'A BRIDGE TOO FAR' - WHEN MASCULINITY MATTERED AT THE MOVIES

Big Hollywood ^ | September 9, 2012 | Brad Schaeffer

[Vanders9]

I'll tell you another. At one of the scenes in Arnhem Colonel John Frost (played by Anthony Hopkins), has to visit one of his platoons across a street. He gets ready with a couple of guys to watch the surrounding houses, then runs across the street. A few shots ring out and bullet splashes appear at his feet.

On the day they shot that, the real Colonel John Frost was on set as a technical advisor. "Oh no," he says. "That's not right at all. I never ran. You don't do that. Bad for morale. The men might think youre scared. I walked across the street." "What about the snipers?" says the director. "Oh well thats just the risk you have to take," says Frost. "Anyway they missed."

The director decided to have Frost run. :)

[JoeProBono]

A Bridge Too Far [1977 - HD]

[SampleMan]

that terrible 60's Henry Fonda movie

So very, very well put.

[Vanders9]

“Tora, Tora, Tora” is very good too. And “Sink the Bismark” and “Dunkirk”.

And though its not WW”, I rate “Gettysburg”, as the finest Historical film I’ve ever seen, not to mention being a fine war film.

[Jakarta ex-pat]

Bump!

Though I'll remain with Das Boot on the best WW2 movie..very close with Tora Tora

And I'll stay with Zulu over Gettysburg (Absolutely adore Gods and Generals).

[MasterGunner01]

“I've always assumed that it was a matter of men in their 30s-50s not wanting to revisit too closely the savagery of their youth. Too many painful memories and stories that weren't shared with families.”

In Audie Murphy's biographic movie: “To Hell and Back” the scene where his platoon has to attack the German OP in the farm house through the mud is classic. Many of the actors were combat vets (only 10 years after the war) and many were in the Italian campaign. Murphy had horrible flashbacks from this scene (and so did others). Murphy suffered from PTSD until is untimely death in a light aircraft crash.

That Murphy made it through the campaigns in Sicily, Italy, and Southern France without getting killed is amazing — that's 2.5 years in combat. Murphy was the most highly decorated American serviceman of WW2. He was awarded the Medal of Honor on his 21st birthday.

[Jack Deth]

Hi, imardmd1:

That line was from Sam Elliot’s Sgt. Maj. Basil Plumley.
Basically, God to any subordinate enlisted ground pounder.

His next best line was:

“Custer was a pussy, sir. You ain’t.”

[Jack Deth]

Hi, Vanders9:

‘Tora, Tora, Tora’ had some mistakes. Like flying AT-6 Texan trainers tricked out as Zeros flying off the wrong end of an contemporary 1960s American Aircraft Carrier.

Also Fox treated Akira Kurosawa like crap for the short time he was associated with directing the Japanese side of the film. Which were then handed over to Kinji Fukasaku.

‘Sink The Bismark’ is very good in its quietly desperate British way. Excellent use of real and stock footage.

I finally force myself to sit down and watch ‘Gettysburg’ on TCM late last year.

Superb recreation of a battle that never should have happened. Yet became the Center of Gravity for the Civil War.

Excellent casting on both sides. Especially Tom Berenger, Stephen Lang and Jeff Daniels.

[bravo whiskey]

a number of comments
1. german uboat sailors hated the beginning drunken orgy at the beginning of DAS BOOT. they thought it demeaning.
2. the only models in BATTLE OF BRITAIN were the stukas. the post ww2 me-109s and the he-111 belonged to the spanish airforce. actually it was the spanish airforce. there were no junkers or dorniers in the film.
3. the first dogfight filming was awful. the director, or someone in charge, got all the pilots together and told them to get close and fly like you are fighting. you are at 10000 ft and have a parchute so if something happens....
4. i think one of the cameramen in the b-25 photo plane had his legs chopped off while filming.
5. galland had a cow about the nazi salutes (he was faldo in the film and shaw was actually sailor milan who hated nazis). i think ginger lacy, galland, bader were consultants.
6. after seeing the film either dowding or park had tears in his eyes.
7. more damage was done at duxford during the filming than during the battle.
8. when the spanish airfoce was approaching duxford, a couple of fighter pilots decided to “intercept” them just like in the battle.

i saw A BRIDGE TOO FAR. while stationed in germany in a tank unit. my friend wife broke into tears when XXX corps attacked and the first tanks were taken out by german at guns. she looked at her husband and said “that is going to happen to you.”
the ist airbourne div museum is in the hartenstein hotel which was the division hq during the battle

[x]

The Longest Day was a great flick.

A Bridge Too Far seems like an afterthought or imitation.

[goat granny]

I was just thinking the same thing today...maybe thats one of the reason’s I like NCIS. Man with a capital M is in charge and the rest of the cast are great support....The only woman on the team is as tough as the men and as smart, but still is not a psedo male....but a woman

[Vanders9]

Oh yes...I'd forgotten the German submarine epic! I change my vote! "Das Boot" is ahead (just) of "Tora Tora Tora".

"Zulu" is very good, but I'd still rate "Gettysburg" ahead of it, if only for its greater scope. I have mixed feelings about "Gods and Generals". Its beautifully filmed and well acted and painstakingly historically accurate. The problem is that it is simply too ambitious. "Gettysburg" had a big cast and covered the events of three days. "Gods and Generals" has an even bigger cast and covers a couple of years! It's impossible to present a coherent story like that.