Although Vietnam War movies have been more
popular since the late 1970s, for three decades
it seemed that the stream of World War II movies
from Hollywood would never run dry. These films
were very different from their later, more
disillusioned counterparts: the U.S. were the
good guys, fighting the evil Nazis and despotic
Japanese.
The films about WWII began even as the war was
still in progress, as Hollywood promoted the war
effort by portraying the simple G.I. as a hero,
risking life and limb for American Liberty. This
idealization succeeded because it was in fact
correct: there was no war that justified American
intervention more then WWII. While the theme of
most war movies should be to condemn the useless
slaughter, with WWII the themes of good versus
evil actually seem valid.
"The Longest Day" was a mammoth project
dramatizing D-day, the Allied invasion of France.
It was nearly three hours in length and with an
enormous ensemble cast, all playing supporting
roles. The production was very conscientious
about realism: the actors were always of the same
nationality as their characters, and spoke in
their native languages, leading to a lot of
subtitles translating French and German dialogue.
The American role in the invasion is not
exaggerated, and the German soldiers and officers
are not portrayed as brutal stereotypes.
The truth is, a great invasion makes for great
drama, and with the attention to detail and
production values of "The Longest Day", the film
couldn't miss. Complaints that I have about the
film are minor: strafing planes don't bother to
make a second pass, it is implied that the
Germans lost the war because unstable Hitler
wouldn't release the Panzer tanks, and attempts
at comic relief generally fall flat.
The cast is so enormous that it is difficult to
remember who is what. But it is fun playing "name
the actor": heavyweights John Wayne, Robert
Mitchum, Richard Burton, Sean Connery, Rod
Steiger and Henry Fonda are easily spotted, as
are middleweights such as Eddie Albert, Red
Buttons, Roddy McDowell, Peter Lawford, George
Segal and Jeffrey Hunter. For some reason, a
number of U.S. pop singers and teen idols were
cast: Paul Anka, Fabian, Tommy Sands, and Sal
Mineo.
John Wayne and Henry Fonda would later have key
roles in bloated war movies that were not
successful, ("The Green Berets" and "Midway"
respectively) demonstrating that the drama of war
does not always come across on film. (82/100)
An all-star cast enlists for this epic recreation of the Allied invasion of Normandy. Academy Award Nominations: 5 including Best Picture. Academy Awa...More at Family Video
Allied forces prepare for and participate in the D-Day invasion of Normandy in World War II. The huge cast includes Rod Steiger, Peter Lawford, Sean C...More at HotMovieSale.com
DVDS. {#The Longest Day} is a mammoth, all-star re-creation of the D-Day invasion, personally orchestrated by {$Darryl F. Zanuck}. Whenever possible, ...More at DeepDiscount.com
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