Category Archives: military

“Battle of Leningrad” a Russian Heroic Tale

drama, foreign films, historical, history, military, true story, ,

Written and directed by Aleksey Kozlov, Battle of Leningrad involves World War II’s Siege of Leningrad – in which Nazi Germany blockaded the major Soviet city for 28 months. The situation ranks as perhaps the single most brutal and devastating military campaign in modern history.

Now, the story of horrifying siege told through the lives of people caught in the middle of it in Battle of Leningrad. Produced in Russia, the story began in September 1941. On the Eastern Front of World War II, Kostya, played by Andrey Mironov-Udalov and his fellow Russian cadets tasked with evacuating thousands of civilians out of war-torn Leningrad. The purpose is safety aboard Barge 752.

While Kostya’s commander initially worries that the barge may be too outdated to sail across Lake Ladoga safely, the evacuation completed. Even Kostya finds time to smuggle his fiancé, Nastya, played by Maria Melnikova, aboard the bare to join him on the journey. But tragedy quickly finds them, and the story is about survival.

An unrelenting storm strikes that evening, and Barge 752 begins to break down and leak, threatening to sink. Kostya, Nastya, and the rest of the ship’s occupants are hopeful for rescue the next morning. They find themselves in even greater danger when the first responders are not what they hope them to be — planes to rescue them, but enemy aircraft, geared up for attack.

The film is epic on a grand scale while allowing enough focus intimately on the unique individuals caught up in an enormous tragedy. Kozlov’s movie is similar to Dunkirk, Saving Private Ryan, Stalingrad, and Titanic.

The movie is full of rage with intense circumstances on board the barge with the impending attack plays with remarkable clarity. 

The battle scenes are energetic and penetrating along with a dramatic storyline about a time in history that continues to interest storytellers like Kozlov.

Mironov-Udalov and Melnikova bring honesty to their relationship and circumstances. It is through their eyes we experience the horrors of WW II in Russia.

The movie is in Russia with English subtitles.

A War

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3D_CMYK_AWarBDWrpDirected by Danish filmmaker Tobias Lindholm, A War begins with company commander Claus M. Pedersen, played by Pilou Asbæk, and his men are stationed in an Afghan province. Meanwhile back in Denmark, Claus’ wife Maria, played by Tuva Novotny is trying to hold everyday life together with a husband at war and three children missing their father. During a routine mission, the soldiers are caught in a heavy crossfire and in order to save his men, Claus makes a decision that has grave consequences for him and his family back home.

Asbæk as Claus is believable and visceral. The commander is an experienced, knowledgeable and admired Danish army officer in charge of a company stationed in a rocky, distant wasteland in Afghanistan. Claus’ orders are to keep the village safe from Taliban attack. The mundane and tedious patrols are edged with the potential for dangerous combats, which places Claus’ company in harm’s way.

Several firefights ensue. Lindholm films them as a vortex with spinning in combat. Such harrowing intensity, I found it worse than the usual blood and guts of other war movies.

One of his men is killed. That is a major turning point in the movie where Claus resolves to forsake his safe commander’s tent and lead the patrols himself.

I rather not go into full details on what happens next in the movie because I don’t want to spoil it for you. I want you to enjoy the movie and see how it all plays out to the end. I will say, what happens to Claus and his family is heart wrenching. War is a terrible commodity that we should never have to endure.  You would think the powers that be would have figured that out by now. Today, there is no need for war.

With that, the movie is great, and rightly so. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Movie, Son of Saul won, but the movie is so good. I am surprised it didn’t win.

Lindholm reaches the audience with realism. He once again employs those who have been closest to the conflict. In A War, he uses Danish soldiers and Taliban warriors, relatives, and refugees, as he strives towards realism.

A Hijacking is another film by Lindholm, also starring Asbæk,  that won quite a few awards, winning a Critics’ Award (Bodil) for Best Danish Film as well as five Danish Academy Awards. He is definitely a filmmaker to watch. I recommend A War.

Sniper: Special Ops

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sniperDirected by Fred Olen Ray, who is known for directing awful T and A movies, takes on Sniper: Special Ops with Steven Seagal.  The combination speaks cheesy to the third degree unless you are a devote Seagal fan.

