This is one of the most powerful dramas I have ever seen. I read the book over 10 years ago, so when I saw the miniseries at my local video library, I decided to have a look. Seven tapes, about three hours each, but I would gladly have watched seven more.
I'm not a great "war movie" fan, but War and Remembrance succeeds in capturing the enormous scope of the Second World War while also telling the stories of personal sacrifice and heartbreaking tragedy.
One of its many great strengths is the way it brings out the fact that not all the Germans were bad, and not all the members of the Allied forces were good. There were noble, patriotic members of Hitler's staff who were horrified by what he was doing. And there were also shortsighted clowns among the Allied forces and in their political ranks.
*****MILD SPOILER ALERT**********
To illustrate this, Aster's action against the fleeing Japanese seamen showed that the Germans and Japanese weren't the only ones who committed atrocities. I know Aster was a fictional character, but it's very likely that things like that did happen.
It would have been great to have had a closer look at what was going on among the Japanese too, but I guess I'm just being greedy!!
*********ANOTHER MILD SPOILER *********
The acting is mostly good, and a lot of it is outstanding. I loved the narrative voice-overs of the battles and other historical facts. Scary to think how close the Battle of Midway came to being a disaster for the Americans. The war might have had a very different outcome. The combination of "documentary" and "story" really works well.
The portrayals of Hitler, Churchill and Roosevelt were great -- better than most of the "main" actors, in my view! A lot of this War and Remembrance is difficult to watch, especially the concentration camp scenes. But painful as it is, it's right to remember that horrors like that did happen. Again, the film does make the point that it wasn't ALL Germans who advocated for such treatment of the Jewish people.
The only reason I haven't given it a "10" is because there are so many characters that somebody who has not read the book might get confused.
But it's an excellent, praiseworthy film. One that I think I'll be reflecting on for a long time.
I'm not a great "war movie" fan, but War and Remembrance succeeds in capturing the enormous scope of the Second World War while also telling the stories of personal sacrifice and heartbreaking tragedy.
One of its many great strengths is the way it brings out the fact that not all the Germans were bad, and not all the members of the Allied forces were good. There were noble, patriotic members of Hitler's staff who were horrified by what he was doing. And there were also shortsighted clowns among the Allied forces and in their political ranks.
*****MILD SPOILER ALERT**********
To illustrate this, Aster's action against the fleeing Japanese seamen showed that the Germans and Japanese weren't the only ones who committed atrocities. I know Aster was a fictional character, but it's very likely that things like that did happen.
It would have been great to have had a closer look at what was going on among the Japanese too, but I guess I'm just being greedy!!
*********ANOTHER MILD SPOILER *********
The acting is mostly good, and a lot of it is outstanding. I loved the narrative voice-overs of the battles and other historical facts. Scary to think how close the Battle of Midway came to being a disaster for the Americans. The war might have had a very different outcome. The combination of "documentary" and "story" really works well.
The portrayals of Hitler, Churchill and Roosevelt were great -- better than most of the "main" actors, in my view! A lot of this War and Remembrance is difficult to watch, especially the concentration camp scenes. But painful as it is, it's right to remember that horrors like that did happen. Again, the film does make the point that it wasn't ALL Germans who advocated for such treatment of the Jewish people.
The only reason I haven't given it a "10" is because there are so many characters that somebody who has not read the book might get confused.
But it's an excellent, praiseworthy film. One that I think I'll be reflecting on for a long time.