Linbeymusol
Wonderful character development!
Tedfoldol
everything you have heard about this movie is true.
InformationRap
This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.
sfarlea_andrei
First of all, I have to say this is definitely the best WW1 documentary I have seen, not just because it's in color, but also because it brings a fresh view on such an old topic. The whole documentary is built upon a cause-and-effect logic, which I really appreciated and this is valid especially when analyzing how a seemingly tranquil and prosperous Europe was suddenly plunged into the chaos and nightmare of a world war. Furthermore, I was happy to see the documentary also talks about the less glorious aspects of the war (such as the mutiny of soldiers, especially in the French army) and that it includes information about less known theaters like Turkey and the Pacific.On the downside, however, the main weakness of the documentary is that it is dis-proportionally focused on the Western front, possibly creating the impression that the other fronts were just side-shows and that the whole war was just a crawl through the muddy trenches. This is absolutely not the case especially for the Eastern Front, where an even higher number of casualties than on the Western Front occurred and where the large spaces offered opportunity for wars of maneuver, unlike the trench warfare predominant in the West.
In this respect, I was disappointed that the Russian Brusilov offensive of 1916, the greatest advance any army achieved during the war is not even mentioned. Furthermore, information is severely lacking for the following countries:
Serbia: the only information about Serbia is that the Serbs initially stopped the Austrian offensive in 1914; absolutely nothing afterwards about its defeat and occupation by the Central Powers in 1915.Bulgaria: it is only mentioned that it joined the Central Powers, but there's not the slightest information about what happened afterwards and who they fought.Romania: I found it absolutely inexcusable that Romania is not mentioned even once during the 4 and a half hours of the documentary. Without saying a word about the fact that Romania had even entered the war, at the very end they say that among others some 200,000 Romanian soldiers died in the conflict. At this point even the most basic information is missing, for example on whose side Romania fought. It would have probably been useful to mention that the Germans had to relocate much needed divisions from the battle of Verdun the moment Romania entered the war in order to stabilize the front. In addition, the German conquest of half of Romania in 1916, an extraordinary feat of arms, which historian Michael Barrett named a "prelude to blitzkrieg", could have also been interesting to include.I totally understand the need to focus on the main aspects of the war, but I think applying a principle of proportionality is preferable to overlooking some potentially relevant information. A few phrases would have been enough to give a general overview also on these aspects above.To sum up, great documentary and analysis for the Western Front, but unfortunately it fails to cover some relevant aspects from the Eastern Front.
jbanks-37015
I first saw this on the AHC Channel in the US and, as a former soldier, was overwhelmed by what I saw and heard. The English narrator, François Arnaud, had the perfect, nearly monotone delivery that could send chills down your spine. His delivery was flawless and as far as I am concerned, really 'sells' the English version of this project. I cannot comment on the French as I do not speak it. I have enough trouble with English. The video itself was surprising in its quality and the colorization was just enough to allow you to better see what Mr. Arnaud was speaking about. The overall historical content, giving the time restraints, is amazing, really showing you that this was a World War.
zuadas
The documentary is great, has amazing pictures, the sound is very nice. The order of the footages is intrinsically linked to the history, narration is impeccable, showing both sides and their expectations, with rare footage. With scenes of real situations, you shall feel rather than occurred, he feels how a war is inhumane. possessing scenes impactful. Politics is naked and demonstrates the willingness of power between the parties, with reports of soldiers' letters and excerpts from historians. Worth every minute watching.
davidbeland
Amazing images, great presentation, awesome music, effective narration and excellent colorization job. A bit confusing here and there (unlike "Apocalypse: la 2eme guerre mondiale") due to the complexity of that war i guess, but i'm not an expert in politics or historical facts, so it was expected somehow.The music is really efficient and the sound effects are well made but i was surprised by the bad audio mix from time to time; the level of the narrator (Mathieu Kassovitz) is unequal and sometime buried by the music. I will watch it a couple times because there's a tremendous amount of information. The horror of the war and the worse side of humanity is very well pictured and of course some scenes are quite disturbing. Really fantastic images, it's definitely a "must watch"!