Norway against the German military during World War II. The action sequences are well done and the love story fits in nicely.

The great attention to detail is remarkable, among the very best I’ve seen: even the trousers show worn spots.

CLASSIFICATION
for war violence, brief language.

GREEN ZONE

War action\adventure

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Igal Naor: Iraqi Republican Guard General Al-Rawi
Khalid Abdalla: Freddy, a native Iraqi
Matt Damon: U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller
Amy Ryan: Wall Street Journal foreign correspondent Lawrie Dayne
Michael O'Neill: the units commanding officer Colonel Bethel
Brendan Gleeson: C.I.A. Station Chief Martin “Marty” Brown
Greg Kinnear: Defense Intelligence Agent Clark Poundstone

REVIEW
Set during the early months of the Coalition occupation of Bagdad it starts slowly enough but once the action begins it hardly ever stops. The main question being raised is whether the stated justification for the war, the elimination of weapons of mass destruction, was an honest mistake or was there a more sinister explanation?

The extensive use of hand-held cameras conveys the almost out-of-control energy of the action sequences but the quick cuts often make it difficult to understand exactly what is going on. Fortunately the narrative structure at the end of the action clues you in to what has transpired.

The acting is uniformly good and the pacing fine although they could chop a half hour or so from the running time without losing a lot.

CLASSIFICATION
for war violence and language.

PASSCHENDAELE

War, romance








BACKGROUND
This map of the area around the small town of Ypres, Belgium (shown as the red symbol at the midway point) indicates the frontline at various stages from just east of the town progressing to the line on the right encompassing the village of Passchendaele. The assault was the first major international battle for the contingent of Canadian troops. The distance between the two solid lines is a mere 5 miles. It cost the lives of 140,000 Allied troops, roughly 2 inches of territory gained per dead soldier.



PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Paul Gross: Sergeant Michael Dunne
Caroline Dhavernas: Nurse Lt. Sarah Mann
Joe Dinicol: her brother David

REVIEW
No war story would be complete without some element of romance: this film devotes most of the time to just that and far less to the battle scenes. This may come as a disappointment to anyone looking for more action. For me it was enough because not since Saving Private Ryan has hand-to-hand fighting been so realistically presented on screen. It’s enough to make you want to stop all wars now.

This film is about Canadians during the First World War both at home and on the battlefield. The producers have gone to great lengths to accurately portray the battle scenes. It has that authentic look and feel about it. The acting is fine and the cinematography first-rate.

CLASSIFICATION
for war violence.

P.S.
Actual black-and-white film footage and photos accompany the end credits. No one even moved while these were being shown. Having that many people stay after the end of a movie is rare indeed

SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL

True war drama
Some dialogue in French with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
On July 1, 1962, Belgium granted full independence to Rwanda as a republic governed by the Party of the Hutu Emancipation Movement. Rwanda thus became a Hutu-dominated one-party state. Following a coup in 1973, Juvénal Habyariman was inaugurated as president. For 20 years his Hutu military government ruled with an iron-fist policy against both Tutsis and any Hutus who opposed him. Habyariman resisted calls for free elections and was opposed to long-running demands by Rwandan Tutsi refugees for their right to return.

On April 6, 1994 his plane was shot down above Kigali airport. Within hours, a campaign of violence spread from the capital throughout the country and did not subside until three months later. Between April and June 1994 in the space of 100 days an estimated 800,000 Rwandans were killed . Most of the dead were Tutsis.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Roy Dupuis: Canadian Armed Forces General Roméo Dallaire
James Gallanders: his aide-de-camp Major Brent Beardsley
Owen Sejake: Major-General Anyidoho, United Nations Chief of Staff
Odile Katesi Gakire: Prime Minister of Rwanda
Deborah Kara Unger: American Reporter Emma

REVIEW
Told from the perspective of the man in charge of protecting the lives of innocent people, this is not simply a retelling of the horrors of the Rwanda genocide. Shot on location and with acting that is first rate (especially by Dupuis) the Rwanda part of it looks and feels authentic. The flashbacks less so.

Perhaps a little long, it is never boring. Some of the scenes are unsettling but manageable by all but the more squeamish.

CLASSIFICATION
for disturbing images, violence.

P.S.
Not to be confused with the Emmy-winning 2004 documentary film based on the book entitled Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Roméo Dallaire.

THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY

War Drama

BACKGROUND
Since the 1880's, Irish nationalists had been demanding self-government from Britain. The British eventually granted this demand in 1914, but its enactment was postponed by the outbreak of the First World War. The separatist Sinn Féin party won the 1918 Irish General Election.