The story is about a Special Ops Military Force, led by Sergeant Vic Mosby, played by Tim Abell, with a proficient sniper Sergeant Jake Chandler, played by Seagal, who watches over as the sniper. They go on a special mission to an isolated Afghan village. Once at the village, they extract an American Congressman being held by the Taliban. The rescue mission is a success, but Jake gets caught up in a firefight with the enemy and is separated from the mission and decides to stay back in order to help an injured soldier.

Sergeant Mosby distraughtly fails to convince Lieutenant Colonel Jackson, played by Dale Dye, to allow him and his team to go back and save the soldiers. Instead, he is commanded to take on a new mission that will retrieve a truckload of munitions. The munitions are vital for the military base, but Mosby doesn’t follow orders. He and his Special Ops Team head back to the village and rescue the abandoned soldiers. Outnumbered and outgunned, Vic and his men engage in a massive shootout against the enemy while Jake uses his proficient skills to help save them all from undeniable death.

Clearly, Abell has the bigger role compared to Seagal. With that, the movie authenticity is nowhere to be found with an army not wearing helmets in a war zone, including utter disrespect for military dress code. The story is predictable with cliché after cliché, and Pro Wrestler Rob Van Dam has a minor role.

The other problem with the movie is the director or lack of directing, depending on how you want to view it.  But, like I said if you are a devote Seagal fan you will want to see this movie because he is in it. That is about as good as it gets.

History of War Collection

documentary, history, military,

History WarHistory Channel is pretty darn good at making documentaries. The History of War Collection is an excellent example of how well the History Channel produces documentaries. The 17-Disc set takes you on a tour of America’s military role through all of its major wars.

You will learn and see how warfare evolved from the time of the American Revolution up through the Civil War and into modern times. The discs offer so much information about how America became the land of the free and home of the brave.

I was able to immerse into the 17-disc set, which digs deep into the twists and turns of America’s most significant and deadly conflicts-from the American Revolution, the Mexican-American War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and the Spanish-American War to WWI, WWII, and the Vietnam and Korean Wars.

Produced as a documentary, the set features over 42 hours of programming amassed from over 20 History Channel documentaries. The credits are impressive with renowned historians and scholars, special guest narrators Edward Herrmann, Oscar de la Hoya, and Sam Rockwell on several programs.

Teachers, historians, and students will find the set informative and eye-opening tour of America’s military role through all of its major wars.

I was most impressed with how warfare evolved from the time of the American Revolution into modern times. Evidence depicted with reenacted stories of the countless brave Americans who put their lives on the line to defend their country and their beliefs.

You might not get through the entire set, but I highly recommend The History of War Collection.

“Chain of Command” With Steve Austin and Michael Jai White

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chain

Directed by Kevin Carraway and starring Steve Austin and Michael Jai White, Chain of Command was released on DVD. I am not surprised because the movie is not very good, with nothing original about the plot. It is about a military man, played by White, who works to expose those responsible for his brother’s death because it is his duty and his need to get revenge.

I have seen White in better movies like Black Dynamite. That I highly recommend. Another recent movie, Skin Trade, starring White stars and Tony Jaa, is quite good, too. Watching him in a movie like Chain of Command is painful because it’s so bad.  White is talented, and he should pick better movies where he can let his talent shine on screen.

The movie doesn’t do justice to Austin either. His scenes are lengthy tirades with no substance to back him up.  That adds up to being boring with a big yawn.  All in all, this movie is not worth watching.  It is about Special Operative James Webster. He just returned home from duty, only to witness the brutal slaying of his brother.

Webster immediately tries to retaliate and hunt down the perpetrators, but as he delves deeper into the secret world of corruption and murder, he finds himself at the center of a deadly conspiracy that cuts deep inside the walls of the US Government.  The most ruthless military assassin, played by Austin, is hot on his trail.  Webster must expose the corrupt high-ranking officials before he becomes just another victim of the evil plan to destroy.

History Channel Presents “The Definitive WWI & WWII Collection”

documentary, historical, history, military, television, , , , , , , ,
The Definitive WWI & WWII

I am amazed at how The History Channel has produced an assortment of documentaries and episodes concerning the two Great Wars, WWI and WWII. The set is endless, with titles including The Color of War, an unrivaled five-disc, 13-episode documentary about WWII, and The World Wars, a stellar production that spotlights a few of the more well-known individuals from the two wars.

