The Background of Modern European History to 1450

Henry V (1989): A forerunner of the New Monarchs portrayed by one of the greatest
talents to ever propagandize for Monarchy, the "New Monarchs" and the emerging unity
of the new Nation States. Notice the many short speeches by "ethnic minorities," once
enemies, now supporters of the King. Note especially the Welsh soldier and wearing the
leek.

Henry V (1944): The classic wartime production of Shakespeare's play, intended to lift
the spirits of the British people. See this one. CLASSIC

Braveheart (1995): Edward I foreshadowing the New Nation State and the New
Monarchs in method and intensity. William Wallace and Robert the Bruce become
legends in Scotland.

Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999) This is the most recent and very admirable
version of a popular story. Some others are: Joan of Arc(1948), Joan of Arc (1999/I)
(TV), Joan of Arc: The Virgin Warrior (2000), Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, The
(1999), Joan of Arc at the Stake (1954), Passion de Jeanne d'Arc, La (1928), (Passion of
Joan of Arc, The (1928) (USA), Procès de Jeanne d'Arc (1962), (Trial of Joan of Arc
(1962) There are more versions.

El Cid (1961) An epic set in c. 1060 in Spain. commentary

The Seventh Seal (1957): A knight returns from the Crusades. He plays a famous game
of chess with Death as he contemplates his disillusionment with life and its mysteries.
CLASSIC

The Name of the Rose (1986): From the historical novel by Umberto Eco. A Franciscan
Monk foreshadows the Modern world by relying less on divine revelation and more on
clues from the material world in order to solve a series of crimes.

Becket (1964 ): A famous episode in the struggle between Pope and King for power at
the top levels of European politics. The arena of this struggle was often Investiture or the
supremacy of Secular or Ecclesiastical courts and law. It is the story of Henry II and
Thomas Becket.St. Thomas Becket has a presence in Dakota County just down the road
from Rosemount High School. (Murder of St. Thomas Becket)

The Message: Story of Islam (1976). This is the film-story of Mohammed acted by
Anthony Quinn. There were demonstrations against the making of this film by Islamic
protesters, who believed it wrong to depict his image in this way.

Attila (1954) The divine Sophia Loren plays Honoria to Anthony Quinn's Attila in this
film. Mohammed and Attila are mentioned here because they are two forces that almost
overwhelmed Roman-Feudal-Catholic society and culture in those times before Spain's
rise insured the survival of "The West." See: The KoranAttila the Hun and the Battle of
Chalons and Attila The Hun.

The Lion In Winter (1968): A well written and witty film about family politics in
Medieval Europe. This is the story of the Plantagenet family led by Henry II and his
brilliant, powerful and glittering wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and four of their children.
This is one small story in the continuing saga of the rise of Kingship and the emergence
of the Nation-State in Europe. See a similar type of struggle in Kurosawa's wonderful
film set in "Medieval "Japan: Ran.

The Adventures of Quentin Durward (1955) based on the 1823 Sir Walter Scott novel
set in France in the time of Louis XI in the 14th century. There is a 1971 made-for-TV
series in French as well.

Additional Films on the Medieval World

A List of Ancient and Medieval Fiction for Students of History

A very impressive "Pre-Protestant" Medieval Christianity Web Site.

History of The Decline And Fall of The Roman Empire, E. Gibbon
Renaissance and Discovery

1492 Conquest of Paradise (1992): The Columbus expedition from simple dream to the
complex realities of conflicting motivations and cultural conflict and misunderstanding.
This is the Depardieu version and the better of the two that came out together. Sigourney
Weaver is Queen Isabella.

Christopher Columbus: The Discovery (1992)
Tom Selleck is King Ferdinand. Rachel Ward is Queen Isabella. Marlon Brando is the
Grand Inquisitor Torquemada. George Corraface is Columbus. The Catholic Kings are
fine looking, but I think this is the inferior of the two....even though I am a charter
member of the Marlon Brando admiration society. Excerpts from his journal.

Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972): A great work of film art by the German director
Werner Herzog which depicts an expedition of Conquistadors deep into the South
American forests in search of El Dorado. A very metaphorical film which may be a
meditation on the events of recent German history as much as it explores the energy and
determination of the age of Spanish Renaissance discoverers. GREAT. If you love the
theme of madmen in the South American Jungles chasing great dreams, see
"Fitzcarraldo"(1982) which is also directed by Werner Herzog. It is set in the 19th
century but is still evidence of the great passion, energy, drive and focused vitality that
helps explain the presence of Europe everywhere in the world today. It is a great fable of
the weakness inherent in that energy and focus as well. Sometimes those dreams go over
the edge when the rest of the world is used as lubrication for the means to gain the
dreamy ends. Herzog was (in my opinion) the best of the new directors who gave rebirth
to the German film in the 1970s. Where did they all go? (Roger Ebert's Review)

The Life of Leonardo Da Vinci (1972 Italian TV production dubbed in English. You all
love it every time I use it. Leonardo Link. Three tapes. Link to: The Civilization of the
Renaissance in Italy by Jacob Burckhardt.

Leonardo da Vinci (1952) I have not seen this film that I recall.

Leonardo: A Dream of Flight (1998)

The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965): Michelangelo in Rome to paint the Sistine Chapel
ceiling. This is a classic that you must see. I love it just for the quarry scenes.

Borgias, The (1981 PBS/BBC mini series of 10 episodes) This great series is
unforgettable. You will be hooked on it as surely as you will be when watching I,
Claudius. Machiavelli is depicted as a thoughtful and quiet observer of the events he
witnesses. (Machiavelli)

El Cid (1961) The great heroic Spanish legend. The Lay of the Cid, and the Robert
Southey translation.

The Masters of Illusion ( ): A documentary about Renaissance Art.

Captain from Castile (1947): Cortez conquers Mexico.

Royal Hunt of the Sun (1969): Pizzaro and the conquest of Peru.

Prince of Foxes (1949) Disturbing and rough Renaissance Italian politics with the Borgia
family. Tyrone Power and Orson Wells bring this era to life. Great sets and battle scenes.

Don Quixote (TV version 2000) There are many others. This is the famous attack on
Medieval Chivalry. A light and lovable satire. The novel by Cervantes.
The Age of Reformation

Luther (1973): The John Osborne play with Stacey Keach as Luther.

Martin Luther (1953): A good serious film about the Issues of faith and interpretation of
the Bible which led to Luther's dissent. Luther's translation of The Bible. King James'
translation of The Bible. (Luther Links)

A Man for All Seasons (1966): The famous Paul Scofield version. This is the one that
got the awards. An account ofSt. Sir Thomas More's decision to stand by the teachings of
the Catholic Church and not support the constitutional changes undertaken by King
Henry VIII.

The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1971 TV mini series on PBS.) Tudor History. Luther's
Bible is to German as The Book of Common Prayer is to English. The King James Bible
was a huge influence on English, but those of you who love this language enough to want
to major in English should get a copy for your bookshelf. Archbishop Cranmer (death of)
was key to the creation of the Book of Common Prayer (i.e. prayer which members had
in common with eachother in the Anglican Church/Church of England). (How the
Catholic Church saw the Book of Common Prayer in 1907)

Henry VIII and His Six Wives (1973) Henry is played by Keith Mitchell here and in the
version above. This one has Charlotte Rampling as Anne Boleyn and Jane Asher as Jane
Seymour. Donald Pleasence is Thomas Cromwell. (Don't mix up
your Cromwells. Oliver Cromwell is the Puritan who created a Republic over the dead
body of Charles I. I have a set of these tapes. Just ask me for them and I will send them
home with you for a week.

A Man for All Seasons (1988): The Charlton Heston version of the life of St. Sir
Thomas More. This is a very good version of the story. Heston is very Politically
Incorrect because of his work for the N.R.A. but, strike a blow for freedom of association
and freedom of expression by watching this version.

Lady Jane (1985): An attempt to tamper with the succession in England by Protestants in
order to prevent the CatholicQueen Mary from taking the throne.Lady Jane Grey is put
forward as the heir to the throne. See this one for the spirited defense of her faith that
Lady Jane puts up from time to time. I often show this one in class. Be sure to bring
kleenex. See the Tudor Link.

Nine Days a Queen (1936) The Lady Jane Grey story in another telling.

Elizabeth (1998): (Reviews)The early years of the Protestant rule of Great Elizabeth. She
learns the political necessities of the time and turns from a disillusioned girl and into a
Great "New Monarch" and Queen. If she has not read her Machiavelli, she signs on
advisors who have. This is the Cate Blanchett version. Compare her portrayal to Bette
Davis and Glenda Jackson. (see Tudor England: 1485 to 1603.)(Elizabethan Costume)

Elizabeth R (1971 TV miniseries on PBS) The great series starring Glenda Jackson and
Great Elizabeth I (the Virgin Queen=Virginia)

Anne of the Thousand Days (1969): About Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Fun but not
very concerned about historical accuracy.

The Virgin Queen (1955)Bette Davis as Elizabeth.

Young Bess (1953) Many wonderful old stars. I have serious flashbacks to the balcony of
the Empire and State theaters of Minot in the 1950s.

The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939) Based on the play by the University
of North Dakota's greatest writer: Maxwell Anderson. Starring Bette Davis. Essex is
played by Errol Flynn. There is a colorized version available. It looks very good.

The Sword and the Rose (1953) The story of Mary Tudor (Henry VIII's oldest daughter)
and his attempts to marry her to the King of France. Remember not to confuse this Mary
(later nicknamed "Bloody Mary" for her suppression of Protestants when she became
Queen.) with Mary Queen of Scots who tangles with Mary Tudor's half sister, Great
Elizabeth I.

Fire Over England (1937) The Armada. Phillip II sends his fleet against England. The
weather destroys the attempt. Think about D-Day and the weather problem. See this film
as a document of its time as well. When this film came out, Hitler was less than two years
from invading Poland and three years from smashing into France. See Laurence Olivier's
Henry V in this light as well. The Germans also made historical films to boost their
morale as did we.

Sea Hawk (1940) Emphasis on Elizabeth and her "sea dogs." This is old Hollywood film
making in which the costumes, music and dialogue are "over the top." See Errol Flynn.
The setting is in the time of the fear of The Spanish Armada. Notice the anti Spain, anti
Catholic bias of the film. Learn about "The Black Legend". This anti Catholic attitude is
one of the oldest prejudices in the modern Western world. Its early roots are in the telling
of the story of the Crusades. Another example of this "built in" historical pro-Protestant
bias in the telling of history of the Inquisition. Northern European Protestants probably
burned many more witches than the Catholic Inquisiton killed in Spain. However, it is
always embarassing to argue about the comparative virtures exhibited by the perpetrators
based on the comparative size of the piles of the dead . Link to a page on the "Black
Legend" for teachers of Catholic students in Catholic schools. This might be a great nonpolitically correct, politically correct site to visit.

The Black Robe (1991): A film set in the North American wilderness in the 1600s. It
portrays the dedication and tenacity of the clergy in their quest to spread the word. Jesuit
courage and determination is on display. I think a film like this or "Aguirre" or "The
Mission" helps you understand the energy, vitality and aggressive energy of the political
and spiritual heart of Western European culture in those times.

The Mission (1986 ): A great film about the
consequences of international border conflicts between Portugal and Spain in their South
American colonies. The portrayal of the energy, will, dedication and values of theJesuit
clergy working at the edges of Catholic Power and the reach of of the Nation-State in a
distant colony is impressive. It is a nice symbol of European energy, vitality and strength
(aggression?) This film also complicates your view of the way Europeans dealt with
natives. It is also a good introduction to the role that the Catholic Church played in the
politics and international relationships of Catholic countries. Jeremy Irons and Robert De
Niro. This is a fine film. It may even make you a better person.
The Age of Religious Wars

Mary, Queen of Scots (1971) Vanessa Redgrave plays Mary. Having been married to a
Catholic King of France, Henry II (daughter-in-law to Catherine de Medici), she returns
to Scotland after his death but is not welcome. Scotland has been become
Protestant-Presbyterian under John Knox. She has to leave for exile in England, where
Elizabeth I is not happy to see her. Elizabeth fears Catholic plots will grow around her
and against Elizabeth. On leaving Scotland for asylum in Englsnad Mary was forced to
leave her son behind to be raised as a Protestant. In the future this little boy will take the
throne of England as James I (and, command the famous translation of The Bible.

Mary of Scotland (1936) Directed by John Ford. Script by Maxwell Anderson. Mary of
Scotland played by Katherine Hepburn. John Carradine and Frederic March join her.

Queen Margot (1994): The future King Henry IV of France marries on the eve of the St.
Bartholemew's Day massacres of Protestants in Paris. The Guise family and the Royal
famly will be participants in the French Wars of Religion and are depicted in the film. A
strong story line from Alexander Dumas. Balzac's novel on the life of the Great Queen
and mother of Kings: Catherine de' Medici. Who's who in 16 th Century France.

Queen Christina (1933): Greta Garbo makes this a film you must see. It is a Hollywood
view of the private life of theQueen who would give up her throne in order to rejoin the
Catholic Church during the Counter-Reformation. "The
Abdication" is better for history students.

The Last Valley (1970) This strange and lovely story is set in the Thirty Years War in
the Germanies. Michael Caine leads a force into a hidden valley which has, so far,
escaped the war. It is based on a novel by James Clavell. It is haunting. It deals rather
well with the armies of that era, their scavenging and their mixed motives for going to
war. There is a good deal of religious argument among the soldiers, which brings some of
the controversy and anger of that time to life. (another link)

The Abdication (1974): Queen Christina returns to the Catholic Church during the
Counter-Reformation. She has to give up her throne and goes through a rough renewal of
her confirmation vows. Christina is played by Liv Ullmann. Nice, subtle and intelligent
dialogue about religious matters of the Counter-Reformation.
Paths to Constitutionalism and Absolutism: England and France in the
Seventeenth Century

Cromwell (1970): The events of theEnglish Civil War recounted and re-enacted. An
intense performance by Richard Harris as Oliver Cromwell. Alec Guinness creates
a wonderful Charles I. Frank Cordell is responsible for the most irritating musical score
of any film in my memory. This film is a must for scholars in A.P. European History. It is
one of the foundation stones of our concept of Impeachment and an important event in
the rise of the power of the Bourgeoisie and the coming of a Republic and Constitutional
government in the United States. The essential moment:
Cromwell: "Is he guilty?"
M.P.: "Yes."
Cromwell: "Then sign it."

