es, I've seen hundreds of WWII/Holocaust films. No other has the emotional impact as well as the realism of War and Remembrance. Of course it is the longest such film ever made at over 30 hours, which gives director Dan Curtis the time to portray everything of Herman Wouk's book. Made as a sequel to the miniseries Winds of War, this is superior in many ways. The first half on this DVD set covers the years 1941-1943, beginning with Pearl Harbor and weaving the Henry family into all the events of the war. Jane Seymour is excellent as Natalie and John Gielgud perfect as Aaron as they play cat and mouse as American Jews stuck in Europe while Aaron's "good friend" Beck keeps tracking them.
With a cast of thousands, an exhaustive list of stars, and on location in ten countries, a lesser director could never have pulled it off, and Dan Curtis rises to the occasion of recreating the events to a tee, including graphic depictions of the Holocaust. A few different story lines run through. Most interesting to me is that of Natalie and Aaron and their attempts to escape Europe. Gielgud and Seymour cannot be praised highly enough for believability and complexity, their plight being the most emotion provoking. Milton Johns gives a chillingly intense portrayal of Eichmann. The next of interest is Slote (David Dukes) as a U.S. official in Europe trying to bring the Holocaust to the attention of Roosevelt, but to no avail. Pug (Robert Mitchum reprising his Winds of War role) has an interesting segment in Russia, but the Pacific War, submarine battles and all, though well done, didn't hold my interest.
Prisoners at Auschwitz attempt to smuggle out film to the Allies, and the depiction of Holocaust events is realistic beyond belief. Volume 1 contains the Baba Yar massacre, Himmler observing a "Special Action", and the digging up of mass graves. Volume 2 is even more graphic. Steven Berkoff as Hitler is great with his over-the-top ranting and raging...hey you can't BE too over-the-top in portraying Hitler. Volume 1 ends after living in relative luxury with Aaron and Natalie being transported to Theriesenstadt. On the way a lady says, "We bought an apartment there with a view by the lake". Needless to say there was no lake.
War and Remembrance towers over Schindler's List in every way. Up to the present W&R is the most realistic dramatic portrayal of the events. Some have learned the lessons of WWII and the Holocaust. Those currently running the world have not.
With a cast of thousands, an exhaustive list of stars, and on location in ten countries, a lesser director could never have pulled it off, and Dan Curtis rises to the occasion of recreating the events to a tee, including graphic depictions of the Holocaust. A few different story lines run through. Most interesting to me is that of Natalie and Aaron and their attempts to escape Europe. Gielgud and Seymour cannot be praised highly enough for believability and complexity, their plight being the most emotion provoking. Milton Johns gives a chillingly intense portrayal of Eichmann. The next of interest is Slote (David Dukes) as a U.S. official in Europe trying to bring the Holocaust to the attention of Roosevelt, but to no avail. Pug (Robert Mitchum reprising his Winds of War role) has an interesting segment in Russia, but the Pacific War, submarine battles and all, though well done, didn't hold my interest.
Prisoners at Auschwitz attempt to smuggle out film to the Allies, and the depiction of Holocaust events is realistic beyond belief. Volume 1 contains the Baba Yar massacre, Himmler observing a "Special Action", and the digging up of mass graves. Volume 2 is even more graphic. Steven Berkoff as Hitler is great with his over-the-top ranting and raging...hey you can't BE too over-the-top in portraying Hitler. Volume 1 ends after living in relative luxury with Aaron and Natalie being transported to Theriesenstadt. On the way a lady says, "We bought an apartment there with a view by the lake". Needless to say there was no lake.
War and Remembrance towers over Schindler's List in every way. Up to the present W&R is the most realistic dramatic portrayal of the events. Some have learned the lessons of WWII and the Holocaust. Those currently running the world have not.