The war film. One of the most common subjects for movies over the last century, and for good reason. Wars are very much a part of our history, and to understand and come to terms with such events, it is necessary to explore them fully.

It is no surprise then that there are numerous war movies in the IMDb250 list. They cover several different wars, looking at various elements such as soldier training, battles, prison camps, and the fallout after the war is over. Here are five war movies from the IMDb250 list, and by that definition five of the greatest war movies ever made.

Apocalypse Now (1979) – 8.6 No. 36

Francis Ford Coppola’s epic war film needs no introduction. Considered not just one of the greatest war movies of all time, but one of the greatest movies period. Its production was beleaguered by controversy, rumour, and an increasingly excessive budget. But is it cinematic genius or an overindulgent mess?

Col Kurtz has gone off the reservation, and the US government want him gone. Captain Willard is not exactly a picture of mental health himself, but is the man chosen to carry out the mission. An insane mission, but that is the theme here. A war borne out of insanity, and fought much in the same style. From the Air Cavalry’s iconic flight, and then attack to the sounds of Wagner, things just get weirder. The further Sheen and his team travel into the warzone, the more the reasons for the failures of the Vietnam war become clear. When Willard inquires about the identity of the commanding officer at a particular US outpos, the answer ‘i thought it was you’ tells you everything.

Apocalypse Now is incredible. Half political statement, half art film, whatever your thoughts on the storyline, and its accuracy or lack of it, there can be no denying that it is truly inspired filmmaking. Every scene is visually stunning. From the napalm explosions of the air strike to the murky, flare lit boat travels through the vietcong, Apocalypse Now is an experience, not a movie. Every chapter is surreal, yet in a strange way completely believable. A Colonel holed up in Cambodia with his own tribe, a bridge that is built and destroyed on a nightly basis, trading diesel fuel for two hours with a couple of playboy bunnies in the middle of a war zone, Apocalypse Now is unlike any movie ever made.

Is it the greatest movie ever made? Many will balk at the idea, but i honestly wouldn’t like to try and argue the case of any other film against it. It is beyond comparison of any sort. Apocalypse now is an experience, it is a taste of a war, a symbolic representation of ill-advised military action, and conveys the same message that every war film should, that war is man’s insanity.

All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) – 7.9 No. 235

All Quiet on the Western Front is unusual in several ways. It is about the first world war, where so many films have been made about the second one. It tells the story from the point of view of German soldiers, controversial at the time as it was considered as a sympathetic view of the enemy.

All Quiet follows the fortunes, or inevitable lack of, of a class of young men inspired by their teacher to enlist. We follow these men through their training, which consists of nothing more than a couple of marching drills, then they are zipped straight to the front. They find conditions at base are bad. No food, rat problems, heavy bombardment on a constant basis. By the time they face their first real action, they have lost several of their number. After their first experience at the front, their number has further decreased. When they return for dinner, the cook is put out when he realises that having prepared food for 150, less than half that number have survived. The soldiers are overjoyed, it will be the first good meal they have had since they arrived.

As the numbers diminish, we see the horrors of the war through the eyes of one young man in particular. He watches a friend die, he watches an enemy die. He nearly dies himself, then finds he is no longer able to cope with normal life whilst on leave, and returns early. In a couple of years that fresh faced, energetic recruit has become a jaded, emotionally damaged man.

 All Quiet on the Western Front combines truly harrowing battle scenes with genuinely emotional character moments. The cinematography is very impressive, and the message at the heart of the film is beautifully delivered. A stunning movie, particularly considering its age, that could compete with any for the title of best war film ever made.

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) – 8.4 No. 72

The Bridge on the River Kwai is that most British of war films, the ‘stiff upper lip’-style, fighting against the odds story. Despite its title, and the memories i had of seeing it, the bridge itself, though fully the basis of the story, doesn’t appear until halfway through, and even then you don’t really see much of it.