Cyrano de Bergerac (1950 & 1990): A great 19th century romantic play: Cyrano de
Bergerac (in English)by Edmond Rostand, about France at love and war in the 17th
century. The 1990 version of the wonderful classic gives one a good feeling of the
intensity of the warfare between the armies of Spain and of France on the northern border
of France during the seige of Arras. This great story ends in the lovely gardens of the
Romanesque abbey of Fontenay. Study Guide.

Restoration (1995) Charles II and his glittering court, the London Fire, and the practice
of medicine in the 1600s swirling around a love story.

Selected Restoration Plays: Charles II is back and it is Party Time. The Puritans are
gone, Cromwell's body has been dug up and placed on a spike. Kicking his head around
has become a sport. Soccer is invented.

England My England (1995): This is a wonderful film about London and the glittering
Restoration court of King Charles II. Characters include Henry Purcell and his music,
Samuel Pepys, Dryden, Nell Gwynn, (Pope?) and the brilliant music of Purcell
throughout. John Osborne had a hand in the script. See the long 153 min version. See this
one if you love the music of the period. I really, really love this film. Can anyone find a
place to buy it?

The Three Musketeers (1973): One of the most recent of a dozen film versions of this
Alexandre Dumas novel. This one is wonderfully cast and has a lot of European
production and direction in Richard Lester. It looks more authentic than the other firms
made of this novel and covers more of the story in a more complete way because they
actually filmed enough to make two complete films. See The Four Musketeers (1974)
by Richard Lester as well. (The actors all sued because they were paid for only one film
and only later
were told the truth.)

Mary Queen of Scots (1971): Mary battles Queen Elizabeth I, Protestants and Scottish
lords to make sure her son, the future James I of England stays in line for the throne.
Vanessa Redgrave. Mary Queen of Scots is NOT "Bloody" Mary. Get this straight. Yes, I
know that this is a second reference. I want you to know that many of these films deal
with issues that could help you understand different chapters and historical issues.
New Directions in Thought and Culture in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth
Centuries

The Devils (1971): Ken Russell's strange and wonderful interpretation of Aldous
Huxley's novel ,The Devils of Loudon. Alexandre Dumas has written about this famous
and well documented case of local politics and witch-burning in his Urbain Grandier. The
film is about an this actual event in which a local Jesuit priest, Urbain Grandier, in the
town of Loudon, south of Paris in 1692., is accused of being a witch/warlock. The local
nuns bring charges against him. The book is interesting for the detail about a 17th century
trial and the quality of the evidence that is heard (spectral evidence etc.). What may also
(and more likely) happening has to do with power within the town of Loudon and the
ongoing pressure of the King to bring the town to heel. Russell is a highly unusual film
director whose style sometimes draws attention away from the center of the film. He is a
"high concept" director. I love his stuff. (witchcraft) another great Huxley site.

Galileo (1968) writings of Galileo

Galileo (1973) A film adaptation of a Bertolt Brecht play.

Galileo (1975)

Galileo: On the Shoulders of Giants (1997)

The Return of Martin Guerre (1982) A story of family, lower classes, rural life in
southern France in the 1500s. Interesting social history. Role of women/wives,
men/husbands and families. I hope you notice that alongside all of the "advances" in
scientific thought there still exist deep connections to traditional ways of understanding.
Witches and forgetting will be corrected by documentation, pictures, personal and
political awareness, but very slowly. Look around you. There are still people who live
their lives as if there is a dark supernatural dimension. The film industry and a general
angst about the loss of spirituality among some in our society creates an opening for this
type of supplement. It sometimes reminds me of some of the ignorance that descended on
Europe in certain places during and after The Black Death; after so many of the clergy
had been lost. Reversion to the irrational and pre-Christian explanations returned.
Successful and Unsuccessful Paths to Power (1686-1740)

Ivan the Terrible (1977): A great film by Serge Eisenstein. Ivan

Peter the Great (1986) TV mini series with an all star cast including Maximilian Schell,
Redgrave, Olivier, Sharif and the great Trevor Howard. Documents about Peter. A short
history of St. Petersburg, Russia.

Russia or Peter Ustinov's Russia: A Personal Journey (1986) miniseries. Ustinov
visits, tours, explains Russia and is visited by and converses with numerous historical
figures from Russia's past.

Catherine the Great (1995) TV mini series. A good film about this brilliantly competent
monarch of Russia. She made it possible for my family to get out of Prussia and make a
new life just southwest of Odessa in Bessarabia on lands torn from the Turks. (Catherine
Link)

Young Catherine (1991) TV Julia Ormond plays Catherine. (Catherine Documents)

Scarlet Empress (1934) The great Marlene Dietrich as the Empress Catherine. Link to a
famous biography of Frederich II (The Great) by Thomas Carlyle.
Society and Economy Under the Old Regime in the Eighteenth Century

Barry Lyndon (1975 ): An Irish lad is forced into a series of adventures all
over Europe which includes the Seven Years War, duels, marriage, and the 18th century
gambling craze. Based on a novel by the great observer of European manners, William
Makepeace Thackeray. A great film by Kubrick. It has great music and great patience. I
often show this film in class. It is a good source of information about subtle class
distinctions and goals in England and Ireland and elsewhere.

The Novels of William Mackpeace Thackeray: Vanity Fair

Dangerous Liaisons (1988):Michelle Pfeiffer. No further recommendation needed.
Based on the novel by a member of the Ancient Regime who chronicles the behavior of
an element of an increasingly dissolute aristocracy which has been dis-empowered by the
centralization of the Nation State in the body of the Kings Louis. It foreshadows the
coming revolution as much as does the ennui the face of Giles. The novel was written to
criticize French society on the eve of the Revolution.

Valmont (1989): The same story (Dangerous Liasons) told by a different director and
caste. Equally wonderful and on a slightly larger canvas than the film above. You have to
chose between Michelle Pfeiffer's delicate loveliness and Annette Bening's disarming and
brilliant smile. This version rates higher on the Richter scale of Passion. Based on the
18th century novel by de Laclos.

Tartuffe (1984): Moliere's brilliant satire on ultimate hypocrisy and the gullibility of a
family who allows a scoundrel into their home and cannot accept the fact that he is not
what he seems to be even as he hits on all of the women in the family and begins to steal
all of their property while playing the role of a man of deep religious devotion. This play
may also help you understand certain political events of our own time as they currently
unfold (1997-1999). The ending is also a tribute to the power of Versailles to bring a
writer of Moliere's stature to heel. The ending is almost deus ex machina. Other plays by
Moliere.

Ridicule (1996): A tale of Grant chasing....It could be a metaphor for the academic life.
Draining a swamp...Being impressive in court....all depends on his abilities at courtly
repartee of a particularly tough kind. You have met a Precieuse in Roxanne and the play
"Cyrano" . Now meet the political and social discourse of the Court of Louis XVI. This is
rough verbal stuff. I love it. These people are meaner than a bus load of high school
debaters who are headed for Harvard. link to a review. The Women of the French Salons
by Amelia Gere Mason

Tom Jones ( 1963):In that it is a story of a young man stepping out into the world of
adventure Tom Jones is similar to Candide by Voltaire. This is a book about a young man
sent by circumstances into the world on a series of travels and adventures which
introduce him to the crudities, conflicts and adventures of life. This is a masterpiece of
English Literature and is seldom taught today. This film got the academy award for best
picture and at least three more in other categories. Know that the book is infinitely better.
This book is one of the most memorable and fun books that I read in college. It is a novel
by the great Henry Fielding. Think about the ways in which Candide, Moll Flanders,
Barry Lyndon and Tom Jones are all similar. Why?

Joseph Andrews (1977) Another novel by Henry Fielding set to film. Look up the term
"Picaresque novel." Why do so many novels come to us in this foremat from this time?
What might explain these documents? What do they tell us about the mind of the people
of this era?

Moll Flanders (1996): Another series of adventures in which the initiate discovers live
by immersion in a series of adventures. This time it is lived by a woman who lives
through a series of pregnancies, arrests, marriages and adventures until she is arrested,
sent to Newgate and deported to the English colonies in America where due to forces
beyond her control, she gains prosperity and is able to return to England a woman of
substance and property. There is a 1965 version entitled The Amorous Adventures of
Moll Flanders. Remember that some of these films do not do justice to the book they
represent, and some do awful damage and misrepresent the book. The films of Moll
Flanders are a good example. Many of you have read Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter and
know how awful the Demi Moore film was. Know that the book is always better and that
the book IS the original document. At best, these films are "History Lite." At worst, they
are the Demi Moore version of Hawthorne's great book.

Mutiny on the Bounty (1962): This is a story that tells you a lot about class, status,
society, cultural confrontation, food for slaves (bread fruit), naval discipline at sea,
Europe finding a short lived Paradise in the Pacific. This is one of the greatest stories of
the sea. It is a true story. Fletcher Christian is played by the greatest American actor:
Marlon Brando.

Hard Times (1994 TV) Peter Barnes With Alan Bates Based on Dickens novel. There
was also a 1977 TV series. This film could be paired with Modern Times (1936) Dir.
Charlie Chaplin, With Charles Chaplin and Paulette Goddard.

A British Literature Index: a source of information and some on-line texts.
Empire, War, and Colonial Rebellion

Rob Roy (1995): The Scots standing up to the intrusive English again. It makes me wish
I had Scottish blood and proud to have lived in a Macalester College dorm for one
summer. There is also an old Disney version of the Sir Walter Scott novel.

Last of the Mohicans (1992): Great Britain and France with their Native American allies
battle for control of North America. Well done scenes of a siege. Haunting and beautiful
film made of an outstanding work by American novelist whose works are no longer
taught in the schools to the detriment of our understanding of our country's history.

Revolution (1985) Dir. Hugh Hudson. With Al Pacino, Donald Sutherland, Nastassia
Kinski. This is a film about the American Revolution.

The Patriot (2000) Starring Mel Gibson. My adolescent adult friends who need a car
crash, an explosion or a shooting every 30 seconds did not like this film. My friends who
want all guns banned for the sake of the children did not like this film and went into
shock during one particular scene. I am a history teacher and just give thanks when any
film on a history subject of importance comes out. This film is set in South Carolina and
setting somewhat farther north. Cornwallis had led an invasion of the South in order to
destroy harbor facilities and naval stores. His objective was to destroy the the region's
economic support of the Revolution. I like Mel Gibson and think there are not enough
films about the Revolution. There is some interesting social history in this film. The
battle reminded me of Cowpens. You follow Gibson's character from Charleston north to
Yorktown. I think the movement of Rochambeau and Washington from New York south
to Yorktown is one of the most exciting stories. I cannot believe Hollywood cannot see
that it is a great story like D-Day or the "Bridge Too Far." The Washington- DeGrasse Rochambeau - Yorktown convergence has it all. I agree that watching a history film is
often maddening. They spend all of that time and money on getting the rooms, the paint,
the make-up, the meals, the guns, the uniforms and even the dialect just right and so very
accurate and then, their silly writers get the story all wrong or fill it with mechanical owls
or tanks that talk. I am sure that there would be a Yoda like character in Washington's
campaign chest giving him just the right advice. ok ok.... I am exaggerating....but not by
much.
The Age of Enlightenment: Eighteenth Century Thought

Amadeus (1984): A biography of Mozart. It evokes a lot of the spirit of the
Enlightenment in its playfulness, excesses and costumes: "It's Turkish." study guide.
Classical Composers Database.

The Madness of King George (1994) A wonderful adventure into the English court in
the era of King George III against whom Jefferson raged in the Declaration of
Independence. "Up ! Up! The King! The King!" This is a film of politics and family
power hunger and plotting, but what you will remember is the mad pride and confidence
of the medical care regarding the mind of the King George.

The Story of Louis Pasteur (1936) Dir. William Dieterle, With Paul Muni.

Newton: A Tale of Two Isaacs (1998) This film is a tad elementary but good for you if
you have avoided science classes. study guide.

