Worst WWII Movie Ever?

[Texas Star]

I've had several WWII American and German vets tell me that its because a shell concussion can take your head off, if your wearing it with chinstrap strapped?

Probably true. My son received one of his wounds in Iraq when an explosion nearby jarred his torso so badly that he got a hernia, as well as other damage. He was evacuated to Germany for surgery, then to Walter Reed hospital in DC for recovery.

Many soldiers take their helmets off frequently in warm weather.

I suspect that paratroops jump with the helmet strap fastened. I think the reasons are evident, and I've seen photos of them that way.

As for, Pearl Harbor, I both liked and disliked it. I did not care for the way they portrayed Gen. Doolittle. I did like Kate Beckinsale and the Spitfires, although I despise the present trend to special effects for aircraft, buildings, action, etc.

It's hardly a WWII film, but the relatively recent production of, "Cleopatra" as a TV mini-series depicted the lighthouse at Alexandria and the Battle of Actium via special effects. The 1962 (?) movie handled that much better, and Elizabeth Taylor was probably a better Cleo than was Lenore Varella, although the Chilean actress was pretty good. But Timothy Dalton was out of place as Julius Caesar. Rex Harrison did that role better in the older film. He even looked a lot like Caesar.

I dislike wrong details in war movies, like in, "A Bridge Too Far", where some modified AT-6's (?) played the Allied fighter bombers. They may have been expected to fill in for Thunderbolts or Hawker Tempests or Typhoons? Did Gen. Urquhart (sp?) really use a Colt .45 auto instead of a .38 revolver or a 9mm Browning? Could be. British paratroops and commando units did use many US .45's, and a photo of the real general just shows the webbing holster. The gun isn't visible. Connery did play the role well. Photos of the Red Devils at Arnhem show both revolvers and either Colt or Browning autos in the hands of paratroopers.

 

[Drm50]

I do believe reading that Mash was planned to be a anti Vietnam
War flick. But due to the feelings of the public of the time, they
changed it to Korea.

 

[kaaskop49]

I don't remember the name of this dud but it took place in the Asian theater on as Island. The plot was that there was a troop of US GIs and a troop of Japs. They ended up calling a truce for a time and some of them became "friends". when the truce ended some of The Americans tried to Protect the Japs who were hell bent on killing them. The movie starred Frank Sinatra an I've never seen it run on TV probably because it's so bad.
Jim

"None But The Brave," 1965 with Sinatra, Clint Walker, Brad Dexter, Rafer Johnson, and other 50s/60s film stalwarts.

Kaaskop49
Shield #5103

 

[raljr1]

When my wife and I went to see Saving Private Ryan she wanted to leave before the opening scene was over. I told her no you need to see this. There were grown men from the World War II era crying before that scene ended in the movie theater where we were

 

[cmort666]

I guess I'm not easily bored, I liked The Thin Red Line. Cinematography was absolutely beautiful and the story line was a good adaption of James Joyce's book.

I consider "The Thin Red Line" equivalent to "Year of the Dragon". Both had great cinematography completely neutralized by script "writing" that could have come from a gibbon with foetal alcohol syndrome, high on crack.

 

[UncleEd]

Two of my much older brothers landed in Normandy, one infantry and the other with tanks.

Neither of them seemed to care much if the later WWII movies had the wrong equipment, i.e. tanks, rifles, planes, the buttons on GIs shirts.

They either liked the story or didn't. They either thought the emotions were correctly depicted or didn't. And they didn't seem to mind if a bit of fantasy Hollywood was woven in.

 

[DWalt]

Our favorite gun-hating James Bond, Daniel Craig, starred in a real stinker of a war movie called "Defiance." The plot involved some Jewish brothers joining some eastern European resistance fighters to fight the Nazis and protect a bunch of Jewish refugees. It was absolutely unwatchable it was so terrible. One of the few movies I walked out of when it became evident it couldn't get any better, only worse. One for the masochists only.

 

[cmort666]

Our favorite gun-hating James Bond, Daniel Craig, starred in a real stinker of a war movie called "Defiance." The plot involved some Jewish brothers joining some eastern European resistance fighters to fight the Nazis and protect a bunch of Jewish refugees. It was absolutely unwatchable it was so terrible. One of the few movies I walked out of when it became evident it couldn't get any better, only worse. One for the masochists only.

I watched it on a friend's TV and really enjoyed it.

One of the things I especially enjoyed about it was the rejection it represents of victimization and unilateral pacifism. I'd had some nasty debates in usenet previously with despicable curs who both counseled submission to genocide and mocked the fighters in the Warsaw Ghetto and Sobibor. The ONLY reason for the Jews NOT to have fought to the death was to protect NAZIS, and I spared no effort saying so.

 

[the ringo kid]

I remember seeing Defiance but remember nothing about it. Another stinker and not mentioned is: Attack. Great cast, stupid movie.

 

[Beemerguy53]

I watched most of the 1998 "The Thin Red Line" last nite. What a piece of junk. Thank god that the actual servicemen in WWII were nothing like this bunch of simpering whiners. I could write two pages of the inaccuracies of the film, but someone explain to me why you would wear a helmet in combat and not buckle the chin strap. Save yourself the 3 hours of misery if you have not seen this dog.