Set in a Japanese prisoner of war camp, this is a story about one man’s obsession. Alec Guinness is an officer of high principles. When his captors demand the officers work on the titular bridge, he refuses. Threatened with death, locked in the cook house, he refuses to give in, and eventually wins out – no officer will be forced into manual labour. They DO decide to work on the bridge, however, and Guinness’ obsessive personality takes over. He and his team set about making the best bridge possible, surveying the location, setting the correct foundation. Despite the fact it is being built to assist the enemy, it becomes his project.

A fascinating character study. Interrupted however, and far too frequently, by the story of an American officer, played by William Holden, who has escaped from the camp. We follow his escape, his downtime, and his eventual grudging return to destroy the bridge. This thread very much disturbs the underlying story, and was clearly shoehorned in to allow the film to be sold to the American audience. It isn’t Holden’s fault, but the Hollywood ending of the reluctant American hero undermines the true story at heart, that of a British officer forced to focus his mind on a project, any project, in order to survive his incarceration.

The Bridge on the River Kwai deserves a place on the list for the main crux of the story, but really, a different cut that removes the extraneous sub-plot involving William Holden would push the film up the list in my opinion. As it stands, it is a highly flawed attempt at mixing a dramatic character study with a Hollywood pleasing anti-hero’s story.

 Judgement at Nuremberg (1961) – 8.0 No. 183

 Who is responsible for the atrocities at the heart of World War II, and the atrocities committed during Hitler’s reign? Judgement at Nuremberg attempts to explore that question, and in the process creates a compelling legal drama and a thought provoking cross examination of the actions of the German people during the period.

Four high profile German judges stand trial for the atrocities that they sanctioned during the Holocaust. We follow the case through the eyes of one of the three judges hearing the trial. During the trial, he hears compelling argument both from the prosecution and the young German defence attorney, a passionate, hugely talented young man. Away from the trial, the judge is exposed to German people and German culture, learning about how the war affected the civilian populace.

The movie puts not just the judges on trial, but the whole country. How far does responsibility stretch. Are you guilty just through knowledge of the events, through inaction? Is turning a blind eye, or hiding away in ignorance excuse enough? How much did the German population really know of what was going on? Some of the defendant’s arguments, that there was nothing that could be done to stop Hitler, that the judges stayed in power to try and continue to uphold the law, that the people involved were working for the good of their fatherland, range from compelling to ludicrous. Whilst the final verdict is never really in any doubt, the journey is fascinating, and you really are forced to think about how you would act if forced into such an abominable situation.

With some fantastic acting performances, and intelligently crafted court room scenes, Judgement at Nuremberg is one of the most important war films ever made. Without showing a gun being fired, or a soldier in uniform, it tells the story of a country torn apart by conflict, and its place in the IMDb250 list is well deserved.

 Stalag 17 (1953) – 8.0 No. 206

Alongside some of the other war flms i have watched over the last two weeks, Stalag 17 is a definite change of tone. Adapted from a broadway play, and directed by Billy Wilder, it is a much lighter film, and speaks much more to theatrical entertainment than it does serious commentary.

Stalag 17 is a POW camp, much like in the later The Great Escape. American soldiers spend their time in their hut, making their own entertainment, amusing each other, generally having a pretty good time. Escape attempts are made however, but with a mole apparently working amongst the group, not much success is met. Suspicion falls upon William Holden’s Sefton, very much the camp scrounger, who trades his goods with the German guards for various privileges. This makes him unpopular amongst the other men, and his unrepentant attitude makes him the subject of much anger. With an attempt planned to smuggle out an injured officer, the mole must be found, and silenced.

Stalag 17 is a strange one. For me, the marriage of upbeat entertainment and the occasional, really very dark moments of violence is an uneasy one at best. It serves well to make the few scenes of this nature more shocking, but it really doesn’t fit together well. The cast are entertaining enough, but there are no real laugh out loud moments, and the overall effect is very much uninspiring. Much like the meshing of two different styles in The Lady Vanishes that i looked at a few weeks ago, i just don’t really get it, and maybe it is just me, as both films are obviously in the IMDb250 list.

