As our wonderful host Boxer is up to her ear lobes in work, I've been asked to host MCW for the month of June. I got the idea for best war movie from my sister. I called her up this weekend to ask a question about Indy Cars. They have break lights on them. I didn't know that. What a bunch of wusses. Anyway, she was watching The Battle of the Bulge. I think I may have mentioned a time or two that my sister is older than me. I asked her if she remembered when the battle was actually fought. "Did you listen about it on the radio? Sorry, I mean the "wireless"? This was followed by her with sarcastic laughter and an expletive or two.Then she asked me a baseball question about the Washington Senators and I again made fun of how old she is. The Senators? You give me softballs like that and I'm going to hit them out of the park. Good times.
Anywhoo, she was watching a war movie so I thought that a good choice. Tough for me to pick one. I'm not even going to use the word "best". I'm going to go with favorite. All Quiet on the Western Front is awesome but I can't find the clip I want to use and it's about WWI. Don't get me wrong. It was a big deal but we watched from the sidelines for 75% of it. No, I had to choose a movie about WWII. You know, where the USA saved the world. It was still a tough choice for me. Bridge on the River Kwai is a great movie set in the Pacific Theater but is more a movie about the human spirit than the war itself. No. I had to choose Midway. It's my favorite war movie because its kind of a documentary. Hollywood likes to use the phrase "base on a true story" then totally fill you with bullshit that never happened and pass it off as fact. It's how our kids learn history today. Don't believe me? Just click here and read about Remember the Titans. It's more than just taking a couple of liberties.
Back to Midway. It's not really a documentary but the way the subtitle the names, times, ships etc. always letting you know exactly where you are and who the guy is speaking kind of informs you like a documentary does. The battle was a huge turning point in the Pacific. We (I mean us dear readers) don't know how close the U.S. came to actually being invaded. The Japanese were turned back and the battle for the Pacific would slowly swing back into the Allies' favor.
Couldn't find a great clip but the trailer lists the all-star cast. Charleton Heston baby! "From my cold, dead hands!" I'm a lifetime member of the NRA, which I'm sure surprises no one. Happy MCW! Keep your nose to the grindstone Boxer. Like my buddy Schmalor says "If you want to get something done, put the control freaks in charge and get the hell out of their way!" Amen to that.
Next week's them is "best sequel." Get 'er done!
10 comments:
Midway was a great movie, as was Tora! x 3, which was done in the same kind of format and remains the best movie about Pearl Harbor. My favorite war movie is 'Patton' ("you make the other poor bastard die for HIS country"). One of the newer ones that is very powerful is 'Saving Private Ryan' - the first ten minutes is only lacking smell for what it was like to be on Omaha Beach.
I love Midway. Sure some of the acting is a little light but it has depictions of some of the greatests naval and arial battles of World War II. I saw this movie when it came out in 1976. The theater showed it in "sense-around". Everytime a gun fired or something exploded, the whole theater shook. I still remember the one scene where Heston is running down broadway (I think on the Yorktown) and every time the guns fired he was jolted off balance and the theater shook. Great memory. This was another Epic movie with a lot of big names (including a young Tom Selleck). And although it used a lot of historical file footage and a bunch of footage from Tora, Tora, tora (another good naval war movie) it still worked for me and I watch it every time I see it while channel surfing.
I'm up at the Buzzkill with my own epic war movie - The Longest Day. I'll be around tonight to see everyone's entries.
Thanks for hosting Madman. It's nice to have a man's theme (best movie kiss, come on?) for a change.
Happy MCW!
Hey Madman i guess i'm too late for this weeks theme but thanks for hosting... just off the top of my head i probably would have posted "The Dam Busters" About a WW2 team of flyers that had to take out some strategic targets one of them being a Dam wall.
I don't remember much about the movie now but recall being facinated by them designing a bomb that skipped over the water to hit the target.. real cool and footage of the bomb doing its job...
Guess that i'll join in next week once you have a theme..
Changed my mind... It's now showing at
"The Palais"
I'll be up in a few mintues with
Apocalypse Now
The Horror! The Horror!
I like to watch Midway back-to-back with Tora! Tora! Tora!.
Interesting topic and a great selection on your part. Really hard to select only one. For me, the two movies that made the largest impression were Schindlers List and Black Hawk Down. Most good movies I can watch over and over. Those two I have only been able to watch once. But, could tell your where and when I went to see them and who I was with.
Scott, Patton is great and that line is awesome.
BK, the "World at War" is airing on the Military Channel right now. Great production.
Princess, can't wait to see what you bring next week.
Boxer, relax this weekend.
XL, that is a great combo and I'll try it sometime.
Matt, did we go to college together? hahahahahahahaha. Good to hear from you. You need to pick a weekend to meet EJ and me in Anaconda. 36 on Saturday, scotch and steaks that night. Lots! and 18 on Sunday. I'm going to leave this in your hands as you're the variable. I'm in Malta the 26th of June and LBOHing July 15-18 other than that I'm in.
Matt, forgot to say thanks for the 20 years of service and glad you made it through Iraq safely.
Hmmm, late to the party but my favourite War movies...
The Great Escape with Steve McQueen, his baseball, the motorcycle and the horrible horrible ending.
Or The Damn Busters with those fabulous bouncing bombs.
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