Comments on: Realistic War Films?

By: Eric

Eric — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 00:48:36 +0000

Well said Rob. “Come and See” is a real eye-opener – seeing how civilians tried to survive as the “front” swept through their locale – as seen through the eyes of one barely able to lift a rifle. There is no “when the battle is over” because it won’t be over for heaven knows how long.

Given your high rating of “Come and See,” I will respect your other recommendations and have a look.

By: pg 2010

pg 2010 — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 05:11:44 +0000

—Speaking of realism —let’s have a little realistic and unflinching
light on the awesome, indeed staggering, genocidal legacy
of Hollywood’s ‘fave’ mass market paradise —ACROSS the Pacific.

70 million exterminated in ‘peacetime’ unoutted and utterly unanswered for —-FACT.

All this esp. galling on this, the 60th Anniversary of the epic
and STILL unfolding —-and once again ‘mysteriously overlooked’
—-KOREAN WAR.

Hollywood covers for Red China —plain and simple
—NOW —deal with it!

By: Jack Mackerel

Jack Mackerel — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:52:32 +0000

Actually, that was the only complaint I’ve heard about The Hurt Locker – that they didn’t have an escort. But the main character is supposed to be a reckless wannabe, and his squad members hate him for it, not to mention when he dons the hoodie and runs around looking ridiculous, that scene was meant to be ridiculous – he doesn’t get anything from following the man home, and he gets in trouble as soon as he comes back.

By: Floccina

Floccina — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:03:43 +0000

My father was a fireman and he worked a lot with the police department and he said the only realistic cop show was “Barney Miller”.

As far as the military (he fought in WWII), he said the only realistic military character on TV or in movies was Sargent Cater in Gomer Pyle.

BTW I assume that the CIA is much like “Barney Miller” (or BTW like your office) also.

By: Carl Shulman

Carl Shulman — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 02:43:05 +0000

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/ultra_realistic_modern_warfare

By: bellisaurius

bellisaurius — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 02:36:08 +0000

An interesting side question would be something along the line of “what performance is the most like real life?” (waiting for godot, perhaps?)The military seemed like that, but more so; the boredom more intense, the excitement a bit higher.

By: LetUsHavePeace

LetUsHavePeace — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:10:18 +0000

The “complaints” about “Hurt Locker” were technical observations about the B.S. being portrayed in terms of how EOD people actually defuse ordnance. Hint: they do NOT use a pair of pliers. There are no generalities to be made about “war”; the subject does not exist. The first questions anyone who is seriously honest about their military experience will answer are Which war? Which sector? When? How close to the front lines? Which unit? Who was in charge? Robin’s friend may not have answered these questions, or they may not have been asked; but without knowing them, there is very little to be said and certainly no justification for all the blather about “our” soldiers. Without the answers to those questions we are all in the realm of the Lone Ranger-Tonto joke; and we have yet another reminder of why the punch line (“What you mean, ‘we’?”) should be engraved at the top of the black/white board in every classroom. There is no “common” experience about getting shot at. What war movies have in common is that they all use dummy ammunition and exploding gasoline bombs – the one thing never used in any war – and lots and lots of music; and all of them exaggerate grotesquely how much anyone actually knows about what is going on. In that sense, Yossarian’s monologues do come closer to poetic truth that anything with splatter.

By: CannibalSmith

CannibalSmith — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 19:01:33 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTGrjcgSeAA

By: Daublin

Daublin — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 15:54:42 +0000

An accurate and watchable film will accurately portray a few of the emotional and tactical issues and then use fluff to fill in the rest. That way, the most memorable things portrayed are accurate. The inaccurate parts are in the fluff.

This includes emotional issues. It would be a real community service to find out what our soldiers are really facing and how they really deal with. Then, portray a piece of that.

Accurate film is entirely sensible, just like an accurate lecture or accurate blog article is sensible. Neither one portrays every detail. However, it can at least get it right for its most important points.

By: Laura

Laura — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 23:33:46 +0000

Having never been in a war, I can’t be certain of how ‘realistic’ it is, but “Deutschland Bleiche Mutter,” certainly seems to give a good representation of a German civilian’s perspective in WWII. I am a Jew, and I still found this to be one of the most depressing war movies I’ve ever seen, perhaps because of its realism.