Vietnam War films, Associated Cliches (iii). War films (like films in any genre) tend to have a number of clichés associated with them: for instance, in many 1940s and 1950s war films, a small group of men will tend to be fairly diverse ethnically, but most of the senior characters will not be developed much beyond their ethnicity; the officer will tend to be both unreasonable and unyielding; almost anyone sharing personal information especially plans for after returning home will die shortly thereafter; and anyone acting in a cowardly or unpatriotic manner will either convert to heroism or die (or both, in quick succession). However, other films are quasi-documentary in nature, and reflect what the screenwriters feel were the thoughts, words and actions of the participants in a battle. The American Civil War film Gettysburg was based on actual events during the battle, including the defense of Little Round Top by Colonel Joshua Chamberlain. Many war films have been produced with the cooperation of a nation's military forces. The United States Navy has been very cooperative since World War II in providing ships and technical guidance. However, this strategy can backfire. The German Ministry of Propaganda, in making the epic war film Königsburg in January 1945, used several divisions of soldiers as extras. Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels believed the impact of the film would offset the tactical disadvantages of the missing soldiers. If they do not cooperate, then another country's military may assist. Many 1950s and 1960s war movies, and the Oscar-winning film Patton were shot in Spain, which had large supplies of both Allied and Axis equipment. The Napoleonic epic Waterloo was shot in the Ukraine, using Soviet soldiers (and incidentally, helped scholars learn why Napoleon preferred attacking in column). Saving Private Ryan was shot with the cooperation of the Irish Army. The term anti-war film is sometimes used to describe films which bring to the viewer the pain and horror of war, often from a political or ideological perspective. Hollywood war films in the 1950s and 1960s were often inclined towards spectacular heroics or self-sacrifice, like Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), Halls of Montezuma (1950) or D-Day the Sixth of June (1956). Twentieth-Century Fox made a succession of war films realistically filmed in black-and-white in the early 1950s that highlighted little-known aspects of World War II, among them The Frogmen, Go For Broke!, You're in the Navy Now, and Decision Before Dawn. Dear Egyptian Mail readers, Your comments and/or contributions are welcome. We promise to publish whatever is deemed publishable at the end of each series of articles. [email protected]