 It also probably doesn’t help that the style and tone is so different to the four other war films i’ve watched over the last fortnight, and that’s really why i wanted to do some updates with films that have some kind of connection, to allow for some comparison. For me Stalag 17 is not deserving of its place on the list, and i can think of several war films not in the list that i would place in its stead.
That’s it for this week. Come back next Monday for Gary’s next update, and then in two weeks when i’ll be looking at five movies from world cinema.
Don’t forget, you can follow our progress at www.twitter.com/baz_mann and www.twitter.com/gary_phillips_
Bazmann

Philip K Dick is just one of many successful science fiction novel writers from history. He is possibly the one who has had the most work adapted for the big screen however. The reason? His stories were exciting, compelling, and conveyed timeless messages that are still relevant today. Because of this, there are many who attempt to evoke this spirit in their own science fiction novels. There are always Hollywood producers ready to pounce on such work, in an attempt to replicate the success of a film like Blade Runner. And so it is with Repo Men. An inventive, thought provoking story, set in a futuristic Earth environment, published last year and now being released as a major motion picture…

Jude Law is Remy. Remy is a repo man. He doesn’t repossess homes, cars, or even furniture. He repossesses human organs. In the future, the process for creating artificial organs has been perfected. Much like a car, you can purchase the organ of your choice on credit. But the consequences for not meeting the repayments on your liver, kidney or heart are grave. If you do not pay, the organ will be taken back, with no regard for the well-being of its new owner. And these medical miracles do not come cheap. Remy is one of the best repo men in the business, but when an accident means he ends up with an artificial heart himself, Remy finds himself on the run when he isn’t able to pay for it.

Jude Law is one of those actors that is always around the spotlight, working regularly in big films, but never seems to carry a lead performance. He HAS played lead roles. He played the titular Alfie in the remake of the classic Michael Caine movie. He also played the part of Sky Captain in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. He is best known however for his great supporting roles. He has twice been nominated for Academy Awards for supporting actor, in The Talented Mr Ripley and Cold Mountain. Most recently he has appeared in films like The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, and in Guy Ritchie’s hugely successful Sherlock Holmes movie just a few months ago.

Forest Whitaker is Jake, Remy’s former partner. Jake works for The Union, a mega corporation that supplies these man-made human parts. Jake is The Union’s most formidable agent. He must now hunt down Remy, and take back what is no longer his. Whitaker has had a diverse history of roles. He came to prominence with his outstanding performance in Ghost Dog, and was awarded the Oscar for best actor for his role in The Last King of Scotland. The particular brand of martial arts that he learnt for the former role has stood him in good stead in this action picture, and he makes good use of them. Whittaker can be seen now more in TV shows like ER and Brotherhood.

Remy is helped in his escape by ex-wife Beth, played by Alice Braga. She shows him the techniques required to disappear from the system, hiding his identity and avoiding security along the way. Braga is probably best known for her role in the highly acclaimed Cidade de Deus (City of God). The Brazilian’s first big Hollywood role was in 2007′s I Am Legend, opposite Will Smith.

Also present is the fantastic Liev Schreiber (X-Men Origins: Wolverine), who plays Remy’s boss Frank. Remy’s current wife is played by Carice Van Houten (Valkyire), and his son Peter is played by Chandler Canterbury. Canterbury is a rising young star recently seen in Alex Proya’s Knowing, and alongside Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Repo Men is directed by Miuel Sapochnik. Sapochnik is somewhat of an unknown quantity. Aside from a short film in 2000 called The Dreamer, and a TV project involving popstar Louise Redknapp in 2001, he doesn’t have any work on record, and certainly no feature films.

The movie is based on the novel The Repossession Mambo, by writer Eric Garcia. Garcia also wrote the novel Matchstick Men, which was made into the movie of the same name starring Nicholas Cage and Sam Rockwell. He has adapted the screenplay for Repo Men himself, alongside Garrett Lerner. Lerner has recently been a writer for the Fox series House, as well as numerous other TV shows. 

