I absolutely love this miniseries.
As a keen amateur historian, I got sick and tired of books and documentaries about the great leaders, politics, geography and basically, the non-bloodshed parts of WW2.
Similarly virtually every time I saw a war movie, it was ruined by flashbacks( thin red line) ridiculous fiction (and yes, i do mean you, The Bunker) or completely unnecessary and out of place sex scenes (who can forget Enemy At The Gates, a powerful film, until that awful sex scene which ruined the whole thing?)
There are good war movies. But this stands out, because not only is there no fiction whatsoever, but because, as a miniseries, more time is available to get to know the characters, and follow their progress, to know them, to love them, to mourn them.
Time allows for detail, and the fact that the 'frills' that other films stick in to make them more viewer friendly and marketable have been left out....
When a character in BoB dies, you mourn not because a flashback tells you they have a young sweetheart or something...but because you know this is real, it happened. The acting is truly superb, and you realise, it isn't a character you are mourning at all, it's a real person. This is because the actors made very strong relationships with their real life surviving counterparts, they knew their roles inside out and it really does show. We feel so strongly for the characters because the actors have portrayed them so faithfully. There are no clichés, because the truth is so accurately reproduced.
After reading Ambrose's book, you realise how religiously each part of the series is portrayed.
The sets are perfect, the effects remarkable, and Michael Kamens score will go down as one of the finest ever written. Everything about the production of this series is phenomenal, the details are so minute yet so important.
This should be watched not just for entertainment value, but as a reminder of the sacrifices made for us.
Easily the best television series ever produced.
Watch it. Now.
As a keen amateur historian, I got sick and tired of books and documentaries about the great leaders, politics, geography and basically, the non-bloodshed parts of WW2.
Similarly virtually every time I saw a war movie, it was ruined by flashbacks( thin red line) ridiculous fiction (and yes, i do mean you, The Bunker) or completely unnecessary and out of place sex scenes (who can forget Enemy At The Gates, a powerful film, until that awful sex scene which ruined the whole thing?)
There are good war movies. But this stands out, because not only is there no fiction whatsoever, but because, as a miniseries, more time is available to get to know the characters, and follow their progress, to know them, to love them, to mourn them.
Time allows for detail, and the fact that the 'frills' that other films stick in to make them more viewer friendly and marketable have been left out....
When a character in BoB dies, you mourn not because a flashback tells you they have a young sweetheart or something...but because you know this is real, it happened. The acting is truly superb, and you realise, it isn't a character you are mourning at all, it's a real person. This is because the actors made very strong relationships with their real life surviving counterparts, they knew their roles inside out and it really does show. We feel so strongly for the characters because the actors have portrayed them so faithfully. There are no clichés, because the truth is so accurately reproduced.
After reading Ambrose's book, you realise how religiously each part of the series is portrayed.
The sets are perfect, the effects remarkable, and Michael Kamens score will go down as one of the finest ever written. Everything about the production of this series is phenomenal, the details are so minute yet so important.
This should be watched not just for entertainment value, but as a reminder of the sacrifices made for us.
Easily the best television series ever produced.
Watch it. Now.