Gulliver's Travels (1996) This famous Jonathan Swift work was published in 1726. Ted
Danson, Mary Steenburgen, James Fox, Ned Beatty, Geraldine Chaplin, Edward Fox, Sir
John Gielgud, Robert Hardy are some of the famous actors that created this award
winning production.
The French Revolution

Danton (1982): The French Revolution spinning into madness. This is a
great reminder of the murders committed in the last two hundred plus years by people
who were going to make the world better. Robespierre is still our archetype for the
flaming purity and confidence of left politics which would build a brave new world for us
in spite of our wishes. From Robespierre to 1848 to Lenin to Stalin to the National
Socialism aspects of Hitler. It makes Royalism desirable. The symmetry of the film is
stunning...the recitation of the "Rights of Man" at the beginning and the end. The
dripping blade of the Guillotine is an image which will haunt you each time you see the
burning eyes of righteous young men with ideas who know they are good and right.
Always remember Thackeray: "The wicked are wicked, no doubt, and they go astray and
they fall, and they come by their deserts; but who can tell the mischief which the very
virtuous do?" Beware all Robespierres. They will justify and sanctify their behavior in
the goodness and glory of their goals. They will feel their lies and murders are justified.
La Marseillaise

Révolution française, La (1989) The Revolution depicted from the convening of the
Estates General in 1789 to the end of The Terror in 1794. I have not seen this film. The
people who have love it. There is something very strange about the availability of this
film. People have purchased it and have found that it comes in two tapes, each of which
is only aprox. 25 minutes long. The actual film is much much longer. The quoted price in
Amazon.com is nearly $80.00. Be careful. The fact that this film is not available in a
more honest and straight forward way is an outrage. Here is a review by an on-line
reviewer named Rosabel: "The detail was astounding, and the film managed to tell this
complicated story without dropping any threads. Jean-Francois Balmer is touching as
the hapless Louis XVI, a well-meaning but out-of-touch ruler totally out of his depth in
the political and social upheaval that was to destroy him. The three main revolutionaries,
Desmoulins, Danton and Robespierre are shown as genuine human beings with
emotional ties to each other, but who start going their separate paths, at a time when
disagreement leads not to estrangement but to death. The film is divided into 2 halves,
"The Years of Light", describing the political changes taking place in France as the
revolution approaches, and "The Years of Terror", beginning with the
arrest of the King and proceeding through the Terror through to the death of
Robespierre. The second half is better, with more action and suspense, as familiar
characters become swept up in the destruction and insanity of a Revolution going out of
control. Andrej Seweryn is superb as the cool tyrant sending his enemies and their
families to their bloody deaths, while gently describing his view of the world as one
governed by a spirit of goodness and virtue. His sudden fall from power in the National
Assembly is spellbinding, and the movie roars to a conclusion as the first of the
revolutionaries becomes the last victim of the guillotine. The only jarring performance in
this film is that of Peter Ustinov in the first half, who tends to play himself rather than the
great moderate, Mirabeau. The rest of the international cast is wonderful." Brandauer
plays Danton, Jane Seymour is Marie Antoinette, Peter Ustinov is Mirabeau, Sam Neill is
LaFayette among many others. This epic comes in two parts: Robert Einrico directs the
first half entitled "Les Annees Lumiere" and Richard Heffron directs the second half
entitled "Les Annees Terrible." I hope the original film is available for students soon. I
have read elsewhere that there is a squabble about distribution rights of the English
version. Grrrrrr. Links to some major texts: The French Revolution: A History by Thomas
Carlyle , The Psychology of Revolution by Gustave Le Bon, Reflections on the Revolution
in France by Edmund Burke. This last title is a definitive title in defining modern
Conservatism.

Marat/Sade (1966): "The Persecution and Assassination of Jean Paul Marat as
Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the
Marquis de Sade." This play within a play gives the distance and perspective to meditate
on the meaning of the French Revolution by the divine Marquis who uses the mental
patients at Charenton to perform his play for their therapy. You, in the audience, are the
Bourgeoisie and remaining Aristocrats who are ironically aware that you are living in the
world of Napoleon.....and that your country has gone from King to Emperor. There are
many levels of meaning and irony in this major intellectual achievement by the German
writer (Peter Weiss), who may really be thinking more about the sad and strange history
of his own country. This is a strong play. I got in some trouble with a few parents for
taking scholars to the Guthrie Theater production of this play. It introduces you to the
great story of Charlotte Corday and Marat. Corday carried out one of the most stunning
political assassinations in history. De Sade takes a "Conservative" view of the
Revolution, arguing that people join revolutions for very personal, small and petty
reasons based on their flaws, faults, gross appetites, jealousies, and desires for revenge (I
must admit that many anti Vietnam War demonstrators in the 1960s seemed more
interested in meeting girls than the fate of the people of Southeast Asia. I detected other
motivations that had little to do with the great issues.). He seems to argue that a
revolution is nothing more than an uprising in a madhouse led by paranoids. Great Marat
argues that men revolt because they are aching for great concepts of Justice. The French
Revolution has become the source of most of our politicallanguage. It is quite important
that you understand this period. DeSade has become far too disreputable to quote in a
footnote, but those of you who want to base your Conservative politics on the most
classical and sound basis must read Edmund Burke.

La Religieuse (1966) Based on a novel by Denis Diderot.

Marie Antoinette (1938) Queen of France on the eve of the Revolution.

La Marseillaise (1938) Directed by Jean Renoir. Difficult to obtain. Listen to the great
revolutionary anthem at this web site. I love this one even more: The Hector Berlioz
version of La Marseillaise. The words. Another source.

La Nuit de Varennes (1982): A fabulous film about the attempted escape of Louis XVI
from Paris. The company traveling with Louis includes personages like Tom Paine and
the great lover Casanova.

A Tale of Two Cities (1958): From the great novel by Charles Dickens. British barrister
Sydney Carton lives an insubstantial and unhappy life. He falls under the spell of Lucie
Manette, but Lucie marries Charles Darnay. When Darnay goes to Paris to rescue an
imprisoned family retainer, he becomes entangled in the snares of the brutal French
Revolution and is himself jailed and condemned to the guillotine. But Sydney Carton, in
love with a woman he cannot have, comes up with a daring plan to save her husband.
(imbd) This is the Dirk Bogarde version. study guide

The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982 TV version) An English aristocrat rescues friends from the
madness of the French Revolution. I still recommend the 1934 version. Besides, you
should learn who Leslie Howard and Merle Oberon were.

Scaramouche (1952) Stewart Granger, Janet Leigh and Mel Ferrer bring this Fafael
Sabatini novel to life. The setting is the French Revolution.
The Age of Napoleon and the Triumph of Romanticism

Immortal Beloved (1994) A film about the life ofBeethoven. The music is delicious.

Beethoven Lives Upstairs (1989)

Johann Wolfgang Goethe's Works: Poems, Egmont, FAUST, Hermann And Dorothea ,
The Sorrows of Young Werther. Goethe, like his contemporary Beethoven, is so huge that
he does not fit comfortably in one of these textual categories. Every one of his plays
should be in film. He is the greatest German writer. The young perchased and read
Werther like Cobain albums. It had a cult following and some imitated the hero of the
novel.

Napoléon (1927) Six hours long, this is the great film by Abel Gance. It takes Napoleon
from his roots to the invasion of Italy. It had wide, split screen nearly 50 years before
Woodstock. Gance was "rediscovered" by the film study people at the Walker Art Center.
In cahoots with others who appreciated his work, they restored the film and brought him
from France to the U.S. to honor him. He spoke in Minneapolis, went back to Paris and
died. This six hour film was to be the first of five more parts. This is the first part of a
huge project that was never finished. Trust me. It is wonderful.

Napoleon and Josephine (1924) Check these Napoleonic Links. And These.

The Duelists (1977): "Set during the grand, sweeping Napoleonic age, an officer in the
French army insults another officer and sets off a life-long enmity. The two officers,
D'Hubert and Feraud, cross swords time and time again in an attempt to achieve justice
and preserve their honor."Greg Boyle (imdb) The uniforms and hair styles of the
Napoleonic cavalry is wonderful. The duels are amazing. This has become almost a cult
film for a small group of Napoleonic aficionados.

The Pride and the Passion (1957) The Napoleonic Wars in Spain. In his exile years
Napoleon realized that a large part of the reason he failed to hold Europe was the taxing
and draining war in Spain. Wellington was sent to Spain to counter the French. Partisan
fighting broke out and the atrocities committed by the French in their frustration were
documented by Goya. "Armies starve there." was Napoleon's verdict on Spain early in
the wars. He was drawn in. It feels like and endlessly draining Vietnam like engagement.

Sharpe's Collection (1350 minutes on 14 tapes. The series is based on Bernard
Cornwell's novels about the famous rifles and was shown on PBS. It is quite excellent.
You follow Richard Sharpe throughout the Napoleonic Wars from Spain to Waterloo as
he fights under the command of Wellington. Sharpe's Rifles, Eagle, Company, Enemy,
Regiment, Siege, Mission etc. Some of these episodes are as informative about the lives
and skills of the soldiers as a good book by John Keegan.

Conquest (1937)Y Napoleon invades Central Europe and takes a mistress. study guide

War and Peace (1956): study guide The King Vidor - Audrey Hepburn version of this
vast novel by Count Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy. There are at least two cuttings of this film.
If you get the "short" version it is awful, makes no sense and is irritating (if you have
seen the original. Avoid the possibility of error. Get the Sergei Bondarchuk version made
in Russia by Russians! It is nearly 400 minutes long and involves half the Russian army
hired and dressed in costume for the production. It is vast and excellent. It is,
unfortunately, dubbed over in English so the lips may not match the sound track. Always
get the original language version with subtitles. A student of A.P. European History
should want to hear the sound of the language. A couple of teachers at an A.P. conference
recently irritated me by complaining about Dr. Eugen Weber's accent. Not only was it a
foolish comment betraying an insular attitude, it was politically incorrect by their own
value system. So, rent the Soviet Union produced version of War and Peace (1968) and
sit back with your friends and watch it over a two day weekend. Bring popcorn and dress
in costume. Links to the works of Tolstoy See Thackeray on the Napoleonic period:
Chronicle of the Drum.

Waterloo (1970) A well done version of the great battle. Huge loans of Russian military
personnel in Napoleonic era uniforms creates a battlefield with a quite authentic number
of extras. The quips and conversation are taken directly from the historical record. The
geography duplicates the site of the battle south of Brussels. The massed infantry of the
French Column in assault is truly stunning. The British infantry squares and Ney's charge
is brilliantly filmed. Napoleon's military aphorisms delivered crisply by Rod Steiger.
Christopher Plummer is perfectly arrogant and cold as the essence of the British aristocrat
Wellington. The essence of the meaning of the French revolution is apparent when you
hear Napoleon address his troops as "Soldiers!" while Wellington refers to his troops as
"scum." War history buffs will love it. Read Keegan's chapter on Waterloo in his best
book "The Face of Battle." Regency Web Pages: Waterloo.

The Buccaneer (1958) The U.S. in the Napoleonic Wars. British troops invade the
ex"Colonies" and try to take New Orleans. General Andrew Jackson takes them on in a
battle that will set his career and manke him the "symbol for an age." You can see the
monument to the defeated and killed generals near or in (I have forgotten.) the south
transept of St. Paul's Cathedral in London.

Impromptu (1990): The unconventional woman writerGeorge Sand and her
relationships with Chopin, Liszt, and Alfred Muset: interesting characters saying
interesting things. You will love this gentle and amusing film and meet a great woman
writer, who is never taught. Even the great painter Delacroix makes an appearance. This
is a film which might be seen to have a feminist theme. George Sand, Some Aspects of
Her Life and Writings by Rene Doumic. I really like the star, Judy Davis.

The Music Lovers (1970): A wonderful, musical biography of Tchaikovsky by the mad,
genius interpreter of so many Romantic era topics: Ken Russell. This film is very
accessible.

Mahler (1974): "Both trifles and structure are tossed out the door by director Ken
Russell in this film. Here, historical content matters not so much as metaphors, feelings,
emotions, and interpretations, and pay close attention, as every word and frame is
intended to be important. The film takes place on a single train ride, in which the sickly,
aged composer Gustav Mahler and his wife, Alma, confront the reasons behind their
faltered marriage and dying love. Each word seems to evoke memories of past, and so the
audience witnesses events of Mahler's life that explain somewhat his present state.
Included are his turbulent and dysfunctional family life as a child, his discovery of solace
in the "natural" world, his brother's suicide, his [unwanted] conversion from Judaism to
Catholicism, his rocky marriage and the death of his young children. The movie weaves
in and out of dreams, flashbacks, thoughts and reality as Russell poetically describes the
man behind the music." Summary written by Jonathan Dakes (dakes@columbia.edu) The
above review comes from IMDb (see the link at the bottom of this page. Again, Ken
Russell.

Gothic (1986): I have warned you elsewhere on this page about Ken Russell films. They
are difficult, symbolic, musical, visionary, and high concept. They are not for the meek or
shallow. This is Russell's view of the night that Mary Shelley got the idea for and began
to write the great Romantic rebellion against the Enlightenment entitled Frankenstein.
The setting is a night full of rain and thunder on the country estate of Lord Byron. It
reminds me of one of those mid 1960s college weekends where a lot of intellectuals are
playing with psycho-drama and group therapy techniques which go wildly wrong. You
have to like and understand Russell and already be a good student of European history
and literature to have this film boost your understanding of Mary Shelley and her great
book. The Greeks taught us "Nothing in Excess." Russell may not have read that lesson.
Yet, I like his stuff.

Frankenstein (1994) byMary Shelley. Within a decade the scientist, once a positive icon
of the Enlightenment, became the symbol of excessive analytical coldness and the loss of
spirituality. This novel is a primary document which exhibits the mentality of the
Romantic Movement and some of its core ideological grudges against the Enlightenment.
The scientist, playing "god," makes "man." But, the Creature is created without the
spiritual essentials of family and love. He seems to have been abandoned by his Maker.
This book is a true "classic" in that it is so rich in story and in the possibilities of
interpretation and wisdom that it is not tied to its era. The book is a metaphor for the
Twentieth Century as well and, it will speak to the future as well.

Lisztomania (1975): This is a Ken Russell film. I took a date to this film in 1975. I
thought it was great. The whole audience walked out before it was over. My date would
not go out with me again. The 1990s are not the highly original and naughty 1970s. This
film is also a document of the time in which it was made, and though I now reject much
of the 1970s, I appreciate the experimental film making represented by Russell's work. I
probably should not even recommend this film. It is a highly symbolic and metaphorical
biography of Franz Liszt. It is also a good deal more. Russell poses Liszt as the symbol of
Civilization, Catholicism, life and love AGAINST Richard Wagner, who represents
Kultur, Paganism and retrograde necromancy and which he visually tags to National
Socialism. Wagner is seen high in a lab writing his operas (metaphor: building his new,
pure Master Race a la Dr. Frankenstein). Liszt climbs up to the lab to confront him.
Wagner attacks him with a (possibly armored) grand piano which belches flames (like a
flame throwing tank). Wagner showers Liszt with barrages of intense Wagnerian
arpeggios and glissandos. When Wagner's New Man is born we see that it is a
Frankenstein Creature, rising from a coffin.....with the facial features of Hitler...playing
an electric guitar (if I recall). Liszt dies. The creature rampages through Europe
destroying Civilization. At the end, Liszt swoops down from heaven at the controls of an
angelic bomber and delivers an air strike on Wagner's Hitlerian Creature as it flees
through the streets of Berlin. The ending is the triumph of Liszt's values of Catholic
Civilization over Pagan Kultur...all fought out on a battlefield of musical
ideas....OK?......... Well, who am I? What do I know?.... I'm just a simple and humble
high school teacher in the middle of the North American continent...trying to get along.
This is Russell at his strangest and most challenging and dealing with difficult questions
of 19th century intellectual history. Lizst is played by Roger Daltry of "The Who" and the
Pope is played by Ringo Starr. Confused?