The signs aren’t good for Repo Men. With a highly inexperienced director, and a screenplay by two first time feature screenwriters, it could suffer. The lacklustre marketing campaign suggests that the studio doesn’t hold much confidence in the finished product either. The story could be good though. It sounds very much like a spin on Logan’s Run, or Michael Bay’s The Island. The principal cast ARE solid actors, and having a novel as the base of the story suggests the plot should be well fleshed out.

Commercially, Repo Men is a difficult one. Law and Whitaker are good actors who have achieved critical acclaim. They do not however, have a great record of drawing big numbers at the box office. Whitaker is most recently known for television work, and Law has a career of great supporting roles rather than leads. With Alice in Wonderland only a couple of weeks into its run, and Matt Damon’s Green Zone just beginning, there isn’t a lot of room at the box office for a sci-fi action movie with low profile personnel. An opening of more than $5m can be looked at as a big success, though will probably be seen as a disappointment when compared against the movies’ budget.

Hopefully Repo Men can evoke the spirit of a great Philip K Dick style storyline, rather than a mediocre, half hearted sci-fi yarn like last year’s Surrogates.

Repo Men is released in the US next Friday 19th March, and in the UK on 23rd April.
Bazmann – You can follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/baz_mann

Four years ago, the first of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Saga novels was published. Four novels and one smash hit movie later, and Twilight has become a global phenomena every bit as huge as Harry Potter. Next week sees the release of the second movie in the Twilight Saga, New Moon. Based on the novel of the same name, also the second in the series, the story this time focuses on werewolves, in the shape of the Quileute tribe.

 At the end of the first film, Edward and Bella Swan returned to Forks, Washington together. As New Moon begins, Edward and his family leave town in an attempt to keep Bella safe. Feeling hurt and confused, Bella takes to an old motorcycle and hits the road. Bella has discovered that she can have visions of her love Edward whenever she get’s an adrenaline rush, so she goes out in search of danger. Actress Kristen Stewart returns as Bella. She has recently been quoted in the press bemoaning the amount of attention her personal life has attracted. Linked with Edward Cullen actor Robert Pattison during filming of the first film, there have been rumours this time around that she has been getting up close and personal with co-star and on screen love interest Taylor Lautner. This rivalry echoes the rivalry of the upcoming storyline of the movie, and serves as great publicity for it’s release.

 Lautner of course returns as old friend Jacob Black. Bella and Jacob strike up a deep friendship, and he swears to protect her. It turns out he is a werewolf, a member of the Quileute tribe. Seeing as there is a great rivalry between werewolves and vampires, Bella finds her loyalties are severely tested. There was some doubt as to whether Lautner would be allowed to return for New Moon. The producers felt that with his diminutive frame, Lautner wouldn’t be able to live up to the increased physical presence required, so were keen to recast the part. The young actor was determined to keep hold of the role, and hit the gym big time. Gaining thirty pounds of muscle, he secured the part. His new look is testament to his determination and hard work.

 Not returning this time around however is director Catherine Hardwicke, due to scheduling difficulties. This time around, Chris Weitz is at the helm. No stranger to movies adapted from books, his previous work has included About a Boy, based on Nick Hornby’s novel of the same name, and the first movie from the His Dark Materials series, The Golden Compass.

 In the source novel, Edward doesn’t play a very big part. Robert Pattison fans can be cheered however, at the news that the writers have added plenty of extra scenes for Edward, mostly in the form of Bella’s visions and dreams. Pattison also struggled with all the attention he received as a result of the last film, so may be happier that he is playing a lesser role in this one. Believing that Bella is dead, a distraught Edward travels to Italy to commit suicide. He hopes he can anger the peace loving Volturi, led by Michael Sheen, by revealing the existence of vampires, leading them to destroy him.

