A Certain Point of View: Writing, Film and Stuff

Pros:  None Cons:  Awful screenplay, historical inaccuracies abound, laughable performances, tepid directing. On December 16, 1944, elements of three German armies -- 14 infantry and five panzer divisions in all -- attacked part of the American First Army along an 80-mile front along Germany's border with Belgium and Luxembourg. The sudden and unexpected counteroffensive hit the Americans in an area the Allies thought would be a nice, quiet sector for combat-weary divisions to rest and refit while green divisions fresh from the States could be acclimated to life on the line: the dark and deep forests of the Ardennes. Planned and ordered by Adolf Hitler himself, this massive onslaught was launched with one objective in mind: penetrate the American lines, pass through the "impassable" Ardennes Forest, cross the Meuse River, and capture the vital port of Antwerp. At the very least, the Allied supply situation would deteriorate enough to slow the Anglo-American

(C) 2008 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment The Longest Day (AKA: Darryl F. Zanuck's The Longest Day) Directed by: Ken Annakin (British Exterior Episodes), Andrew Marton (American Exterior Episodes), Bernhard Wicki (German Episodes) Written by: Cornelius Ryan (with additional material by James Jones, Romain Gary, David Pursall, and Jack Seddon)   Studio: 20th Century Fox and Darryl F. Zanuck Productions Genre: War/Historical Epic Year of Release: 1962 The Longest Day is a vivid recreation of the June 6, 1944 Allied invasion of France, which marked the beginning of the end of Nazi domination in Europe. Featuring a stellar international cast, and told from the perspective of both sides, this fascinating look at one of history's biggest battles ranks as one of Hollywood's truly great war films.   - From the Blu-ray package blurb, The Longest Day (2008 edition) Today, June 6, 2017, is the 73rd anniversary of D-Day, the first day of the Allied invasion

Pros:  Gripping story, excellent performances from cast, great directing from Lumet Cons:  Too stark and depressing for some viewers, dated, claustrophobic at times Imagine, if you will, that you are Col. Jack Grady, USAF, the commanding officer of a squadron of "Vindicator" bombers on routine patrol somewhere over Alaska. It's the mid-1960s, the Soviet Union still exists, and the Cold War is still being waged. Your plane, along with several others from your squadron, is nearing its Fail-Safe point -- a spot on the map where you will "orbit" for a specific amount of time before either returning to base or, if worse comes to worst, a coded attack signal orders you to head to your target inside Russia. This is part of your routine as an Air Force pilot, and thus far every time you've gone up on patrol you've reached the Fail-Safe point and returned home without incident. That is....until today. Today, your "routine patrol" will be