Liszt's Rhapsody (1986)

Damn the Defiant (1962) The British Navy in war against Napoleon. The plot centers on
an uprising/mutiny on HMS Defiant. Conditions among sailors were difficult and this is
good social history of the military.

Billy Budd (1962) A wonderful film based on the Melville novel and directed by Peter
Ustinov. The setting is the same as the film above. It is a great film on the subject of
impressment. This is a powerful story.
Restoration, Reaction, and Reform (1815-1832)

Evidently film makers do not find Metternich, the Congress of Vienna or
failed revolutions interesting subject matter. I think a film about Benjamin Constant
could be gripping. The Peterloo Massacre would seem to be a natural subject for
Hollywood. The Count of Artois and Charles X could be a natural foil which could set up
the "heroic failures" of 1848. There must be some good films about Bolivar and
L'Ouverture. Some of the events in this chapter appear in the background of films about
the English Romantic poets. If you find something centering on the Restoration and
Reaction elements, please let me know. Student Group Project

Colonel Chabert (1994) Based on a Balzac novel. Set in mainly in the aftermath of the
Napoleonic wars. Chabert, believed by his wife to have been killed in the war has
married another and is using the Colonel's money to boost her new husband into power.
Chabert comes home and tries to get his money and reputation back. This film and novel
proves again that eyes and minds like Balzac are the best social historians.

Les Miserable: see below
Economic Advance and Social Unrest (1830-1850)

Germinal (1993): An excellent film about the coal miners of France. The
novel is a master work of analysis and description of the job, its dangers, the lives of the
workers and the mine managers and their families and the interrelationship of the classes.
It is a family album of left analogies with the viewpoints of Anarchists, Socialists and
Labor Union leaders clearly delineated. See this great film made from Emile Zola's great
novel. A great novel in the "Naturalist" tradition.

Madam Bovary (1991): The Isabelle Huppert version of a great book that IS being
taught in our school. Congratulations to all of you who will be reading this great piece of
Realist literary art by one of the greatest writers: Gustave Flaubert. Directed by Claude
Chabrol. A great leading novel in the "Realist" tradition. In the United States the great
REALIST was Steven Crane and his Red Badge of Courage.

Therese Raquin (1980): a mini TV-series. Based on a novel by Emile Zola. A difficult
work about ambition, betrayal and love. The strains of a bourgeoisie family treated with
the concern and dignity given the Ichimonji and Plantagenet families. A great work of
naturalism in literature by the master.

Les Miserables (1998): "A straightforward film version of Victor Hugo's masterpiece.
Almost a bit too "flavorless" to do the story the justice. Liam Neeson is brilliant and Uma
Thurman, well what can one say about this very talented actress, except that we should
have seen more of her. More could have been made of the relationship of Valjean and
Fantine, the actors certainly had some connection - this is a movie after all, not a play!
The film does tend to jump a bit and we are not given enough time to get attached
Cossette, whom looks a bit too doll-ish, young or old. A surprise is a very good
performance by Geoffrey Rush (Javert), so good in fact that you forget that he is acting
and really start to dislike him. This dislike turns to pity in the end." Vincent van der Vlis
(imdb) study guide to 1978 verson.

The novels of Jane Austin are all in film. No writer has a better eye for social
observation. She brings the English society of the late 17th and early 18th century to life.
I had a tough teacher of the English Novel in college. He was a hard boiled lover of
hunting and action fiction, a lover of historical fiction and a graduate of the Iowa Writers
Workshop with a M.F.A. degree, who later quit teaching and joined the F.B.I. He once
said in class: "I never thought women could write until I read Jane Austin." I know that
shocks some of you but, this was high praise from this "man's man" of a professor. We all
rushed to read her. Read everything she ever wrote and see all of the versions of all of the
films based on her books. Study Guide for Emma. Guide to Persuasion Guide to Pride
and Prejudice, Study Guide for Sense and Sensibility

The novels of Charles Dickens and the impact of Capitalism/Neo Classical economic
thought. Non-Marxist critiques of Industrial Capitalism and the world described by Adam
Smith. Hard Times (1994), Great Expectations (1946), Oliver Twist (1948), Christmas
Carol (1938). From the "Enclosure Movement" to Thomas Carlyle, Dickens and Marx
the Industrial Revolution and Industrial Capitalism was a force for change in society.
Marx invited the workers to join together and violently seize the econonmic structure
which they had built with their sweat (See "Labor Theory of Value" and David Ricardo.)
Carlyle and Dickens saw the same "social injustice" but recommended another approach.
It seems that Dickens hoped he would bring about a change in the hearts of the powerful
in society through sympathy and empathy generated by his stories and characters. I have
no doubt that he had tears running down his cheeks as he crafted some parts of his novels.
The poor, like Pip or the Cratchit family are rescued, not by Marxist Revolution but by a
"Deus ex Machina" style mystery benefactor or surprise inheritance or by a massive
change in the heart of the villainous powerful. The range and depth of character in his
literary creations are Shakespearian. His characters are unforgettable. But, they are also
deeply involved in the economic debate of the 19th century. Our country developed a
similar fantasy about our economic demigods: "The Gospel of Wealth." Whatever their
effect on the Hobhouse-Liberal-Romantic-Marxian- Mill-rainbow of societal critiques,
Dickens' writings described the economical uprooted and drifters and powerless as
wonderfully as Chaucer had brought an unforgettable handful of Medieval pilgrims to
life.

The Novels of Thomas Hardy: Many of these have been made into film. Rent Tess, Far
From the Madding Crowd and the others. I love Thomas Hardy. He mixes Romanticism,
Realism and Naturalism in a way that someone with a sensitivity to History appreciates.
There is a complexity in his settings and the motivations of his characters that reflects the
world as I see it. I love the way he frames his stories in time and culture and geopgraphy.
He always makes you aware of the Celtic past, the Roman roads and the timeless
geography as the stage upon which the protagonists love. You know his indiviuals and
lovers are replaying the most ancient themes and conflicts of humankind. Think about the
women in Hardy and in Flaubert and others including some of the Americans like Crane
and Garland. These writers explicated values, themes and forces affecting the lives of
women that should be studied by the Feminists in this class.

The Novels of the Bronte Sisters :Wuthering Heights, Jayne Eyre.

The Novels of Alexander Dumas. :These books have almost all been made into films.
The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers.

Jean de Florette (1986): Directed by Claude Berri. This is a film about the greed of two
men who work to bankrupt a third,intent to pick up his land cheaply and build a new
prosperity for themselves in the rural South of France by raising flowers. (This film may
have started the "Provence Industry" that has brought so many tourists to the region that
it even drove out one of the people who started the fad. Peter Mayle had to leave and is
now hiding among the swells on Long Island as I understand it.) Depardieu and the great
Montand star. Manon of the Spring ("Manon des Sources")(1986) carries on the story.
Manon, the beautiful shepherdess and daughter of the Depardieu character, swears to
avenge her father's death. This is a great portrait of rural life and concerns of France in
the late 19th century.

Moby Dick (1956) study guide This greatest of novels is also a look at 19th century
industrialism and the social world of work as is the next film.

Captains Courageous (1937) study guide This wonderful film and book are filled with
the life, danger and values of industrial workers at sea. I will always be thankful to my
sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Schaeffer, for reading this book to us a little bit at a time each
day after recess to calm us down. Light social criticism and an excellent book filled with
political IN-correctness (tongue -in -cheek). It suggests that hard work and discipline are
good, redeeming and educational. It suggests that a little corporal application of the hand
can awaken the spirit. It argues that boys benefit from good, male role models. The power
of the Catholic faith is a foundation of spiritual strength. (There is a touch of ethnic
stereotyping, which does make me flinch.) And, it is written by the arch imperialist
apologist and myth maker Rudyard Kipling.

The Novels of Honoré de Balzac: The complete Human Comedy

My Father's Glory ("La Gloire de mon Pere") (1990) and My Mother's Castle ("Le
Chateau de ma Mere") (1990): Lives of 19th century French family visiting in Provence
(a glorious region in the south of France settled by local tribes, colonized by the Greeks
and the Romans and multi layered by history and religion. It is a place you must study
and read about and visit someday.). Their son becomes introduced to the rural life of
France at the turn of the century. A work of realism (not Social Realism) but a great
picture of the countryside of France and its people...just a couple of decades before the
deluge of WWI. Usually we get pictures of England during this period. It is a look back
into the recent past and into another world we have lost. The story is told from the point
of view of young Marcel who stands in for the memory of the author: Marcel Pagnol.

Phantom of the Opera (1925, 1943, 1962, 1989, 1990 TV Burt Lancaster version, ) The
book: Gaston Leroux: The Phantom of the Opera. The Building

Anna Karenina (Many versions) The novel.

Moulin Rouge (1952)

Plays of Henrik Ibsen: Films of his plays from IMDb. There is a nexus were some of the
concerns of Marx, Dickens, Carlyle, Zola, Courbet etc. all meet and I like to argue that it
is on the same ground covered by Peer Gynt.
The Age of Nation-States

Prisoner of Honor (1991) A cable television production documenting and
dramatizing the French Dreyfus Affair in which the Jewish Captain was falsely accused
of being a spy for Germany, convicted and sent to Devil's Island. It is discovered that he
was framed by the true culprit but that the French General Staff refused to initiate a new
investigation that would clear Dreyfus. The great novelist Zola becomes involved and has
to flee France to England. This is the case that still reverberates in French politics and
society and swirls in the background of the speeches of Le Pen today.

The Life of Emile Zola(1937): This film won the Academy Award for Best Picture in
1937. It covers the life of Zola from 1862 and focuses on the Dreyfus Affair and anti
Jewish politics in France in the 19th centruy. study guide

The Leopard (Il Gattopardo)(1963): A landowner and prince on the Island of Sicily tries
to sort our his own attitudes as he and his class experience "status slippage" after "
Risorgimento."

The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936): A most famous clash during the Crimean
War.

Champ d'honneur (1987) and Field of Honor (1984) based on Emile Zola's great book
The Debacle. It is a drama and film about the Franco-Prussian War. Link to Karl Marx's
views on this era.

Ludwig (1972): Film by Visconti. A life of Ludwig II, King of Bavaria from 1864 to
1886 including his support of Richard Wagner, his love life, his pursuits and his drift
toward madness and his ultimate date with the lake. (Starnbergersee?)

Wagner (1983) TV mini series. Richard Burton's last film. The music of Wagner is the
medium and the subject of this huge and wonderful film. Nine, yes nine, hours long.
Don't cheat yourself...Get the full length version.Link to The Nibelungenlied. Another
link to the famous NIBELUNGENLIED .Writings of Nietszche and the literature of war:
Clausewitz, On War.
The Building of European Supremacy: Society and Politics to World War I

Swann In Love (1984): "Elegant and educated bachelor, Charles Swann, moves in the
most powerful and fashionable circles of Paris in the 1890's. When he falls in love with
Odette de Crecy, a courtesan, his friends warn him against marriage. Proving himself a
silly goose, Swann ducks his social responsibilities, Odette ensnares him, and he is gently
but firmly cast out of society amidst everyone's great politeness. "Summary written by
{jack.hailey@sen.ca.gov} (imdb) This Paris society in the 1880s remembered and
rendered by Marcel Proust in one of the greatest novels ever written: "In Search of Lost
Time" or "Remembrance of Things Past".

The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981): Streep and Irons bring this novel to life.
There are some alterations to the novel's viewpoint/framing by the film. The strength of
the novel is its portrayal of 19th century British society and the rapid change it
underwent. Charles, ahead of his times in certain social attitudes, stands still and finds
himself left behind by the speeding culture....This is what I remember about this
wonderful book. See the film. But, READ THE BOOK and discover John Fowles.

Sons and Lovers (1960) For years, when students would ask me the name of the best
book I have read, I would answer D.H. Lawrence's Sons and Lovers. The novel is about a
family whose life is marked and dominated by a violent and drunken father and the
casualties he creates.Though he is ultimately responsible for his own behavior, he is a
casualty of the mines. Though I am not a big fan of "victim history," I believe Lawrence
draws a clear connection between life in an industrial-capitalist world and the alcoholism
and abusive behavior of the head of the family, Walter Morel. The family is wounded by
that world as surely as Jake Barnes (The Sun Also Rises 1957 and 1984) has been
wounded by the tools of the Industrial Revolution or his upper class brother Clifford
Chatterley. Lawrence is working on a question no less profound than whether or not love
itself, physical and/or spiritual, is possible in the industrial world. These are men
wounded by machines, defined by machines and dominated by machines. These men,
women and families no longer live by the more human patterns of nature, and tradition
but by the patterns of the clock and the machine. It makes me think of the paintings of
Francis Picabia or the "Large Glass" of Marcel Duchamp. It is another huge question that
the 19th century beqeathed to the 20th and 21st centuries. Lawrence is huge and demands
a high level of maturity from you.

Fanny and Alexander (1983): a wonderful picture of early 20th century Sweden. Dad
dies. Mom, an actress, marries the bishop. Fanny and Alexander move into the chancery.
Their lives and the events around them are the social subject matter of this film.

Fiddler on the Roof (1971) study guide Life in Czarist Russian village.