 Whilst the first Twilight movie was shot on a relatively low budget, the expanded locations and more epic nature of the second part has meant a cost increase. With the huge profit made from the last film, and the hype machine in overload this time around, the producers won’t be worried. With just last weeks opening 2012 as meaningful competition, and increased interest from both fans and non-fans alike, New Moon is set to smash the box office benchmark set by the previous film. Whilst those who hadn’t read the books didn’t know anything about the series last year, the huge attention drawn by the cast and the rabid fans will draw in many many more movie goers, to see what the fuss is all about.

With a production budget of just over $35m, the original Twilight made a worldwide gross of $385m. New Moon will probably garner close to $500m. After it’s release, fans can look forward to next year’s Eclipse, expected in July, where Jacob and Edward’s rivalry really hots up, as vampires and werewolves unite against a common enemy. Then the final story in the series, 2011′s Breaking Dawn, will round out the Twilight Saga.

 To get fans excited about the release of New Moon, a wealth of images and clips have been released in the last few months. We have featured many of these here on HUG, and you can find -

Posters 1 2 3 4 5

Images 1 2 3

Clips 1 2 3 4 5

And even listen to the soundtrack here

The Twilight Saga: New Moon is released in cinemas next Friday 20th November in the US and UK

Bazmann – You can now follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/baz_mann

It’s a slow week for movie releases, with Fantastic Mr. Fox the only release of note in the UK, along with Cirque Du Freak. Most of the remaining big films this year are due out in November and December.  

So, with the big winter films already hyped to the max, and with Iron Man 2, Clash of the Titans and Robin Hood being the highly anticipated movies this Spring, I thought i’d take a look at some Spring movies that maybe aren’t getting the attention they deserve – The Losers, Green Zone, A Couple of Dicks, Machete and Kick-Ass. Note, this is a list of the films i’m personally looking forward to, so you won’t necessarily agree with me…

 The Losers

When is it? – 9th April.
 
Where is it? – Currently filming in Puerto Rico
 
Who is it? – Directed by Sylvain White, starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Evans, Zoe Saldana, Jason Patric.
 
What is it? – Based on the short lived DC comic series, it follows members of a CIA black ops team that are betrayed and left for dead. The team goes out to hunt down the people that tried to kill them.
 
Why am i excited? – Jeffrey Dean Morgan is brilliant in everything he does, from John Winchester to The Comedian. Zoe Saldana is one of the hottest properties in Hollywood, with roles in this years Star Trek and the upcoming Avatar. And Chris Evans is vastly under-rated, having to try and shine in films like Fantastic Four and Push. The plot actually sounds very similar to next year’s The Expendables, and whilst Sly’s action all-stars will easily out-gross The Losers, the great source material means The Losers should have a much better storyline. Word has it this movie will roughly follow issues 1 to 12, leaving ample material for a franchise if its successful.
 
But? – White is an inexperienced director, with I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer one of his few credits. And writer Peter Berg was responsible for the mess that was Very Bad Things.

Would you like to know more? – You can find our interview with one of the stars, Idris Elba, here. The first official photos can be found here. The fantastic trailer can now be found here.

 Kick-Ass

When? – 16th April (USA)
 
Where? – In the can
 
Who? – Directed by Matthew Vaughn, and co-written with Mrs Jonathan Ross Jane Goldman. Starring Nicholas Cage, Aaron Johnson and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.
 
What? - A young schoolboy decides to become a superhero, despite a distinct lack of super powers.
 
Why? – Kick-ass was struggling to find a distributor, due to some slightly questionable content – said to be mainly due to the presence of Hitgirl, an 11 year old schoolgirl assassin. Vaughn took some footage to comic-con, which got a standing ovation, and a bidding war was triggered. Lionsgate won, but considering they’ve been distributor for every Marv Films production (Vaughn’s production company), this wasn’t all that surprising. The leaked trailer showed a fairly even mix of comedy and stylistic action. 

 But? – The team of Vaughn and Goldman achieved success with their first film Stardust, but will have to have stepped up their game for Kick-Ass – Vaughn hasn’t really done action, and worryingly there were rumours he ducked out of X-men as he felt out of his depth.