I've started to watch it several times and can't get more than about 1/2 hour into it...just doesn't hold my interest.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

My Buddy Milt sometimes spent the night with the 4077MASH.
There really was a 4077MASH in Korea!

 

[Beemerguy53]

When my wife and I went to see Saving Private Ryan she wanted to leave before the opening scene was over. I told her no you need to see this. There were grown men from the World War II era crying before that scene ended in the movie theater where we were

I saw Saving Private Ryan in the theatre when it was released. It's the best movie I never want to see again.

 

[Beemerguy53]

Our favorite gun-hating James Bond, Daniel Craig, starred in a real stinker of a war movie called "Defiance." The plot involved some Jewish brothers joining some eastern European resistance fighters to fight the Nazis and protect a bunch of Jewish refugees. It was absolutely unwatchable it was so terrible. One of the few movies I walked out of when it became evident it couldn't get any better, only worse. One for the masochists only.

Now this just goes to show you how different folks can see the same thing so differently...I thought Defiance was great, one of the better films of recent years. And it's a true story to boot!

 

[Beemerguy53]

I used to think that Pearl Harbor was the worst WWII movie ever made, but Red Tails stole its title.

Based on the story of the Tuskegee Airmen, Red Tails has every bad stereotype from every bad war movie you've ever seen. The maverick fighter pilot who constantly disregards orders (with predictable results); the baby-faced rookie who bails out of his stricken airplane and is presumed KIA, until he magically reappears at the end of the film; the sneering, evil, scar-faced German pilot...all there.

The special effects were dreadful. I had to explain to people who saw that movie that no, a P-51 cannot flip over on its back to get behind and shoot down a Bf-109, and that a couple of Mustangs cannot sink a destroyer with machinegun fire.

I saw it in a theatre, and when it was over, the guy behind me got up, looked at his wife, and asked where he could go to get that two hours of his life back. I told him I felt the same way...

 

[Arik]

I liked Defiance. It wasn't a great war movie but it was watchable and enjoyable from a different perspective. Partisan vs the typical big army vs big army

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

 

[cmort666]

I had to explain to people who saw that movie that no, a P-51 cannot flip over on its back to get behind and shoot down a Bf-109, and that a couple of Mustangs cannot sink a destroyer with machinegun fire.

Actually they probably can... if it's a JAPANESE destroyer carrying troops and cargo and they're using their typical "loading scheme" of NO loading scheme and have out on the open deck, stacks of drums of av gas next to stacks of drums of aerial bombs.

Speaking of which, somebody REALLY ought to do a movie about the Battle of the Bismarck Sea. I predict it'll have the greatest box office receipts in history... in South Korea.

 

[Texas Star]

When my wife and I went to see Saving Private Ryan she wanted to leave before the opening scene was over. I told her no you need to see this. There were grown men from the World War II era crying before that scene ended in the movie theater where we were

You had better luck than I did when my then-wife wanted to walk out on, "Jaws." I didn't get to see that film until after my divorce five years later.

BTW, it's a fine movie, with some reservations about casting, and a better book.

 

[Bill_in_fl]

I hate it when I'm watching an old western movie about the 1847 Mexican war and they use 1873 Colt peacemakers in it. One of my favorite WW1 movies is "The Blue Max", but in the beginning of the movie, when George Peppard was a german soldier in the trenches before he became a fighter pilot, it shows BOTH the Germans AND the English using WORLD WAR TWO Enfield rifles. The rest of the film was okay, but I thought that faux pau weapon's master choice was cheesy. I can't remember any specific names, but there is a slew of cheesy WW2 easily forgetable movies that were made in the earlier 2000's that were horrible. One where the nazi's were using winged demons and another one where a bunch of girls were ferrying bombers and had to land on an island that had a few Japs still on it and they all were fighting flying dinosaurs and the at the end two of the girls escaped after several other girls sacrificed themselves by flying captured Jap fighter planes to fight the winged dinosaurs. Then there was this stinker about nazi's, U.S. soldiers and women being stranded on an island also with dinosaurs. Although I am a big "The Lost World" fan, those were all stinkers.

 

[CCantu357]

While I enjoy WWII movies, I tend to enjoy them all- the fine ones as well as the corny ones. Though I will agree, The Thin Red Line was pretty melodramatic, though it was filmed very well. My granddad - a Korea combat vet- tended to scoff at some old WWII movie, it was either A Walk in the Sun, Hell Is for Heros, or None But the Brave. I can't rememeber which.

I have to tell one story about Saving Private Ryan when I saw in the theater back in 1998. In a scene towards the end, T/5 Upham froze up and could not help Mellish during his CQB fight with the Nazi. There was some crying involved. Right after that scene, an older gentleman, who appeared to be a veteran, got up and walked out while muttering some foul words about cowardice and what not. I suppose he did not care for the Hollywood storytelling.

 

[petepeterson]

Check out a young Mel Gibson and San Neill in an 80s movie called "Attack Force Z." It's actually a pretty good movie, considering it looks to be made for under $1,000.

Some nice suppressed M3 grease gun work.