War Movie Buffs

[Mark B]

Just found out about an early 80’s WW 2 flick called the The Big Red One. Lee Marvin and a young Mark Hamill. Anyone rate or not.

 

[Matua]

Just found out about an early 80’s WW 2 flick called the The Big Red One. Lee Marvin and a young Mark Hamill. Anyone rate or not.

Yeah it's good. Pretty realistic action scenes for an early 80s film.

 

[Matua]

never read the book . i just liked the film

We'll have to agree to disagree, pretty sure I would have disliked the movie even if I hadn't read the book. Pretty deflating leaving the cinema after watching it and personally expecting something a lot better.

 

[Jim Rockford]

Yeah it's good. Pretty realistic action scenes for an early 80s film.

I'll second that. Definitely worth watching.

 

[Willow]

12 O'Clock High with Gregory Peck was probably the first WW2 movie I saw as a kid. It was an old movie then, made not long after the war.

Pretty sure it still holds up as a great movie.

 

[Bring back John Fifita]

An old school war movie I can always watch again is Kelly’s Heroes. What a class line up of actors from that era. That piece at the end when both the US troops and the German Tank Commander decide it’s time to get rich and stop shooting at each other is a great finish to this film.

I watched that for the first time the other night, loved it.

A few things stood out for me....

Some of the supporting cast - a young "Uncle Leo" from Seinfeld (Len Lesser) and a young Captain Stubing (Gavin MacLeod) from The Love Boat.. also

Harry Dean Stanton.... a bit of a story here and something for true film nerds. I was joining some dots..

• Clint Eastwood is the lead actor here, Harry Dean Stanton supporting (credited as "Dean Stanton" in the film)
• Kelly's Heroes was released in 1970 starring both.
• Stanton also had a small part in the 1962 release "How the West was Won" - which also starred Eli Wallach.
• Wallach and Eastwood were both leads in "The Good the Bad and The Ugly", released in 1970.
• While Harry didn't not appear in "The Good the Bad and The Ugly", there appears a link to me to the acting trio above.....

Harry Dean Stanton - Wikipedia

Early life
Stanton was born in West Irvine, Kentucky, to Sheridan Harry Stanton, a tobacco farmer and barber and Ersel (née Moberly), a cook.[2] His parents divorced when Stanton was in high school; both later remarried.[3]

Stanton had two younger brothers, Archie and Ralph

I've actually researched the net to see if there was anything else written about it, but found nothing...

 

[Jim Rockford]

Harry Dean Stanton is actually my all-time favourite actor. His performance in Paris,Texas is an acting tour de force.

 

[soc123_au]

12 O'Clock High with Gregory Peck was probably the first WW2 movie I saw as a kid. It was an old movie then, made not long after the war.

Pretty sure it still holds up as a great movie.

I watched it again a few months ago. You are correct in thinking it still holds up.

 

[soc123_au]

I dislike this movie hugely.

Was supposed to be awesome:
1. It was based on a decent book.
2. Malick was hyped.

Was actually:
1. Basically ignored the source material, eschewing narrative and structure for a B/S romanticised travelogue and a bunch of cameos.
2. Malick is way overhyped.

I'm with you on The Thin Red Line. When I saw it the first time I found it to be a bit of a yawn. I often wondered if it suffered from coming out at around the same time as Saving Private Ryan. I think I saw them within a few weeks of each other. While watching trl I remember thinking that some of the locations were stunning. Then thinking that the beauty of the locations in spr was not even close to my consciousness while watching it.

I gave it another chance last year. I still found it tedious. spr on the other hand I have watched again many times & although as good as my home set up is, it is no comparison to the theatre, but still a gripping watch.

 

[Wizardman]

Lets not muck around guys. I want you to make a call on the greatest Vietnam War movie ever!!!!! TOP 3 if you need to!

 

[Jim Rockford]

Lets not muck around guys. I want you to make a call on the greatest Vietnam War movie ever!!!!! TOP 3 if you need to!

I think that's pretty easy. Apocalypse Now closely followed by The Deer Hunter.

 

[Wizardman]

I think that's pretty easy. Apocalypse Now closely followed by The Deer Hunter.

"The Deer Hunter"......interesting movie. Personally (I don't knock people who do like it), I think no movie in film history needed footage cut from the final product more than that film. That wedding scene....f**k me, I think it went for around a f**king hour.
Great performances, a couple of very tense scenes which were incredible......otherwise, I just think the film went too damn long. I watched it again over a year ago and my opinion had not changed.

 

[Wizardman]

For me, 1) Full Metal Jacket and 2) Apocalypse Now are clear cut. My third pick is not known anywhere near as much but it is pretty damn good in Casualties of War with Michael J Fox and Sean Penn

 

[Jim Rockford]

"The Deer Hunter"......interesting movie. Personally (I don't knock people who do like it), I think no movie in film history needed footage cut from the final product more than that film. That wedding scene....f**k me, I think it went for around a f**king hour.
Great performances, a couple of very tense scenes which were incredible......otherwise, I just think the film went too damn long. I watched it again over a year ago and my opinion had not changed.

I won't argue that it could have benefited from being trimmed a little (yes the wedding in particular could have been shortened).However there can be no doubting that the Russian Roulette scene is one of the most powerful in movie history.

 

[Jim Rockford]

For me, 1) Full Metal Jacket and 2) Apocalypse Now are clear cut. My third pick is not known anywhere near as much but it is pretty damn good in Casualties of War with Michael J Fox and Sean Penn

Good pick with Casualties of War. It's been a long time since I last watched it, I'll have to dig out my DVD,

 

[Wizardman]

I won't argue that it could have benefited from being trimmed a little (yes the wedding in particular could have been shortened).However there can be no doubting that the Russian Roulette scene is one of the most powerful in movie history.

Im struggling to think of a better scene in film history to be honest. The previous events of that film added to the impact of that scene.

 

[Wizardman]

Good pick with Casualties of War. It's been a long time since I last watched it, I'll have to dig out my DVD,

One of the great film mysteries to me was the ignoring of this film by audiences and critics. Brian De Palma directed it and Fox and Penn deliver excellent performance. Quite a few of the support cast went onto great careers too. Based on a true story, tense as hell....a mystery to me as to why it doesn't get much recognition.

 

[Jim Rockford]

One of the great film mysteries to me was the ignoring of this film by audiences and critics. Brian De Palma directed it and Fox and Penn deliver excellent performance. Quite a few of the support cast went onto great careers too. Based on a true story, tense as hell....a mystery to me as to why it doesn't get much recognition.

I think it's partly that it was such a big departure from Alex P Keaton for Fox. However De Palma films usually garner a lot of interest from critics, so yes it is a mystery. I've also remembered another lesser known Vietnam movie thats worth watching - 84 Charlie Mopic.

 

[Wizardman]

I think it's partly that it was such a big departure from Alex P Keaton for Fox. However De Palma films usually garner a lot of interest from critics, so yes it is a mystery. I've also remembered another lesser known Vietnam movie thats worth watching - 84 Charlie Mopic.

I tend to agree with you about the casting of Michael J Fox. He was in a lot of light comedy movies and a teen idol at that time. My dad just could not cop his movies and think people had issues with accepting him in that role. In saying that, I thought he was fantastic. I'll look up 84 Charlie Mopic....I've never heard of it.

 

[Jim Rockford]

I'll look up 84 Charlie Mopic....I've never heard of it.

It's lower budget with a cast of unknowns but definitely worth watching.