Would you like to know more? – You can now find the trailer here, official posters here and here, and the official movie site here. The fantastic Hit Girl trailer is here with another clip here..

 Green Zone

When? – 12th March
 
Where? – In the can
 
Who? – Directed by British director Paul Greengrass, and written by Brian Helgeland. Starring Matt Damon, Jason Isaacs, Greg Kinnear and Brendan Gleeson.
 
What? - A thriller about a pair of CIA agents on the trail of WMDs, and a foreign correspondent following their mission 
 
Why? – Greengrass has shown great talent for compelling drama with Bloody Sunday and United 93, and great action with Bourne’s Supremacy and Ultimatum. This, coupled with his working relationship with Damon developed during those Bourne films, makes him the perfect man for the job. United 93 was based on a politically and socially sensitive subject, and the majority feel he handled it well. Damon’s career has improved dramatically thanks to his work as Jason Bourne, and this year has shown his diversity with a career performance in Steven Soderbergh’s The Informant. The book it is based on is a non-fictional account of the early days of the invasion of Iraq, when political relations were perched on a knife edge. The book was written by real life journalist, so historic details should be fairly accurate.

But? – Some attendees of very early focus group screenings have criticised perceived overuse of shaky-cam, but the film wrapped some months ago, so there’s been plenty of time for post-production.

Would you like to know more? – You can find some trailers here and here, some images here, and the poster here.

 Machete

When? - 16th April (USA)
 
Where? – In post
 
Who? – Written and Directed by Robert Rodriguez, and starring Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin, Jessica Alba, Robert de Niro, Lindsay Lohan, Don Johnson.
 
What? – Based on the fake trailer shown between Tarantino and Rodriguez’ Grindhouse double feature of Death Proof and Planet Terror. Based on an idea formed by Rodriguez back during Desperado, the titular Machete, Danny Trejo, is an assassin on the FBI’s payroll. He is double-crossed, and is now out for revenge, pursued by FBI agent Alba.
 
Why? – The trailer is really cool, in a crazy over-the-top kinda way. Word is Rodriguez has cut all the scenes from the trailer into the movie, and built the rest of the story around them. Rodriguez had a big hit with Sin City, which suggested he may be beginning to find his form again. Danny Trejo is due a lead role, following two decades of bit-part characters. Cheech Marin is always great to watch, and is reunited here with Johnson; they’ve worked together in Tin Cup and tv series Nash Bridges.
 
But? – Once Upon a Time in Mexico was a bit off a mess, and the Spy Kids pictures Rodriguez is now known for are as far removed from this kind of movie as you can get.

Would you like to know more? – You can find a poster here.

 A Couple of Dicks/A Couple of Cops – Now Cop Out!

When? – 26th February  

Where? – In post
 
Who? – Directed by Kevin Smith, written by Mark and Robb Cullen. Starring Bruce Willis, Sean William Scott, Michelle Trachtenberg, Adam Brody.
 
What? – The dicks in question are two cops, and the movie follows them through a series of hilarious situations.
 
Why? – This is the first movie Smith has directed that he didn’t write, so he must have been impressed by the screenplay. As listeners of Smith’s Smodcast podcasts know, he is a genuinely funny guy with a great feel for comedy. Despite a career based mainly on action movies, Willis has also shown a talent for comedy. He did, after all, start off in comedy series Moonlighting. After meeting Smith, Bruce took a liking to him and specifically wanted to work with him. 
 
But? – This is Smith’s first feature without regular producer, Smodcast co-host and friend, Scott Mosier. Willis has a reputation for poor script choices, and, barring 2005′s Sin City, hasn’t had a big hit for 10 years.

Would you like to know more? – You can follow Kevin Smith at http://twitter.com/thatkevinsmith. He recently stated on a tweet that A Couple of Dicks is the best movie he has been involved with.You can now find the trailer here.

Bazmann - You can now follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/baz_mann