The Death of Stalin (2017) – Black comedy meets grim reality
Clickable link in red Director: Armando Iannucci Genre: Black Comedy (true story) Time: 1 Hour 42 minutes Platform: Amazon Prime Cast: Steve Buscemi. Simon Russel Beale. Jeffrey Tambor. Michael Palin. Andrea Riseborough Three men are in a Soviet Prison. They compare notes why they are there. 1st Man: I am here…
Read MoreMissing (1982) – Poignant and relevant
Director: Costa Gavras Genre: Drama – True Story Time: 1 Hour 57 minutes Platform: Amazon Prime (rent) Cast: Jack Lemmon. Sissy Spacek. John Shea. After the Watergate scandal broke, there followed a series of disclosures about the American government that had the ordinary American , shaking his head in disbelief. The CIA had not…
Read MoreDie Gustloff (2008) – Slow but poignant
All clickable links in red Director: Joseph Vilsmaer Genre: Drama – WW2 True Story Language : German Time: 1 Hour 41 minutes Platform: You Tube Free – with hard coded English subtitles Cast: Kai Wiesinger. Valeri Niehaus. Heiner Lauterbach. Which was the world’s biggest maritime disaster? With three movies on this topic, it…
Read MoreFoul Play (1978) – Surprisingly good comic thriller
All clickable links in red Writer, Director: Colin Higgins Genre: Comic thriller Time: 1 Hour 51 minutes Platform: You Tube Alfred Hitchcock made 58 films over 50 years of which 11 were superb spy films, though they were marketed as “suspense thrillers”. His films influenced and continue to influence generations of filmmakers, in…
Read MoreEye of the Needle (1981) – Superb spy thriller
All clickable links in red Genre: Spy Movie Time: 1 hour 50 minutes Platform: Amazon Prime (rent or subscription) Director : Richard Marquand Cast : Donald Sutherland. Kate Nelligan. Christopher Cazenove. Ian Bannen. It’s the proud boast of British Intelligence that they controlled all the German agents in Britain during…
Read MorePilecki’s report (2024) – Harrowing and tragic
Genre – War Movie (true story) Time: 1 Hour, 58 minutes Platform: Netflix Director: Krzysztof Lukaszewicz Language: Polish During WW2, every occupied country in Europe suffered untold horror and privations but none so more than Poland. It was the first to be occupied by armed conflict (Austria and Czechoslovakia were occupied without a…
Read MoreThe Longest Day (1962) – Superb; a perfect blend of history and film
ALL CLICKABLE LINKS IN RED Genre – War Movie (true story) Time: 2 Hours, 58 minutes Platform: Amazon Prime (on rent) Director: Ken Annakin – British and French segments. Andrew Marton – American segments. Bernhard Wicki – German segments. D-Day means a particular date on which some operation or event is supposed to…
Read MoreEastern Front – Part 3 of 3 –Eastern Front
All clickable links in red The Eastern Front was a charnel house with unparalleled brutality on both sides . The German propaganda of treating all Soviet citizens as subhumans had some unusual self-goals. Latvia, Estonia , Lithuania and Ukraine, who considered the Russians as “occupiers”, actually welcomed the Germans as Liberators. The foolish…
Read MoreKingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024)
Genre – Science Fiction/Alternate reality Time: 2 hours 25 minutes Platform: Theatrical Release Director: Wes Ball Many remakes have bit the bullet but some have been successful . The 21st century reboot of the “Planet of the Apes” series seems to be thriving and are box office hits, if the success of the…
Read MoreEastern Front – Part 2 of 3 – Hollywood and Eastern Front
ALL CLICKABLE LINKS IN RED When Germany attacked the Soviet Union, the British and then the Americans sent material aid to the Russians. By late 1943, the effects were evident as the Soviet Army swiftly gained higher mobility thanks to the trucks supplied by the Americans. In the spirit of cooperation, Hollywood made…
Read MoreThe Eastern Front – Part 1 of 3 – a brief history (and some movies)
All Clickable Links in red May 8 is an important date for Europeans. On this day in 1945, the European part of WW2 ended. VE day as it is known to the Western Allies, is celebrated in various ways. In Russia , it is celebrated as Victory Day with a huge military parade that…
Read MoreOne Two Three (1961) – crackling satire
All clickable links in red Genre : Comedy + Satire (political, business practices, Cold War…) Length : 1 hour 48 minutes Platform : You Tube (free) Director : Billy Wilder. If it’s a Billy Wilder film, prepare for non-stop drama and machine gun like dialogue delivery. Wilder’s noted for his sarcastic sense…
Read MoreOperation Valkyrie– Three films on the July 20, 1944 plot
All clickable links in red Never disturb your enemy when he is making a mistake – Napoleon The above quote aptly summarizes Hitler’s overall non-professional conduct and oversight of the German wartime effort. It could also be a description of the July 20, 1944 plotters when they tried to assassinate Hitler at his Headquarters…
Read MoreKatyn (2007) – A horrific true story
All clickable links in red Genre – War Movie (true story) Time : 2 Hours Platform: You Tube Free Language : Polish Director : Andrzej Wajda There is a Cold War joke that goes like this Its 1981 and the Soviets are making threatening noises to invade Poland (like they did with…
Read MoreApocalypse Now (1979) – Timeless Classic
All Clickable links are in red Genre – War Movie Time: 3 Hours , 20 minutes (Redux). 3 hours, 5 minutes (Final Director’s Cut) Platform: You Tube Free Director : Francis Ford Coppola Some films are easily forgotten after watching. Then there are films that have a lasting impact on you and remain…
Read MoreCrew (2024) – Somewhat bittersweet
Genre – Drama, Comedy (Dramedy?) Time: 2 Hours Director: Rajesh Krishnan Platform: Theatrical Release (Soon on Netflix) Divya Rana (Kriti Sanon) is a pilot turned air hostess who has concealed the truth from her family that she didn’t get a job as a pilot but only as an air hostess. Jasmine Kohli (Kareena…
Read MoreLetters from Iwo Jima (2006) – Superb view of other side
Genre – War Movie (true story) Time: 2 Hours, 20 minutes Platform: Amazon Prime (on rent), You Tube (on rent) Language: Japanese, English Director : Clint Eastwood It’s a rare Hollywood / Western film that shows the enemy’s view of the same battle. There have been some examples in the past (and covered…
Read MoreFlags of our fathers (2006) – Superb retelling of war’s cost
All clickable links in red Genre – War Movie (true story) Time: 2 Hours, 12 minutes Platform: Amazon Prime (on rent), You Tube Free Every world event, be it social, political, technological, has a defining moment and defining image. The Berlin Wall being knocked down by ordinary people symbolized people power over…
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