Death in Venice (1971): The Thomas Mann novel. Gustav von Aschenbach (Gustav
Mahler?) strains to touch the Ideal in a most lovely and dreamlike setting: Venice and
Lido Island. His life long search for the ideal seems to manifest and symbolize itself in
the presence of a young lad with whom Aschenbach becomes fixated. But Venice is a
real, concrete, human setting...a seaport connected to the wide world. It is a place where
plague is possible. Idealism of GvA's type cannot survive the realities of the world and
GvA does not survive the Plague (real and symbolic) that invades Venice. (Puritan
Idealism had the same problem in Boston.

Camille Claudel (1989): This is a dramatization of the life of a great woman sculptor
who studied with Rodin and became his lover. The film suggests that Claudel was far
more than just a student and lover. She is seen as an inspiration to Rodin and
acollaborator in some of his work. It is a fine film about a woman artist in the man's
world of art in the 19th century. The feminist theme emerges unforced. This haunting and
lovely photograph was done by Cesar when she was twenty. I could not resist it.

Song of Bernardette (1943 )Dir. Henry King (I), With Jennifer Jones,
Jones won an Oscar for her portrayal of the Catholic girl who claimed to have a vision of
at at Lourdes.

Don Bosco (1988) A sweet film about a 19th century saint (Giovanni Melchior Bosco),
who was a major activist in educating and directing the lives of the youth in poverty in
Italy. He founded a society of priests and teachers (the Salesian Society) that circled the
world. His teachers were recruits from among the brightest of those he salvaged. Starring
Ben Gazzara. There is another film in Italian about this Catholic hero of spirituality and
service. It is a great snapshot of a point of vitality in an ancient Western institution
surviving and thriving in a century of often unfriendly change.

Victoria the Great 1937 Dir. Herbert Wilcox, With Anna Neagle
Compare with Mrs. Brown. Dir. John Madded, With Judy Dench and Billy Connolly.
(Queen Victoria by Lytton Strachey )

Rodin, the Gates of Hell (1981) sculptor. Gates of Hell and "Paradise."

Lautrec (1998) Painter

Moulin Rouge (1952) Lautrec, Jane Avril, La Goulue and all of the characters around
Pigalle and Montmartre in Paris.

The Portrait of a Lady (1996) One of many close observations of upper European
society and American wannabes and the way they mix and match by the great Henry
James whose writing, because of current attitudes and fashions of English departments,
you may never meet. Also see The Wings of the Dove (1997), Washington Square
(1997), The Bostonians (1984, The Europeans (1979), Daisy Miller (1974) and others.
It is far more important that you read him. He is one of the greatest observers of social
relationships in the late 19th century. He is seldom taught today, so if you want to be
fully educated, you will have to go out and read him yourself. His is one of our greatest
novelists. He is so great that the British claim him too. These films do not constitute a
true substitute for the original works no matter what our pop culture tries to tell you. Dr.
David W. Noble (my teacher of American Intellectual History in grad school) always
argued that some novelists (like Robert Penn Warren, Fitzgerald and esp. William
Faulkner were the best historians of social history and intellectual history. Remember to
always read on at least two levels. Never forget that you are also an historian. Read like
one. More Henry James links.

The Age of Innocence (1993) This is a film about a novel by Edtth Wharton. She is
another great American writer who is seldom taught any longer. Like James, she is a fine
observer of upper American society as it is reflected against European values and
practices. Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder star. What else do you need to know?
The Birth of Modern European Thought

Chariots of Fire (1981): The social world after WWI as it emerges in the
tensions among athletes participating in the 1924 Olympics. It explores the oh-so-veryrefined anti semetic attitudes of members of the British upper class. As your grandfather
about Sandy Koufax and the Sabbath.

Nijinsky (1980): Learn about the great Ballet Russe. Sergei Diaghilev led and managed
one of the primary ballet companies of all time which featured a dancer of legendary
reputation: Vaslav Nijinsky. The setting is 1910 Paris and the avant garde. This film
attempts to reproduce some of the most provocative and modern ballet performances of
all time. Requires maturity. This is a beautiful film that recreates a time when invention,
artistic notions and the optimism and confidence of "The Moderns" promised to banish
the past. This film is nearly a book end for film which follows: Isadora.

Isadora (1968): The founder of Modern Dance remembers her life and loves, the Russian
Revolution, Singer (the sewing machine magnate), and the avant garde artistic life along
the Riviera. I think that this film is also a document of the mentalities which were popular
and mandatory in the late 1960s. Enjoy the film. This is very good biography.

Orlando (1992) The novel by Virginia Woolf transformed into a beautiful and
challenging film. Along with James Joyce, a founder of the new stream of consciousness
technique in literature. As the modernist artists were tearing themselves away for the
Renaissance rules of color, space and perspective these writers were tearing themselves
away from rules of writing as old as Aristotle's Poetics. Queen Elizabeth makes an
appearance in the text and on the screen. This is time traveling long before Kurt
Vonnegut's Billy Pilgrim.

The Moderns (1988) This film is set in Paris in the 1920s. Roger Ebert says it all: (This
film) "takes place at that enchanted moment in Paris when the Lost Generation created
itself and then proceeded to create, promote, fabricate and publicize modern literature,
art, music and attitudes. It tells the stories of an American painter in exile, the woman he
loved and lost, and the millionaire he lost her to. Important roles are also played by his
unscrupulous art dealer, by a busy-body newspaperman on the English-language daily,
and by Hemingway, Stein, Alice B. Toklas and others who are called by their real names
even if the resemblance stops there."

The Darwin Adventure (1972) Quite good film relating the famous story. I have not
been able to find it in video stores. Link to writings.Also, check out Inherit The Wind
(1960). This film deals with the clash between the central thesis of Darwin's work and its
conflict with the wider, traditional religious teachings and beliefs. This is the famous test
case from Tennessee, where Darwin's concepts were being used in a high school. A law
was passed which was backed by traditional religious interests and the teacher was
arrested and fined. The teacher defended himself and a famous circus trial ensured. In a
wider sense, this is one of many events in the long confrontation between traditional
religion and "modern" concepts, views and values which has been going on since the late
Middle Ages. Christianity is the first of the Great Religions to have experienced this long
intellectual wrestling match. We can see Islam dealing with it in our newspapers. The
battle grounds are in Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and areas of North Africa. In a wider
sense, we should understand what is happening. It has been happening to us for 500
years. Sometimes things don't happen over night.

Freud (1962): A very good film stars Montgomery Clift (my mother's favorite actor) and
Susannah York directed and narrated by the great John Huston. Link to writings and The
Interpretation of Dreams.

Lust For Life (1956) Vincent Van Gogh paints in the South of France. I love this film. It
portrays Arles, France and Van Gogh's difficult friendship with Gaugin. (some paintings
by Gaugin) some Van Gogh paintings

Madame Curie (1943): Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon version. "The film is almost
an hour old before Marie embarks on her discovery of radium. The experiment to
separate uranium and thorium is lit from below, resembling the dramatic paintings of
Joseph Wright of Derby. Infinite patience was required during the four years of toil
which culminated in the preparation of radium, and the film conveys a vivid sense of the
Curies' dedication. The new century begins with the gentle glow of the isolated radium
sample, a beacon heralding the wonders of the dawning age."(comments by Michael Coy:
michael.coy@virgin.net) London, England study guide

Marie Curie: More than Meets the Eye (1997) study guide
Imperialism, Alliances, and War

Khartoum (1966) British foreign policy in Sudan during the Victorian Era.
General George Gordon is sent to deal with an early Islamic nationalist and patriot who
seeks the ejection of all European influence in the region. These battles along with
warfare in South Africa in the Bore Wars gave Lord Kitchener his huge reputation in
England.

55 Days To Peking (1963) The Boxer Rebellion - Europeans defend their interests and
embassies in China.

The Sand Pebbles (1966): A gunboat, the U.S.S. San Pablo, sent to China by the
youngest European country (the U.S.A.) patrols the Yangtze amid the revolutionary
events of 1926. An attempt to rescue missionaries leads to armed conflict.

Zulu Dawn (1979): Three years after Custer met defeat in Montana at the hands of the
Dakotah and their allies, the British suffered a similar defeat in Africa at the hands of one
of the great Armies of all time: the military forces of the Zulu nation. This film depicts
the January 22, 1879 destruction of 1,500 British troops by the Zulu army. This film tells
the story of the main battle. The Zulu Wars

Zulu (1964): Later that day and after the main battle mentioned above, a small supply
dump and infirmary defended by about 140 Welsh troops is attacked by part of a force of
4,000 Zulu warriors. The small British force survives.

'Breaker' Morant (1980) The Boer War. A court marshal film about Australian soldiers
under orders to execute Boer prisoners. This little war and the Russo-Japanese War were
clear warnings about what the 20th Century would witness.

The African Queen (1951) A romantic drama set in Africa during WWI. It is a classic.
study guide

Gandhi (1982): The biography of a great British university trained lawyer who grew up
among the Indian workers in South Africa who rediscovers his country and culture to
becomes one of the great political leaders of India He is the central figure who helps to
lead India out of the grip of British colonialism through the methods of Satyagraha and
passive resistance.study guide.

Bhowani Junction (1956) This is a darn good film directed by George Cukor which
depicts the era of British withdrawl from India. The conversations about politics are blunt
and sometimes stereotyped. The film treats the complexities of Indian politics very nicely
(for a movie). It stars Stewart Granger (a hero and role model of my elementary school
years) and Ava Gardner. She plays a very subtle character: an Indian who has grown up
in Great Britain and has taken on British culture as her own. She has some struggles
about her cultural identity. Compare the treatment of Passive Resistance as it is depicted
here and in Gandhi.

Heat and Dust (1982): based on a novel by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala about a young woman
investigating the life of an ancestral aunt who fell in love with India and then fell in love.
In searching for her relative's story she delves into her own relationship with India. This
is a fine, intelligent look at cultural distance and mystery between English and Indian
culture.

Jewel in the Crown (1984): A breathtakingly wonderful look into the last days of British
rule in India. I still take the phone off the hook and dig in to watch the whole thing when
one of the cable channels puts it on. It is based on the huge novel by Paul Scott entitled
"The Raj Quartet." It is eight tapes, fourteen episodes and fifteen hours long. Trust me.
Invest the time if it comes on television. You will be pulled into the story.

The Four Feathers (1939) Being handed a white feather in Britain was to be called a
coward. The protagonist of this film is handed four of them. To redeem himself he goes
to the Sudan and disguises himself as a Sudanese tribesman and infiltrates the enemy
forces and manages to be present at the battle of Omdurman in 1898. This film is a great
document of the nationalistic and patriotic sense of themselves that the British had
woven. This is the emotional and patriotic fuel that built and ran the British Empire. See
this film.

Burn ("Quemada!") 1969: A film of 19th century political and international intrigue in
the Caribbean between the English and the Portuguese for control of a sugar producing
island. Marlon Brando plays an operative trying to instigate a slave revolt against the
Portuguese so that the British can have an excuse to come in and pick up the pieces. It is
a international political science lecture on the techniques of Imperialism. I like it. See it.
(I am a hopeless and helpless fan of Marlon Brando.)

Beau Geste (1939) This great Foreign Legion film burst on the audiences on the eve of
World War II. There are many versions of this French Foreign Legion story on film.
Stories like this and The Four Feathers should tell you something about what kinds of
models of heroic behavior were stamped into the imaginations of the men who went
ashore on the beaches of Normandy. Compare those films to the ones you have been
raised on.

Gunga Din (1936) A document of the way the British and the Americans liked to see
colonialism. Set in India in the 19th century and based on the writings of Kipling. A great
story and a telling document.

The Wind and the Lion (1975) A ripping yarn of American foreign policy under Teddy
Roosevelt against Berber tribesmen led by Mulay Achmed Mohammed el-Raisuli the
Magnificent played by Sean Connery. Brian Keith plays an unforgettable TR. The clash
is precipitated by the kidnapping of an American by the Raisuli. The diplomatic and
military conflict will help you understand some of the salient points of Western
Imperialsim. There is a swell scene in which U.S. Marines assault the palace in Tangier
(?). It reminds us of the disproportionate ability to focus and apply violence that the West
had when compared to many other parts of the world. I often show my students that clip
along with the scenes of Martini-Henry destruction in Zulu starring Michael Caine. The
organized intensity and mechanization of Western style warfare was a shock and surprise
to much of the rest of the world.

Hawaii (1966) American missionaries convert Hawaii. Based on the great James
Michener novel. study guide

The Man Who Would Be King (1975) Two British soldiers in "Karafistan" are
mistaken for gods. They decide to stay and become kings. This is Kipling done well by
the great John Huston.

A Passage To India (1984) E.M.Forster's clear eye examines the most subtle aspects of
British society in contact with the society of India. See this film and you will be hooked.

Staying On (1979) India after Gandhi. This is the continuation of the Jewel in the
Crown. This is the story of the British who loved India so much that they chose to stay
after independence. Made for television.

The Shooting Party (1985) A good and classy story about British society on the eve of
WWI.

All Quiet On the Western Front (1930) You know this book, this story and the film.
See it again. See the 1930 version.

Wings (1927) Directed by William Wellman. silent. Received the first Academy Award
for best picture. Two pilots in WWI. Love and war.

The Dawn Patrol (1938) study guide

Nicholas and Alexandra (1971) The Russian Revolution seen mostly from the
viewpoint of the Romanoff family. Link to the letters of Nicholas II Romanoff and his
cousin Wilhelm II of Germany.

Paths of Glory (1957) The madness and incompetence of WWI wrapped up in one story
of one battle in one army. Kirk Douglas is a French officer who must throw his troops in
front of German machine guns in a hopeless attack. My first Stanley Kubrick film.

What Price Glory? (1952) John Ford directs James Cagney. Based on a play by the
great Maxwell Anderson about a company of U.S. soldiers in WW I. (Anderson wrote
Key Largo, The Bad Seed (screenplay), Anne of a Thousand Days, Winterset, Valley
Forge, Barefoot in Athens, Mary of Scotland, Elizabeth the Queen, among others. He also
wrote book for Kurt Weill. He graduated from the University of North Dakota with the
great class of 1911.