The Irish War of Independence began in January 1919 Ireland by the Irish Republican Army as a guerrilla campaign mounted against the British government forces still in. Although there were some large scale encounters between the two groups, most of the casualties were inflicted in assassinations and reprisals on either side.

In 1921 both sides agree to a peace treaty to end the bloodshed stipulating nominal Irish self-governance but continued British occupation. But many Irish were unhappy with the terms of the treaty resulting in the outbreak of a civil war. Families and former friends found themselves fighting each other.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Cillian Murphy: Damien O'Donovan a medical student at University College
Padraic Delaney: his older brother Teddy, leader of a guerrilla squad
Liam Cunningham: Dan, an intellectual he meets in prison
Orla Fitzgerald: Damien’s girlfreind Sinead

REVIEW
Historically accurate but a bit too long as it bogs down in several places, particularly when the townspeople debate the terms of the peace treaty. Although both sides of the argument are presented, we do not need that much detail to follow the ensuing story.

Production values are high and there is some fine acting throughout.

CLASSIFICATION
for crude and sexual humour, language and some drug references.

P.S.
The title comes from the last verse of an Irish ballad written by Robert Dyer Joyce (1836-1883)
As round her grave I wander drear, noon, night and morning early
With breaking heart when e'er I hear the wind that shakes the barley.

DAYS OF GLORY

War movie
In Arabic and French with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
French Colonial Forces is a general designation for the military forces that were recruited from the French colonial empire from the late 17th century onwards. This military unit has played a substantial part in support of “mother France”.

In 1942 the Nazis occupied France while vast numbers of the French army were imprisoned in German camps. The colonies became the only source of a replacement army to continue the war effort in support of the Allies.

France conscripted its colonial citizens as soldiers from places such as Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. They were treated as second-class citizens, referring to them disparagingly as 'indigènes. Senior N.C.O.’s (sergeants and above) and all officers were native Frenchmen.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Jamel Debbouze: Private Said, an illiterate Algerian peasant
Sami Bouajila: his superior, fellow countryman Corporal Abdelkader
Roshdy Zem: Messaoud, the company marksman
Samy Naceri: the scrounger Yassir
Assaad Bouab: his younger brother Larbri
Bernard Blancan: squad leader, Frenchman Sergeant Martinez

REVIEW
Several things sets this war movie apart from the others:

It is about a little known aspect of World War II
Very believable (except perhaps for the romantic sub-plot)
No high-tech effects are used

On the other hand, it also shares some of the things we see in better movies:

Excellent performances by the principals
Great cinematography
Crisp editing

CLASSIFICATION
for war violence, brief language.

LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA

War
In Japanese with English sub-titles

BACKGROUND
Iwo Jima is a tiny, barren, desolate, volcanic island located about 550 miles south of Tokyo and was the last remaining outpost of the homeland. To the US, the island’s importance lay in its location, midway between Japan and American bomber bases in the Marianas. Beginning in the summer of 1944, the Japanese home islands had been hit by strikes carried out by long-range B-29 bombers. However, the Americans had no fighters with enough range to escort these big superfortresses so many aircraft were lost to Japanese fighter-interceptor attacks.

Iwo Jima, with its three airfields, was ideally located as a fighter-escort station and as a sanctuary for crippled bombers returning from bombing raids over Japan. Both the Empire of Japan and the United States of America wanted control of Iwo Jima, but for entirely different reasons.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Ken Watanabe: Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, garrison commander
Tsuyoshi Ninomiya: Baron Nishi, former Olympic equestrian medalist
Kazunari Ninomiya: Private Saigo, conscripted former baker
Ryo Kase: Private? Shimizu, latest arrival and a bit of a loner

REVIEW
There have been few war movies seen from the enemy’s perspective. And there have been even fewer that have the air of realism to it (Das Boot comes to mind) but this one combines that with believable acting entirely in their language, not in poorly spoken English.

Unlike a lot of movies about international conflict, this one does not have an anti-war message about it. In fact it has no hidden agenda; simply showing us a group of people who are not all one-dimensional as the propaganda would have us believe.

The attention to detail is remarkable. For example the dimly lit caves and the muffled background noise of machines on the move recreates the situation to the point we almost can feel it ourselves. Despite the fact it is lengthy (2 hours and 20 minutes) it is compelling viewing and does not seem that long.

CLASSIFICATION
for graphic war violence.

P.S.
The Mark-II hand grenades used by the allies were primed to explode by releasing the safety lever in the process of throwing the ordinance. By contrast the Japanese Type 91 hand grenades were armed by striking the firing pin against an hard object, frequently the soldier’s helmet, which set off the primer and ignited the delay mechanism.

FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS

War

BACKGROUND
Corpsmen are members of the U.S. Navy Hospital Corps. They serve as enlisted medical personnel in a wide variety of capacities and locations, including shore establishments such as naval hospitals and clinics, aboard ships as the primary medical caregiver for sailors while underway, and with the Marine Corps units as battlefield corpsmen.

A runner is an enlisted man given the rather lowly job of being a messenger rather than participating in the battle.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Ryan Phillippe: John “Doc” Bradley, U.S. Navy corpsman
Jesse Bradford: Marine Private First Class Rene Gagnon, company runner
Adam Beach: Marine Private First Class Ira Hayes, an American Indian from the Pima tribe
Jamie Bell: Marine Private Ralph “Iggy” Ignatowski
Benjamin Walker: Marine Private Harlon Block
Paul Walker: Marine Private Hank Hansen

REVIEW
One of the most famous war photographs ever taken, the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima by five United States Marines and one Navy corpsman, is brought into sharp focus (sorry about that) in this epic movie replete with realistic action and moments of insight.

It covers a lot of ground and hits upon one of my pet peeves in movies: the use of flashbacks. Too often it’s impossible to tell which time line we are viewing. In this movie, flashbacks are used frequently (and often unexpectedly) and at times there are flashbacks within flashbacks. This jumping back and forth becomes very confusing unless you take note of the colour rendition:
 the Iwo Jima scenes are monochromatic, almost black and white
 the Stateside scenes have some colour in them
 the post-war scenes are in full colour

Despite the fact it runs over two hours, it does not seem that long which is a credit to the director as there are few (if any) dull moments.

CLASSIFICATION
for sequences of graphic war violence and carnage, and for language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
High-ranking United States military officers can be readily identified because of the yellow braid worn on the visor of their hats. The common derisive term for these embellishments is “scrambled eggs”. Although great attention to detail is evident throughout the movie, one lapse is evident during a planning session when a low ranking officer slams down the telephone and utters to no one in particular “those damn officers, just because they have scrambled eggs on their chest…” the point being it's not on their chests.

Prior to being introduced to the crowd, the group is waiting below the stands just outside the locker room of the Washington Senators, the American League baseball team. The problem is the team played from 1961 to 1971, some 20 years later.

Immediately before (or just after?) the photograph is taken, the photographer looks up and I think we see the flag from his perspective to be on the left hand side of the men, not the right hand side as published.

P.S.
After taking the flag-raising photograph, Joe Rosenthal took a second one with the group standing at the foot of the raised flag. When later asked if he had staged the photo, Rosenthal not knowing how the first one had turned out, assumed they were inquiring about the second one which he knew he had. “Sure”, he replied and inadvertently began the false rumour that the flag-raising photo had been staged.

Stick around for the end credits to see a collection of still photographs of the real battle. It is worth noting how the movie very closely approximates these.

SOPHIE SCHOLL: THE FINAL DAYS

True war-time story
In German with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
Not everyone in Germany supported the Nazi movement during World War II. There were many plots to assassinate Hitler with the most serious attempt undertaken by a group of German military officers in 1944.

Some people took a less overt course of action despite the very real possibility of being caught by police. Socialists, Communists, trade unionists, and others clandestinely wrote, printed, and distributed anti-Nazi literature. One of these groups was die Weiße Rose (the White Rose) which was founded in June 1942 by five students, all in their early twenties.

Although the exact origin of the name "White Rose" is unknown, it clearly stands for purity and innocence in the face of evil. In total they prepared and distributed six leaflets, in which they called for an end to Nazi crimes and tyranny through active opposition of the German people.

In January 1943, using a hand-operated duplicating machine, the group is thought to have produced between 6,000 and 9,000 copies of their fifth leaflet, Appeal to all Germans!, which was distributed by their many supporters via courier runs to cities all over Germany. The leaflet warned that Hitler was leading Germany into the abyss; with the gathering might of the Allies, defeat was now certain. The reader was urged to "Support the resistance movement" in the struggle for "Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, protection of the individual citizen from the arbitrary action of criminal dictator-states". These were the principles that would form "the foundations of the new Europe."

