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Der Hauptmann (2017)
Germany confronts its past
Following on from obviously Downfall but before that Stallingrad, German war films are now the best produced in this modern era.
The Captain does not shy away from the past, it confronts and makes for a deeply disturbing watch and the credits is just doing that in a comical way.
Modern Hollywood takes the easy way out with WW2 movies, it has to be about morals etc and not showing the truth as it is was.
Savinf Private Ryan is that, the landing sequence was that , it started well and showed the true horrors but then Hollywood took over ...
The captain does not do that, it shows it as it was and how it was to be.
One of the best war movies I have seen.
Tiswas (1974)
unmissable
As I sit here I am an old fart with with a 13 year old daughter so it is easy to say what she misses. But seriously this was it for people of my generation. I never knew any swap shop kids, maybe as a Brummie there was only one show to watch ?
But even now it makes me smile and laugh, because it was what child life should e, pushing the boundaries and anarchy. The likes of Ant and Dec and Dick and Dom are just pale imitations ...
And yes all I have to say is sally James !
Die Wannseekonferenz (1984)
Evils is never been portrayed as so banal
Inevitably this will always be compared to Conspiracy. Whilst the later is a superb film of Wannsee, this is the ultimate portrayal of just how evil has and mass murderer was treated just as any other process. There was no human empathy at all but just a job that had to be done.
Evil is not about what you see in the Silence of the Lambs (I think one of the most over rated and OTT performances in cinema ... Evil is sitting down at a table in a country house and talking about murdering 6 million by simply arranging it.
And today lessons still not learnt.
Holocaust (1978)
Why is this not on more ?
I was not aware of this mini series until a year ago (too young when it first came out) and where is this one not repeated ? If it is a rights issue, please get it sorted, get it on Netflix or here in the UK on the terrestrial channels.
And why ?
Because in a mini series where we now can see what a great actor James Woods was (until he turned into the very people trying to kill him here) and Streep was of course supreme.
However it is David Warner's take on Heydrich that stands out. You watch Branagh;s portrayal of the blond beast and you think that you simply can not do any better than that and then you see Warner. You then understand what real evil is and real evil is the lack of empathy for fellow humans and Warner shows this perfectly as murder was just a process to an end.
The Grey Zone (2001)
An unknown Gem
I have been reviewing my own history and looking at all the films around the Shoah and see if they can add anything to what I did know.
The Grey Zone is a gem ... It shows the compromises people made to stay alive, if they did not we would not have he total eyewitness statements. Some may complain about Keitel's accent but he put across very well how the SS acted and would show a degree of sympayhu but at the end it was about mass murder.
V for Vendetta (2005)
A tale for all times
The message is clear in this film and a decade after it was made it is as relevant now as then, and as in the past and the future.
Today across the world people are being misled by 'fake news' by the press boosting inconsequential stories by fear of 'others'.
Yet we sit there in our own little ignorance pretending it is fine, it is normal to think that children being locked up for no crime is 'right' and 'just'.
Is it a pure coincidence the late and never forgotten John Hurt appeared in V and 1984 from both sides of it ?
We see people march on parliament and the White house, and it does change the narratives, you can not ignore hundreds and thousands from marching but where is today's V to save us ?
Bankier van het verzet (2018)
Stunning film for a great man
We all know the stories of the people who risked all to help others in WW2. This is one I was never aware of before and so when it came up on Netflix, I thought give it a go.
Stunning movie, emotional and a story for the ages and especially now with the far right on the rise. For someone to say it was too slow is crazy and I recommend this film alongside the great WW2 movies.
Rogue One (2016)
This is my final farewell to Star Wars
After seeing the mess of TFA I delayed seeing this one, I thought, why bother Disney ruined it all.
However then Carrie Fisher died and next day I thought I should watch it and just see how they would link 3&4 and they did it ! this is a magnificent addition to the Star Wars universe, it is what star Wars should be about and not selling toys to kids.
Those people who gave this low reviews must be trolls, how can any Star Wars fan (and only fans would watch this) say that it was bad. It had it all, a proper convincing well put together storyline. A film that never paused to breath and everyone died as they had to ..... and I was in tears and just watched R1 for the 7th time and still in tears ....
So after this and despite seeing some dodgy reviews of TLJ I saw it and no more Star Wars for me - Episodes 1-7 plus Rogue One is ALL I need now. Farewell Star Wars, from when I was 5 to 46 you have kept me gripped, gave me hope and this is how I want to remember you and not the farce you have become under JJ Abrams and Johnson ....
Adieu
Trophy Kids (2013)
All About Money
For me sport is fun, for me sport is about being competitive but after riding my bike it is about beating my previous PB or doing well, thats my achievement.
For my daughter in swimming and yes dancing it is great to see her happy winning a trophy or being in the swim team, I say to her, be the best you can then you can never say you never tried.
That is all we should ask of our kids but now the money is so much, any kid with a slight bit of talent is pushed and pushed. Very few make it and the stories of the failures (they are not to me) are common all over.
Money is driving parents to look at the $$ signs and not what is best for their kid. A talented and determined kid will always come through, a bullied kid will fail. I look at Andy Murray, for sure his parents and esp Mum pushed him but it is clear he is a normal functioning guy with normal emotions. It is clear he was never pushed beyond what he wanted to do and he won.
On this program these parents don't see beyond themselves and their own egos and wallets, That is all that matters to them, why have kids I ask ?
The Missing (2014)
British drama at it's very best
People go on about US drama but whilst some is very good some is utter dross.
That is how TV is you will never be satisfied with it all but as I type this the UK is waiting to see what happened to Alice (this is no spoiler) and the nation wants to know.
That is not only top drama but drama which will last the years.
In both series 1 & 2 the story stands alone and all the actors are on opt form but it is Julien Baptiste that becomes the moral and physical centre of the story. A man who knows the truth is never easy but is determined to bury his daemons.
I have no idea what will happen, I will just go with the flow and like series 1 the ending will be the talking point.
Planet Earth II (2016)
In times of climate deniers, hope
Plant Earth 2 was everything you would expect and more.
Every scene, every vista shows that humans are the real parasites on this planet and the animals should rule us, not the other way round.
However it gives me hope, it says to me people will watch this, hear about it and see the folly of our actions at some time.
Hope is far better than despair.
Oh David Attenborough, you are the king of us all
Anthropoid (2016)
Stunning film of our dark times
You have war films like Saving Private Ryan, all big bangs, a so called emotional heart to it but lacking in substance.
You have war films like Schindler's List, a film that is painful to watch yet at the heart of it is what humans should be and we see little of nowadays.
Then you have Anthropoid.
A film not released with a big flash but telling a vital single story of WW2. A story where one of the most evil men in history is killed and yet despite some attempts the real story of who did it has not been told.
This film places you there at the heart of it. It shows you the brutality of the Gestapo, it shows you what it as like to live under terror and the jack boot and shows what should be done to fight this.
The central tale is you should do what it takes, they knew the reprisals would be strong but what had to be done was right and proper, Heydrich had to be killed. These mean had all the moral courage to do this when so many sat back and did nothing.
A lesson for the times now.