GetPapa Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible

Aedonerre I gave this film a 9 out of 10, because it was exactly what I expected it to be.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

nigelturner-66212 The history - particularly the political history - of WW2 has been a life-long interest of mine so it means something when I say that this is probably the single best general documentary of the period I know. I watched the first broadcasts as a teenager in the UK and was spellbound. So much so that when I finally watched episodes again, decades later in the era of YouTube, I found I could still predict some of the narration, which in parts boarders on the poetic - I strongly recommend the opening of the episode on the desert in this respect, but many other parts are just as good. As one might expect after more than forty years of historical research, some aspects must come over as dated, even to the general public. Notable in this respect is the role of the code-breakers at Bletchley Park and Arlington Hall in the Battle of the Atlantic and in the Pacific, which was still classified when the series was made. Nonetheless, for balance between political, military and social history the World at War cannot be beaten. Of course the series is Anglocentric, having been made primarily for a British audience at time before the word globalization had been coined. But put in the context of the early 1970's it was pretty impartial and remains great television. If you are at all interested in the period and have not yet seen this series then I'm jealous that you still have the pleasure of watching it for the first time.

stephen-88897 I first remember watching "The World at War"when i was in my late teens and it hit me like a ton of bricks.At the time i had not seen a documentary series quite like it.....it was in my view,and i still believe this today,the most powerful,well written and engrossing documentary series ever made.Anyone who has not watched it must do so.

hmoika I remember watching this with my parents when it was first aired in the U.S. It has certainly stood the test of time.Everything about it is absolutely top flight. The researchers are really to be commended above all others associated with this work.When it was released on VHS. I bought up the set; and when it was released on DVD, I replaced my VHS collection; with one exception: what seems inexplicable to me is what was left out of the DVD version of the episode "Genocide." This is the ONLY episode where Laurence Olivier comes in front of the camera, and issues a warning concerning the graphic content of the episode. He also warns all of us never to forget. As he says, "This happened in our time...."My VHS copy has this intro. But the DVD does not. Inexplicable.Needles to say, I saved the VHS copy, and watch it from time to time.

jlthornb51 Simply the definitive documentary on the Second World War. Beautifully narrated by Laurence Olivier, this is more than a documentary about the war in much the same way Ken Burns' The Civil War was more. Through the use of stunning footage from the era, World At War captures the attention and never lets go. There is truth in every single frame. With accuracy and insight, The War becomes real for generations of people who were born after the horror and those involved in the crisis are shown as real members of humanity rather than abstract historical figures. This is television at its absolute finest, illustrating perfectly the potential for the medium to educate and illuminate. An almost poetic tribute to those who suffered and died, fought and emerged victorious. It is also a unwavering indictment of those who allowed and those who perpetrated one of the greatest crimes against humanity and brought the world one of the most tragic eras of evil in history. Not to be missed by anyone who desires to understand the world as it was then and as it has become.