The leaflets caused a sensation, and the Gestapo initiated an intensive search for the publishers. The draft of a final leaflet was in the possession of one of group at the time of his arrest.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Julia Jentsch: Sophie Scholl, a 22-year-old college student at the University of Munich
Fabian Hinricks: her brother Hans, a 24-year-old medical student
Florian Stetter: 24-year-old co-conspirator Christoph Probst
Alexander Held: Gestapo interrogator Robert Mohr
André Hennicke: Judge Roland Freisler of the Volkgerichtshof (the so-called People's Court)

REVIEW
Terrific acting makes you forget you’re not watching the real thing. Half the film takes place in the office of the interrogator, and you might think it a big bore, but the cross-examination in fact is riveting stuff.

CLASSIFICATION


P.S.
Although these events took place during a period of unimaginable horror, the producers have chosen not to show anything even remotely unsettling.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Fact based war drama
original title Joyeux Noël
in French and German with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
After the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914, the world was plunged into war. Although the Germans had made a strong offensive into France, the combined French, Belgian, and British forces were able to halt them. Since they were unable to push the Germans out of France, there was a stalemate and both sides dug into the earth creating a large network of trenches. The trenches were only a few hundred feet apart, buffered by a relatively flat area known as "No Man's Land."

Though World War I had been raging for only four months when Christmas came around, it was already proving to be one of the bloodiest wars in history. Soldiers on both sides were trapped in the trenches, exposed to the cold and wet winter weather, covered in mud, and extremely careful of sniper shots. Machine guns had proven their worth in war, bringing new meaning to the word "slaughter." It was not where they wanted to be.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Benno Fürmann: Nikolaus Sprink, a famous German tenor
Diane Krüger: his lover Anna Sörensen, a Danish soprano
Gary Lewis: Palmer, a minister with the 6th Gordon Highlanders regiment
Guillaume Canet: French Lieutenant Audebert
Dany Boon: Ponchel, Audebert’s aide-de-camp
Daniel Brühl: a German officer, Horstmayer

REVIEW
Although war is generally regarded in a very negative fashion, sometimes the human spirit prevails. This heart-warming movie is about just such an occasion. The movie is sometimes amusing, often poignant. The acting is first-rate but the lip-syncing is not.

CLASSIFICATION
for some war violence and a brief scene of sexuality/nudity.
P.S.
The events that took place were never again repeated.

THE GREAT RAID

True war story

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Joseph Fiennes: Major Gibson, leader of the P.O.W.s
Bratt: Lt. Colonel Mucci, commander of the 6th Ranger Battalion
James Franco: Captain Bob Prince, leader of the mission
Connie Nielsen: Margaret Utinsky, an American nurse working in a Manila hospital

REVIEW
Despite being overly long, the movie has a look of authenticity about it. There are no great heroics, no “flashy” parades, no over-the-top pyrotechnics. What we see and hear comes across more like a documentary than a film about one of the little known events at the end of World War II.

CLASSIFICATION
for strong war violence and brief language (one swear word in my opinion hardly justifies this aspect of the rating)

DOWNFALL

Original title: Der Untergang
True historical war story
In German with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
The Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944 marked the beginning of the end of the German Third Reich. In December 1944 a massive offensive aimed at pushing the Allies back from German home territory was planned for the Ardennes region of southern Belgium. The führer, Adolf Hitler, moved his headquarters from East Prussia to the west to personally direct this attack. When it failed, the Germans made an orderly withdrawal between January 8 and 16, having used more of their resources than they could afford on this last desperate attempt to regain the initiative in the West.

Hitler returned to Berlin despite the fact the invading Soviet forces were closing in on the city. He moved into the fortified bunker beneath the Chancellery, the seat of the Reich government. In a state of extreme nervous exhaustion and trapped underground, he continued to direct the German war effort without accepting the inevitability of defeat.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Bruno Ganz: Adolf Hitler
Alexandra Maria Lara: Traudl Junge, his principal secretary
Juliane Kohler: Eva Braun, his long time mistress
Ulrich Matthes: Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda
Corinna Harfouch: Frau Magda, Goebbels’ wife and mother of their six children
Heino Ferch: Albert Speer, Hitler's chief architect
Thomas Kertschmann: SS-Gruppenführer Hermann Fegelein, Eva’s brother-in-law
Ulrich Noethen: Reichsführer Heinrich Himmler, leader of the SS

REVIEW
This is by far the most accurate film I’ve ever seen of the last days of Hitler, his minions of the Third Reich. Everything looks so authentic and real. Most of the actors have a very uncanny likeness to the person they are portraying, even without the benefit of makeup. Some give truly incredible performances.
The film offers no commentary or judgement. It simply shows the facts.

CLASSIFICATION
for scenes of violence, some disturbing images and brief nudity.

P.S.
The movie is over two hours long, but doesn’t seem like it.