Grand Illusion (1937) What can I say? This may be the greatest film ever made. (Ebert's
Review)

Michael Collins (1996) Ireland in 1916. study guide

Mandela (1987) South Africa as colonialism continues to crumble. This is a hero of the
1960s and his story.

The Last Emperor (1989) of China.

Out of Africa (1985) Soft colonial setting. I find Denys George Finch Hatton, played by
Redford, to be the most facinating. His contradictions, ironies and hypocrisies are so
contemporary.

Lawrence of Arabia (1962) World War I against the Turks and their allies in the Middle
East. Watching this film will be good background for understanding those strange
boundaries you see on a map from Kuwait to Jordan. This is a great film. See it. Those of
you who have traveled in Europe with me in the summer will recognize buildings in
Seville which were used and redefined as buildings in Cairo.study guide

The Lighthorsemen (1987) World War I in Palestine. See this with Lawrence of Arabia.

The Guns of August

The novels of Ernest Hemingway on film: The writer who reflected and defined our
consciousness after World War I. He is no less important today. His novels are infinitely
better than the films Hollywood created from them. I hope one of you becomes the great
Hemingway scholar of the future. I am a little tired of reading about the "Hemingway
Hero," the Hemingway "Code" and "Hemingway women." If I hear one more uninformed
analysis based on misreading:of how unsympathetic women are in his novels or how
macho his men are I may lose my lunch. Hemingway is one of the most difficult writers
to read. You have to bring a fully developed inner life or inner sympathy and ear to his
books. I think he generated an approach/mentality to life and survival that was
completely appropriate to a century filled with colossal murder and death which include
the mountains of dead created by the mad, romantic idealism of the Left and the
somewhat smaller piles of dead harvested by the petty dictators on the Right. Death was a
constantly present fact in the 20th century. In Our Time is the key. Today's therapeutic
culture would never have rid our world of Hitler. If we were to hit the beaches of
Normandy today, the next two waves of landing craft would have to be filled with "grief
therapists." The evidence is so clear. Compare FDR and Clinton. See what I mean? Think
about it.

Oh! What a Lovely War (1969) A great film. It is a musical about World War I.
Directed by Richard Attenborough. There are many cameo appearances by the greatest of
the great actors. The music is accurate and historical. As the War begins to cause
disillusionment among the troops, the words change toward anger, sadness and protest.
There is no violent death. Each soldier who dies is handed a red poppy and excuses
himself and walks off screen. It is very powerful and affecting.

Gallipoli (1981) This film will break your heart. It follows the lives of young Australian
track athletes who join the army in order to fight for the British Empire in World War I.
They are sent to Egypt to join the invasion of "the soft underbelly of Europe" after the
disasters of trench warfare in 1914. You will understand forever why Australians and
New Zealanders have dark memories of the British officers who sent them into battle.
This ill conceived, bungled and badly supported invasion was greatly the responsibility of
Winston Churchill. He felt his career was ruined after this disaster. The ANZAC forces
(20,000 troops) suffered 8,000 casualties in 24 hours. Their enemy was one of the best of
WWI: Turkish infantry and German officers. This disaster helps explain British
reluctance to invade Europe across the English Channel a generation later. It is directed
by the great Peter Weir and stars Mel Gibson. (Yes, I have seen all of these films. If not
from the balcony of the Empire Theater-Saturday Matinee with Patricia and Punky-in
Minot, N.D. then on the black and white Admiral television set in my parents' home. The
closest thing you can experience to television in the 1950s is the Turner Classic Movies
channel, the American Movie Classics channel, and the Goodlife channel.) study guide

All The King's Men (2000) A production shown on "Masterpiece Theater on Public
Television. The subject: The male staff of groundskeepers, grooms, footmen,
batmen....everybody who worked for the Royal Family at Sandringham goes off to do
their bit for King and Country. They are sent to Gallipoli. They are consumed in the
battle. This is a fine film about the legends people make up and want to believe when the
truth/reality is rejected as too painful. It compares and contrasts myth and reality and
examines the moment that myth and legend are chosen as "History." This is a must for
those of you who take the role of "Historian" seriously.

300 Films About World War I from IMBd
Political Experiments of the 1920s

Brideshead Revisited (1982) Great social history of the upper class world of a great
Catholic family before and during WWII from the pen of Evelyn Waugh. It is about
shifting values and a lost world. It was shown on Public Television. It can be rented. I
love this series. John Mortimer adapted the novel for television.

Upstairs, Downstairs (1971 - 1976 - production dates may be much earlier in Great
Britain) This is excellent social history. I have forgotten the name of the historian who
said that he did not understand the death of 19th Century British Liberalism as well as he
did after watching this titanic series. Much of the optimistic Progressive mentality and
confidence of the leadership of that generation never recovered from the blunders it
perpetrated when it led its people into World War I. (Think about using this series as a
model for explaining American Liberalism from Kennedy through Nixon in regard to the
Vietnam War.) It is a series of snapshots of British society from the late 19th century
through the 1920s and into the 30s. You can watch the lives of the Belgravia elite
"upstairs" and their servants "downstairs" being lived against the background of
"HISTORY." In the foreground the class system of Great Britain, which so annoys those
of us who are militant democrats, mutates and melds under the demands of the War. Hey,
those of you who traveled to Europe with me in 1996: remember the day we were all
kicked out of St. Paul's Cathedral so that Princess Margaret could be alone to pray?
Remember how annoyed we were? Remember the questions we all asked about
privilege? Many of those questions are answered by this series. This was/is television at
its best for history students. Also, look into The Forsyte Saga and Flambards.

Potemkin (1926): This film is a masterpiece of Socialist Realism. It is a microcosm of
the way the Communist Revolution is supposed to work. It made a pile of money for the
Soviet film industry and became a mandatory entry on the "Best Ten Films Ever Made"
list for leftist intellectuals. I almost always show this film in class. It is a great document.
Also see "October" (1929). It was mandatory to stand in awe of these works from 1930 to
the present. Watch to see if the stature of Eisenstein falls with the fall of the Soviet Union
and the confident world view of the revolutionary socialist left. He did things with his
camera and his editing that had never been seen before. His stuff was very "new" and
"revolutionary" in its time. To see him from inside his camp you should read a laudatory
socialist interpretation on the World Socialist Web Site. Be intelligent. Know what you
are looking at on this site. Directors all over the world tip their hats to Potemkin and its
technical innovations. The Odessa Steps scene is one of the most famous ever made. The
danger of impressionable, non analytical, youthful minds being won to Communism by
this film is very slim these days, so I recommend that you see it if I do not have time to
show it in class.Ebert's Review.

Stalin (1992) starring Robert Duvall. This film should end any romantic-radical Che type
notions about "love coming from the barrel of a gun" nonsense you may have picked up
from some of my contemporaries who were radicalized in the 1960s. Stalin is depicted as
the paranoid, scheming world class murderer that he seems to have been. In some ways,
Hitler claimed him as his mentor. study guide The story is narrated from his daughter's
point of view.

Ninotchka (1939): Gee but I love this film. It stars the most beautiful face to appear in
film (no, not Michelle Pfeiffer), Greta 'I vhant to be alone' Garbo. Greta Garbo plays a
Russian Communist agent who goes to Paris to study French industrial processes, sewage
facilities, the engineering of the Eifel Tower. She is all "business" (if one can use that
term to describe a lovely Commie trying to stay 'on task.') and resists the charms of
Paris....at least for a while. This is a Hollywood production made by lots of ex-Germans
who escaped/rejected Hitler's Germany. It is very charming and funny. Ernst Lubitsch
directed. You will want to see more of his stuff after this.

Rosa Luxemburg (1986) Dir. Margarethe von Trotta, With Barbara Sukowa

Dr. Zhivago (1965): The power of love amid the mad and murderous idealism of the
Communist Revolution. This novel by the Soviet Citizen Boris Pasternak was smuggled
out of the Soviet Union. It received the Nobel Prize in literature. Pasternak loved Russia
so much that he refused to pick up the prize for fear they would not allow him back into
the country. What got him in so much trouble? He wrote a novel in which the protagonist
was not Politically Correct. Dr. Zhivago is a politically neutral observer of the
Communist Revolution interested in medicine, life and love. The regime required that all
the characters in Soviet novels root for and be committed to the Revolution like Packer
fans at a viking-Packer game. See this film.

Reds (1981): Idealist-Romantic-Radical Harvard graduate, John Reed, becomes a traitor
to his class and joins the Russian Revolution, attends many meetings and destroys the
woman who loves him. Jack Nicholson as Eugene O'Neill delivers lines
that blister the skin and peel back the scalp. This film is filled with great reasons not to
become a Communist: endless, fruitless and annoying meetings and bureaucrats from
Hell. The content of the debates will give you a good idea of what it means to be
"Politically Correct" and some of the consequences if you are not. Yet, the film
romanticizes the Left in spite of the fact that the truth about Lenin and the Stalinist
Regime was beginning to be more widely known. It is a very good film about the
idealism, energy and enthusiasm of those supporting the idea of a world wide workers'
commune (or a workers' commune in one country). Ten Days that Shook The World
(1922) This is the book that made John Reed famous.

Animal Farm (1955) George Orwell's version of life in the Soviet Union.study guide

1900 (1981 ): Fifty years of Italian history told through the lives of two best friends who
represent the upper and lower classes. A star studded cast tells a great story. Bertolucci's
masterpiece. Leftists and Fascists struggle to reform the soul of Italy. A strong film. Not
for the meek. Prepare to hide your eyes from time to time. A teacher recently got in huge
trouble for showing this film in class. I think it is great, but there are some scenes that I
would certainly cut out and censor in my own way. It is a very very mature film with a
leftist political sympathy. The Fascists are the "bad guys." You will never forget the evil
character portrayed by Donald Sutherland.

Amarcord (1974) This is one of my ten favorite films. It is Federico Fellini's memory of
his childhood as he grows up in Fascist Italy. Seeing him remembering his high school
teachers is reason enough to watch it.

Chariots of Fire (1981)

Testimony (1988): The great Soviet composer Shostakovich played by Ben Kingsley. It
portrays his music and his politics.
Europe and the Great Depression of the 1930s

The Conformist (1970) The great Bertolucci again. A citizen of Fascist Italy conforms to
the expectations of the culture, the regime and his lover. This is a beautiful and brutal
film. It is a haunting image of an individual without character. The last ten minutes are
maddening as the Fascists fall and out hero runs through the streets conforming to the
new order.

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) The story is lovely. What you should notice is
Miss Brodie's admiration for Benito Mussolini. It will give you an introduction to how
Europe was courted by the Facists and what their appeal might have been.

Tea With Mussolini (1999) British compatriots living in Florence, Italy in massive
denial regarding their safety as Mussolini gears up for war. Compare to the Garden of the
Finzi Continis. This film, like Hope and Glory is told from the wondering eyes of a
young man who adores the small English community. It is the autobiography of the
director, Franco Zefferelli. John Mortimer wrote the script.

Up at the Villa (2000) A romantic thriller set in Mussolini's Italy. A cloud of Fascist
dread hanging over the details of a killing. Scott Thomas, Penn, Bancroft and Jacobi.
What a sweet group of actors.

Giornata particolare, Una (1977) A Special Day. Sophia Loren and Marcello
Mastroianni star in this great, human story of two dented people who need friendship
against the backdrop of Hitler's famous visit to Mussolini and Rome in 1938. Students
who have traveled to Rome with me should remember Statione Termini and E.U.R. Our
hotel was very near this later site. Remember the "Square Coloseum?"

Mephisto (1981): These three films star one of my favorite actors: Klaus Maria
Brandauer. This is the story of a great actor who wants more. Like Christopher Marlowe's
or (more to the cultural point)Goethe's Faust, he sells his soul to the Nazis in order to find
success and head the national theater. On the state he had played Mephisto to other
actors. Now he is Faust to the Nazi Mephisto. This is a clever and wonderful film
structured around my favorite literary device: irony.

Modern Times (1936) study guide I often show parts of this film with Metropolis (1927)
by Fritz Lang. There are such strong themes of anti industrial populism and fear of the
city that seem to feed into the world view which fed Hitlerism. Always consult
Kracauer's From Caligari to Hitler on these themes and topics. Revisionists may carp, but
they have done nothing to supplant this classic.

Metropolis (1927)

Oberst Redl (1985) I have not seen this film. It stars one of my favorites: Klaus Maria
Brandauer, who is an officer living through the decline of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Hanussen (1988): The story of an ex-Austrian soldier who was wounded in the head and
is now able to read people's minds and see into the future.

Cabaret (1972) Bob Fosse directs Liza Minnelli and words by Christopher Isherwood.
Berlin cafe life in the heady and creative 1920s as Hitler looms.

The Jesse Owens Story (1984) Made for television. The great American athlete who
enjoyed a very successful 1936 Olymic Games participation under the eyes of Hitler.

Swing Kids (1993) Young Germans exercise a forbidden interest in Jazz and Swing
during the Hitler era. Every student who sees it loves it.

Europa Europa (1991) The true story of a lad who attempts to save his life by escaping
to Poland. When Hitler invades, he covers his Jewish identity and joins the German Army
during WWII as an ethnic German who happens to be living in the East. study guide

The Tin Drum (1979) Danzig in the 1920s and 1930s based on the great novel by
Gunther Grass. Little Oskar grows up during the Hitler era. Grass and Vonnegut seem to
have invented the current fashion of "magical realism" long before the Latin writers who
are, at present, being lionized for the technique. Now we are all accustomed to it and
rapidly becoming bored by it. But, when Grass concocted his visions they were
sometimes confusing and disturbing. The film made us swallow them. The film is so
disturbing in places that it has been banned in many schools and all of Oklahoma. Like a
nightmare image I still remember the "eel fishing" scene on the Baltic shore. I will never
eat eel...ever, ever, never, never. The passive behavior to Hitler's rise is a forgotten image
in my memory. Little Oskar's drum is the central image but, I will always remember the
eels.