Altogether, the complete WWI and WWII package is over 44 hours and some content overlaps from disc to disc. The whole set could be better organized and less annoying, and I’m still trying to come to terms with the flow from one disc to the next. The mixture of documentaries along with episodes from The History Channel series offers a lot of views on both World Wars, but realize the product is a collection of distinct productions and not an epic told as a story from beginning to end. With that, don’t let the time, over 44 hours, allude you to the idea that each distinct disc covers all aspects of these two Great Wars. There was no way I could watch the entire set in order to review the product. I did catch some of the episodes, and here are my thoughts.

Foremost, I found the discs had advertisements for other History Channel programs.  I wish it were an option instead of the trailers coming on right at the beginning of the disc. Sure, I fast-forward, but it bugged me.  Here are some of the programs I had an opportunity to view.

The World Wars, a three-part mini-series, is well worth my time and energy to watch.  The series has a pretty decent overview of WWI and WWII told just about entirely through analysis of some key figures, including MacArthur, Stalin, Hitler, Churchill and Mussolini. The acting and production are appealing.  More vintage footage would make the series even better. The bonus content makes up for the lack of vintage footage. Characters have in depth overview of such notables as FDR, Truman, Hitler, Truman, Churchill, and Eisenhower. The feature is presented as a panel discussion featuring historians and professors who also contributed to the main program. They hold their discussions while clips from the program are shown.

100 Years of WWI is a two-disc set that offers several episodes worth mentioning. They are Armored Beasts, Clouds of Death, Massive Air Attacks, and Underwater Killers. This documentary concentrates on how the industrialized world modernized to make horrific weapons of war like tanks, mustard gas, flamethrowers and submarines. The blend of vintage footage with modern, re-enactment footage is worth watching.

75 Years of WWII is also a two-disc set, with disc one containing D-Day material worth watching, but disc two is nowhere near as good.

The Color of War is close to 10 hours long and is probably the best program in the whole package. The program takes a unique turn and offers an honest view of the civilians and the home front. There is a lot of vintage footage and color film.  There is, however, a lot of battle footage that incorporates violent imagery. If you are faint of heart, this set might be difficult to view. Peter Coyote does a fine job narrating the whole series.

WWII in Space takes a different approach to the Great Wars, with a visual presentation that incorporates many maps and CG animations, more than any documentary. The visuals keep the geography in proportion to the size of the planet we live on.  I like that because it gives me an idea of how the world is influenced by both wars.

“’71” Fast Pace, Intense

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71

I am impressed with 71 since it had me on the edge of my couch the whole time. It was also a lesson about what was going in Belfast during the uprising.

The movie doesn’t let up, either, thanks to the fine direction by Yann Demange and the unbelievable performances by the entire cast. I am so impressed with the child actors in this movie. Sure. Jack O’Connell is fantastic. He reminds me of Steve McQueen, silent but powerful. The children were so heartwrenching, strong and innocent.

Demange throws the viewer into the grit and emotional torture these people went through during the civil unrest. The lesson is more of a concept of what it was like to be in Belfast. There is no backstory, which isn’t needed since we are at war now with civilians. Diabolical situation with just enough dialogue to keep us connected to the story.

The story concerns the very beginning of “The Troubles.” The violent 30-year conflict in Northern Ireland was rooted in the country’s constitutional status. The movie doesn’t explain “Troubles.” 71 is an experience, a slice of life that will forever be embedded in the souls of those who fought in this bloody war.

The story follows one soldier (O’Connell). His first maneuver is a nerve racking riot on the streets of Belfast. He accidentally gets separated from his unit and is abandoned without a weapon. He tries to survive the night alone in a maze-like landscape with people after him. He has no idea who he can trust, but is scared beyond imagination – it’s intense. The movie is so believable, I thought it was based on a true story. But I haven’t been able to determine whether that is true.

Demange challenges the audience at the outset by introducing the soldier’s son. They spend quality time together, so I was emotionally attached from the beginning and continued to have my fingers crossed throughout his ordeal. O’Connell’s breathtaking performance kept me in awe. He drives the whole movie.  I encourage you to see this movie for the talented work of everyone involved.