The Damned (1969) "La Caduta degli dei" by Luchino Visconti. A great German
industrial family, having survived WWI and the great depression descends into the abyss
of German politics in the 1930s. The decline of Germany is paralleled by the decline in
the leadership of the family as its more unworthy members rise, like scum. The von
Essenbeck (Krupp?) family becomes a good metaphor for what is happening to Germany
in general.

The Rules of the Game (1939) a masterpiece by Jean Renoir about the relationships
within and between the French upper and working class.

Lacomb, Lucien (1974): A young French lad of 18 tries to make sense of his goal, life
and values in the midst of the collaboration. He has not joined the Resistance and decides
to work for the local police with outcomes that you can guess. This is a serious and classy
film by Louis Malle.

The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (1970): The last great film by Vittorio De Sica. A
great Jewish family cannot believe it could happen in Italy and to them. It does. This is a
fine, fine film. You should see it as a part of your education.

For Whom The Bell Tolls (1943) The Ernest Hemingway novel. If you have listened in
class, you know how I feel about his writing. In spite of his rising and falling stock
among college professors and New Left and other radical critiques, he will be standing
far after we are all gone. I have heard more nonsense in my college classes and in cafe
conversations than any other writer I have loved or studied. He is the most important
writer since James and Twain. This is his story of the Spanish Civil War. This may be the
best film made of one of his books. Hemingway did not have a lot of luck with this books
in Hollywood. They all need to be redone, never with any expectation that they will be
done better, however. study guide

Cinema Paradiso (1989): Thirty years of Italian social history through the films shown
in a movie theater and through a little boy's friendship with the projectionist. Why?
Because I love this film, Italian film and Italy. I have shown this film after school from
time to time over the last ten years. Request it and it will happen.

Triumph of the Will (1934): The great and non-fiction documentary of the Nazi Party's
rally in 1934 in Nuremburg. It was made by one of the greatest film makers of all time:
Leni Reifenstahl. Her talents make us wish she had done more film, but her resume says
that she worked for Hitler. There is little financial backing for the projects by exsupporters of the Third Reich. She has done 35mm coffee table books on African
tribesmen (The People of Kau) and underwater nature topics. She is still alive and living
among us as of 1999. See this long banned film. Its power is still obvious and it coils and
uncoils on the screen like the involuntary muscular reactions of a dead rattlesnake. It
captures the power of pure political evil and its supporters on film for all to remember. It
is thought to be the best propaganda film ever made.

The Great Dictator (1941) The antidote to Triumph of the Will along with certain parts
of Duck Soup by the Marx Brothers. A Jewish barber from the Ghetto is the spitting
image of Adenoid Hynkel (Adolf Hitler) the dictator of Tomania (Germany). In a series
of circumstances the Jewish Barber takes the place of Hynkel/Hitler. The one-upmanship
between the dictator of Bacteria (Italy), Benzino Napaloni and Hynkel are wonderful. I
love this film and often use parts of it after showing the Reifenstahl film. study guide.

From Here To Eternity (1953): The American Army in Hawaii during the summer
before Pearl Harbor. A classic.

200 films that mention Nazis - from IMDb
World War II

Mrs. Miniver (1942) "This excellent World War II propaganda film is about the
beginning of the war and the effects of the German bombing campaign on an otherwise
happy and well adjusted upper middle class British family" from the Study Guide.

Hope and Glory (1987) The view of wartime Britain from the view of a nine year old.
The old rules, restrictions, mores and morals are changing fast and the liberation is
intoxicating. The students even dare cheer that Hitler might blow up their school.

Shoah (1985): a huge, spellbinding nine and one half hour documentary about the
holocaust consisting of interviews with witnesses, survivors and ex-Nazis. It is also
disquieting in that many witnesses still betray the anti-Semitism that led to the holocaust.
There is some sentiment for dropping the term "Holocaust" for the term "Shoah." What is
the difference? Why might there be an interest in this kind of terminological
prestidigitation? Those who believe that the battle for meaning is in the words themselves
and not the events, often drive these controversies. Babi Yar, Auschwitz and BergenBelsen are all that one needs to know. I think Hemingway had the last word on people
who manipulate passions and history with words in A Farewell to Arms.

The Diary of Anne Frank (1959): The famous dramatized diary of a Jewish family
hiding from the Nazis in an Amsterdam attic. This is the George Stevens version.

Alexander Nevsky (1938): A film about the invasion of Russia by the Teutonic Knights
in the 1200s by the Communist film artist Serge Eisenstien. The parallel to events and
fears in 1938 is obvious. Even after the fall of the Soviet Union this film is still touted as
a masterpiece of Socialist Realism. Much of it will not strike you as realistic at all, but
will seem like simple minded heroics less sophistocated than a good John Wayne movie.
You should see this film though. It is major document of the Stalinist period on the eve of
WWII and Hitler's invasion of Russia.

Ballad of a Soldier (1960) A Russian film. This is the classic story of a soldier in combat
told from his single point of view. study guide

The Sorrow and the Pity (1971): This is a masterpiece of documentary film making.
Directed by Marcel Ophuls, it is an inquiry into France's role and performance in World
War II. It is always riviting. It is four and a half hours long without a dull moment. It
should be part of your education to see this.

Sunrise at Campobello (1960) FDR at his best as a man. This is a tough year in the life
of a really great President to be. I exist because of FDR. My mother and father met
because of a government sponsored youth program during the Great Depression (NYA).

Why We Fight: This is a series of films made between 1942 and 1945 by Frank (It's A
Wonderful Life) Capra for the United States government. The intention is explanation of
WWII to the citizens of the U.S. They are wartime propaganda films of a rather high
order compared to most. They are still interesting and should be compared to Triumph of
the Will.

Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

Midway (1976) The "miracle" battle in the Pacific between the navy of Japan and the
navy of the United States. study guide.

Seven Beauties (1976): Another film by the wonderful Lena Wertmuller. (She is an
Italian film director. Yes, I know her name looks German.) This film is funny and strong
medicine all at once. A small town hot-shot and Don Juan protects his seven sisters. Time
passes and he is swept up in WWII, imprisoned by his German allies in a concentration
camp type prison. He does what is necessary to stay alive. You will meet the great actor
Giancarlo Giannini. You will love him.

Patton (1970): A stunning, Academy Award winning portrayal of the General who the
Germans believed was our best. You follow Patton from the invasion of North Africa and
Sicily to the invasion of Europe at Normandy and the Battle of the Buldge. Patton is now
a military legend like Sherman. study guide

The Longest Day (1962): The D-Day invasion of Europe at Normandy. This film is done
with the "Devil-May-Care" élan which began to disappear after the reality of Korea
began to permeate the American psyche. Vietnam destroyed that kind of confidence in
the lines delivered by actors in war films. This film is done on a huge scale. It has a huge
all star cast. Notice how different it feels than Private Ryan. Vietnam lies between these
two pictures. We should all be happy that there is not a danger of Hitler's proportions out
there waiting for us in the historical short run. I miss the confidence of my many uncles
and their great generation.Study Guide

Saving Private Ryan (1998): You know the story. D-Day and after on a smaller scale
than The Longest Day.

The Fighting Sullivans ( 1964) This is the REAL story behind and the reason why they
would search for and try to save Pvt. Ryan. Five brothers join the U.S. Navy and all die
on the same ship. This is a true story.

Das Boot (1981): A great film about the claustrophobia, oil, dirt, and terror of operating a
U-Boat under the Atlantic. A German cast speaking German. I love this film. Avoid the
dubbed version.

The Young Lions (1958): World War II in Europe. It is a film made up of parallel stories
of soldiers on both sides. It will draw your attention to Brando if you have not met him
before.

Winds of War (1983): appearances by Roosevelt, Hitler, von Ribbentrop, Eleanor
Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, etc. a television mini series which I found enjoyable. Based
on the Herman Wouk novel.

War and Remembrance (1989) mini series

Holocaust (1978) mini series. This series was quite good and human and graphic. Our
interest was great because we all knew it was going to be shown on German television
later. It would be the first time the Holocaust was the subject of a major German tv
program. Eichmann, Himmler, Heydrich and the whole evil bunch are depicted on the
stage of German society. Starring a huge cast including: Moriarty, Streep, Wanamaker,
David Warner, James Woods, This film, though excellent, is also a document of a time:
Roots was another aspect of this era. Some critics "feel" that it dilutes and understates the
true horror and evil of the event. The Holocaust Project

Night and Fog (1955) The Night and Fog Decree A French documentary concerning the
Holocaust Death Camps. This film has an edge and an anger that students feel. I was born
the year that the Holocaust was planned, organized built and perpetrated. It was a dark
year: 1942. I am very uncomfortable with journalistic expressions like "ethnic cleansing"
and "extermination." When journalists and historians take on the vocabulary of the
perpetrators something feels wrong. Think about our usage of the word "extermination"
in regard to the Holcaust. See what I mean? It was pre-meditated murder on a gigantic
scale. Read the work of Raul Hilberg. I prefer the word "murder" for what these
politicians did. And, the word "Holocaust" should probably be reserved for this single
event of World
War II and the determined effort of a single country and political party program to
murder every person of a specific, single, enthic, cultural and religious people. There
were an additional five million swept along by these deadly perpetrators. I know that
history is filled with examples of murder on a grand scale. (Armenians have an especially
sad story, the Kurds, and others must be remembered.) The story of the Holocaust
perpetrated by Hitlerians and their pawns and silently cooperative fellow countrymen
contains what is evil in so much of what coagulated out of the soup of ideas of the 19th
century. It is the nexus were Nationalism, socialism, the Dark Side of Populism,
Romanticism, idealism (American/Wilsonian Progressivism), failed international
relations, Social Darwinism (apologies to Charles), industrial process, and racism
touched to create a soup in which we all had a spoon. I am not a fan of the idea of
"Collective Guilt." This era should cause us all to put our ideas on the witness stand and
cross examine them every day, and to wonder what possible murderous nonsense to
which they could give aid and comfort. It is why we should still read one of the two
greatest political theorists our country has produced: Reinhold Niebuhr. He was deeply
troubled by these questions. His political odyssey from far left to a more centrist position
is a good political life for you to examine in this age of Political Ideology and Political
Correctness. Later in his life he was a Liberal who angered Liberals. I think his politics
were deeply touched by the horror of the Holocaust and it became more important to
examine the pernicious possibilities of ones ideas than to remain ideologically pure. I
admire him a lot. I still think Niebuhr and Martin Buber are closer to the answer than
Ché. The Holocaust / Shoah is the central event of the Twentieth and our new century. As
you struggle to understand the meaning of life, this event will always be there to
challenge your reflections. It is the central disaster of the Modern West. (The second one
being the Soviet Experiment.) These two events should keep you reflective about your
history and culture for the rest of your lives. (read The Genocide of the Czech Jews as
just one facet of this evil.) Internet Jewish History Sourcebook / Ohlendorf testimony /
Babi Yar.

The World At War ( ) This documentary series should be watched by all of you. Many
parts are available in rental stores.

Cross of Iron (1977): One of the best films about WWII I have seen. It is told from the
point of view of German Soldiers on the Eastern Front fighting against the Red Army. It
is very very violent. It is directed by the Michelangelo of 1970s violence, Sam
Peckinpah. Sgt. Steiner leads his men, attempting to keep them safe while a shirker and
glory seeker repeatedly sends them into danger in order to win his Iron Cross.

Bataan (1943)Dir. Tay Garnett. With Robert Taylor and considered one of the great war
movies.

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957):This is probably a masterpiece. It is about the
ambiguities which exist even in a very clear cut war. No film had a greater affect on me
as a teenager. Ebert's Review.

Schindler's List (1993): The story of a rather unattractive German businessman who
witnesses the horror of the Nazi regime and begins to attempt to save the Jews working
for him. study guide

Wannseekonferenz (1984): This is the verbatim re-enactment of the meeting which
launched the Holocaust (the "Final Solution"). It was held in a home in a suburb of
Berlin. The film lasts exactly as long as the meeting: eighty-five minutes.

Wallenberg: A Hero's Story (1985)

Sink the Bismarck (1960): The great German battleship Bismarck breaks out of the
Baltic Sea and into the North Atlantic to break the convoys supplying Great Britain. Its
guns sink Britain's great battleship H.M.S. Hood and the entire British navy seeks
revenge. The Bismarck attempts to gain refuge along the coast of German occupied
France where the planes of the Luftwaffe can give it cover. Based on the epic sea telling
by C.S.Forster.

Is Paris Burning? (1966): In this sprawling, star-laden film, we see the struggles of
various French resistance factions to regain control of Paris near the end of World War II.
The Nazi general in charge of Paris, Dietrich von Cholitz (Fröbe), is under orders from
Hitler himself to burn the city if he cannot control it or if the Allies get too close. Much
of the drama centers around the moral deliberations of the general, the Swedish
ambassador (Welles), and the eager but desperate leaders of the resistance. Summary
written by Carl J. Youngdahl {zomno@casbah.acns.nwu.edu} from IMDb

A Bridge Too Far (1977): This is General Montgomery's "Market Garden" plan to break
into Germany quickly in order to end the war in Europe quickly. (This is the battle that is
making General Patton cuss in the film mentioned above.) A huge spearhead through
Holland to the Rhine Bridges in order to make a quick thrust into the industrial cities of
Germany and end the war quickly is the goal of this huge attack. You are let in on the
details of the planning and tactics of the Battle of Arnhem so that you can witness the
unraveling of a great effort which was guaranteed to succeed. It shows the inertia of
bureaucracy, the wild claims of True Believers, Murphy's Law and dumb bad luck all in
play in spite of optimism and a good cause. I like this film a lot. It's tone reminds me of
The Longest Day mentioned above. You can understand why World War II, for all its
slaughter and waste makes our grandfathers' and great grandfathers' eyes go to tears but
also shine. I always saw sadness in the eyes of my uncles, but also a pride I have not seen
since.

Twelve O'Clock High (1949) The controversial Bomber Campaign against Germany.
study guide

Memphis Belle (1990) study guide This is the film biography of the famous plane and its
crew.

Catch 22 (1970) The Joseph Heller war novel. If you claim you are too crazy to fly
another mission because you believe the percentages are catching up with you, then your
fears are rational and you are fit to fly.

Slaughterhouse Five (1972) The Kurt Vonnegut novel about aspects of WWII. Some
was filmed in Richfield near Cedar Avenue and the Crosstown. Billie Pilgrim "time
travels" as a result of attempting to cope with his WWII experience. Vonnegut had
actually experienced the bombing of Dresden by the Allies. He was a prisoner of war in
Germany.

The Thin Red Line (1998):The U.S. Army in Guadalcanal. I am really looking forward
to this non-Spielberg effort. I am as eager to see it as Apocalypse Now. It is the close in
story of the Battle of Guadalcanal. It grew slowly into a battle of gigantic proportions in
the jungles of the Island and on the waters around. This battle had an almost mythic
presence to the kids like me growing up in the shadow of WWII. It was not a miracle like
Midway. It was a huge, determined and focused effort that seemed to build slowly as
both sides began to realize its importance. My uncles never spoke of the glory or the luck
or the violence. They always spoke of the effort, the labor and the determination and the
dirt and sweat. I saw the film on 2-15-99. It was as as my uncles had described the war.
Their war was right in front of them: twelve feet wide and a hundred yards deep. This
film carries the fear and the claustrophobia better even than Deer Hunter or Apocalypse
Now.

The Bridge at Remagen (1969): Dramatic account of crossing the Rhine by the
American army.

A Midnight Clear (1992)

The Battle of San Pietro (1944): This is a heartbreaking documentary of the Italian
Campaign by the great John Huston. I believe this film was censored or blocked for a
time during the war. Over one thousand Americans died in this battle.

Hope and Glory (1987) Directed by John Boorman...one of my favs. Kids growing up in
London during WWII. Their view is not the same as the adults. The film is sensitive to
the social changes being forced by the war (women, discipline, class). The kids are
shown enjoying the world of bomb shelters and feeling joy when their school is blown up
by Hitler.

Europa Europa (1991)(Hitlerjunge Salomon): Some of you have seen this film in your
German classes. Solomon Peel, a Jew, attempts to survive WWII by joining the German
Army and is admitted into the Hitler Youth. It is based on a true story. If you have to
chose between Empire of the Sun and a film like this...see this one.

The English Patient (1996) A complex plot. See it. War in North Africa and Italy. A
character of dubious loyalty and nationality falls in love with a married woman. Many
linking consequences ensue for many people. Wonderful scenes of the more mundane
and lethal aspects of war. Nobody seems to feel neutral about this film.

The White Rose (1982)

Au Revoir, Les Enfants (1987): A Catholic boarding school in France tries to hide a
Jewish boy among its students. Louis Malle directs.

Casablanca (1942): Hey, why not? I love it and the war is mentioned. It introduces you
to the complexity of politics in the North African French colonies and, perhaps, helps you
understand Operation Torch and the politics of France in the invasion of Africa. This film
is an American classic and you should watch it just because. Ebert's Review. study guide.

Mediterraneo (1991) A wonderful film about Italian solders left to protect and hold and
island.

Fat Man & Little Boy(1989) The building of the Atomic Bomb and its use. study guide

Albert Einstein: Light to the Power of 2 (1997) study guide

The Brylcreem Boys(1999) The political complications of war on display in an Irish
Prisoner of War camp. Yes, Ireland tried to stay neutral in WWII and imprisoned all
soldiers from both sides. So, one camp holds Canadians, British and Germans. It is a very
nice film. Besides, guys, you get to see Jean Butler in her first film. Trust me. (review)
This is not only good history, it is a great "date" movie. If you like prisoner of war films
from WWII be sure to see: Stalag 17 (1957), McKenzie Break (1970), The Great Escape
(1963).These films often are good social history and make you reconsider when you want
to complain, "Man! This school is like a prison!"

Sahara (1943):A fine film about the war in North Africa. Humphrey Bogart. Notice how
the Italian soldier is portrayed. A U.S. tank picks up five British soldiers in the desert
war. I love this film.

The Man in the Glass Booth ( ) The trial of Adolf Eichmann.

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) A dramatization of the great trials of the German
Hitlerians after WWII. study guide

The Nasty Girl (1990)(DasSchreckliche Madchen): I really love this film about a girl
who writes a contest essay about her town during the Third Reich. Carolin wants to write
one of those soft laudatory and patriotic essays but, she discovers things about the town
that the older generation do not want her to open to the light of day. Finding the whole
truth becomes her obsession.

700 film titles about World War II from IMDb
Europe and the Soviet-American Rivalry

Swept Away ( 1975) A wonderful leftist political fantasy about a Capitalist beauty
oppressing a humble worker/sailor (Giancarlo Giannini), and the role reversal and social
justice that reigns when the couple find themselves marooned together on a socialist
island paradise where men can regain the powers they have lost because of Capitalist
exploitation. The choir boys in Lord of the Flies should have had it this good (speaking in
a socio-political- sense). A film by the great Lena Wertmuller. I often wonder what LeftFeminists think of this film.

La Dolce Vita (1959) Set in Rome on the verge of the prosperity of the 1960s. It has the
tone and mood of The Great Gatsby and Hollywood all in one. Roman celebrity and the
birth of the paparazzi along the Via Veneto. The lives of the people are glittering but
essentially hollow like so much of 1950s culture was judged to be by my generation. It
might be time for me to see this classic again. This is a must-see for those of you who
love film. Roger Ebert's Review

The Third Man (1949) A masterpiece. Orson Wells makes the greatest entrance in film.
He gives the great speech about peace and war: "You know what the fellow said: In Italy
for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they
produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had
brotherly love--they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce?
The cuckoo clock." This film is set in Vienna is the aftermath of World War II. It is
loaded with the sinister mistrust and evil behavior that would mark the international
scene from Yalta to the fall of the Berlin Wall. This is a fine film.

Gentleman's Agreement (1947) Anti-Semitism in the U.S. study guide

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich (1970): This is the story of one day in the life
of a prisoner in the Workers Paradise in the Soviet Union. It is based on the book by
Alexander Solzhenitsyn. This film may be hard to find in video stores. You might also try
to find The First Circle (1972). Solzhenitsyn became too big to kill and was eventually
kicked out of the Soviet Union. He came to New England where he worked on a multi
volume personal history of theGulag...a string of labor camps that were strung like
islands out into and across Siberia. He had been in prison there and wanted to create a
record of the Soviet regime's policies toward its people and his friends in sending them
there. When the Soviet Union fell apart he went back. Time will tell whether he is a great
writer. He was certainly a witness to one of the most degrading and murderous systems in
European history. His fame may fade as our memory of Soviet terror fades. He wrote the
books so that we would never forget.

Radio Bikini (1987 ): An award winning documentary about the sailors and soldiers who
participated in the nuclear tests at Bikini Atoll just after WWII. The film contains a lot of
footage of the tests and preparations for them. Some of the footage of bomb blasts has
appeared again and again like Kennedy assassination tape and has become part of our
collective consciousness.

Exodus (1960) A dramatic account of the creation and founding of Israel after the close
of WWII. Survivors of the holocaust head to Palestine by ship. The British, mandated to
keep order and peace, are caught in the role of attempting to stop or reverse the tides of
history and opinion and are caught in the middle. Those struggling to create a new Jewish
nation-state are the protagonists and heroes.

Atomic Cafe (1982): A strange, funny and frightening documentary of life in a nuclear
power in the 1950s. It is made up of clips from film and television regarding the Cold
War, fallout shelters, radiation, and "duck and cover." See the dark and funny side of the
decade of Wall and the Beaver.

The Ugly American (1962): Marlon Brando plays his best type of villain: a smug,
confident, likable, professorial, well meaning, ivy league, aristocrat with three names Ambassador Harrison Carter MacWhite. He is one of America's "Best and Brightest"
who, through his well intentioned bungling (reminding us of the recent "Don't judge us
by our actions, judge us by our intentions" bunch who were prominent in DC at the
beginning of the 1990s), brings about havoc in a Southeast Asian country (Vietnam? ....as
if I have to ask.) But, look at the date that the film came out. None of us, except for those
who did well in the Time Magazine Current Events Test each year, knew where Vietnam
was. We knew there was a place called Indochina and that the French had had some
trouble there. Who knew that it would become one of the defining events of our
generation? And, this book, by Lederer and Burdick, was there first and was eerily
accurate in its verdict. study guide for the book

Dr. Strangelove or, How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb
(1963): A great satire on the Cold War and the madness of some of the thought processes
abroad in the land. As you watch this film, you should know that Minnesota had at least
one town that resisted fluoridation of its water supply because it was seen as enforced
medication and that fluoridation just might be a Communist plot to poison us. By the
Great Kubrick.... Ebert Article. study guide

One, Two, Three (1961): A love story and comedy about the Cold War and the attempt
to bring Coca-Cola to the Communists and to West Berlin. But, at the same time, C.R.
MacNamara (Jimmy Cagney) must keep his boss's daughter from marrying a Commie. It
was the first time we all chuckled about the dark side of the Cold War.

The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming! (1966) This film and Dr.
Strangelove began to break the clinched lips of the "Cold War." study guide

The Spy Who Came In From the Cold (1965): Richard Burton plays Alec, a British spy
sent behind the iron curtain to pretend to be a defector in order to mislead the dirtyrotten-Commies. In the process he begins to see his own role and his handlers' true
attitudes toward him. He becomes thoughtful. He decides to come in out of the Cold War.
It was the first time I saw the name John Le Carré. In a strange way the idea of Detente
came out first in the spy novels and films. They were strongly anti-Communist but
always left open the possibility of friendship between Cold warriors. Notice the
ambiguity in the James Bond films. He can kill them or love them and often works with
them. These books and films often gave a human face to the dirty-rotten-Commies that
we did not get from our Social Studies teachers.

Philby, Burgess and Maclean (1977) shown on PBS television. British production.
Derek Jacobi is Guy Burgess, Anthony Bate is Kim Philby. This is a real Spy story. It
rocked the West.Cambridge University graduates gone bad. If you want to see how this
affected the U.S. mentality see the television series: I Spy, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., all
of the James Bond films, Mission Impossible from television alone. If individuals in my
generation are often suckers for the most absurd conspiracy theories, this may be why.
We were all raised on this diet. Look at the tv series above for the real thing. See the
Anthony Blunt story below for a better version of reality. This is the story of one of the
foremost spy rings working for the Communists and operating in Europe.

A Question of Attribution (1992) The denouement of the great and attention gripping
case of British spying in the 1950s (Philby- Burgess- Mclean) as it comes to Queen
Elizabeth's own art advisor: Sir Anthony Blunt. It is a wonderful film about counter-spy
police work and the similarity between the way the mind of a police man and an art
historian works. These great spy cases will explain to you why there was a mistrust of the
British spy organizations by the C.I.A. in the 1950s and beyond. This is real life and
much more interesting than a novel.

The Manchurian Candidate (1962) This is an excellent document about the paranoia
induced by the Cold War. Oliver Stone grew up on this kind of fodder and has never
gotten over it. Conspiracy seen everywhere. I found it fascinating when I was a teen ager. Soldiers captured during the Korean war are "Brainwashed" and sent back with no
memory of what happened to them. One is programed for assassination. He shoots a
presidential candidate. Frank Sinatra had this film pulled from distribution after Kennedy
was shot the next year. It has only recently been re-released. (Do I believe there are
conspiracies? Of course I do, but only after considering: dumb luck, incompetence,
institutional and governmental stupidity, coincidence and individual skill and
determination. Oswald was, after all, an ex U.S. Marine.)

Seven Days in May (1964) a military coup attempt in the U.S.A. Fiction. This is a good
document from the mood of a section of America in the 1960s on the eve of the
Goldwater-Johnson election.

On The Beach (1959) The world dies in the wake of nuclear war. One U.S. submarine
survives to explore the California coast. The cities are deserted. It is a very dark film. We
worried a lot after seeing it. It is an excellent document of the times.

White Nights (1985) A Russian dancer defects to the West. It is very nice. study guide

Eleni (1985): A reporter from America seeks to be the foreign correspondent in Greece in
order to find out why his mother was executed thirty years earlier during the Communist
uprisings and the attempts to put them down. His mother had been executed by Commies
and he wants to know why. It has become his life obsession.

The Year of Living Dangerously (1982): This film was the first time I saw Mel Gibson
and Sigourney Weaver. A love story against the huge background of the (1963?)
crackdown by President Sukarno on the Communist power in his very complex and
beautiful country. It was a huge and bloody event of the first magnitude in the Cold War.
This is a fine film scholars. It also helps educate you as a traveler and cautions you into
not getting in over your head.

Go Tell The Spartans 1978): This is a good film about the Vietnam war. It points to
many of the flaws in America's conceptualization of the war at a very very early phase of
that war. Burt Lancaster.

The Deer Hunter (1978): I love this film so much it hurts. It reminds me of the kind of
guys with whom I grew up. Some parts are highly metaphorical. These are the guys who
are sent of to war by the graduates of Harvard and the Yale Law School. These are the
guys who are asked to fight the wars and what happens to them. It is set in Vietnam but is
larger than that single war in its meaning. It was the first film in which I saw Streep. It
was obvious that she was special.

Apocalypse Now (1979): Hollywood loves to tell the story of the victim. There are a few
works of art - like Orwell's To Shoot An Elephant - that deal with the impact of
colonialism on the Power - the Perpetrator - the Colonialist. This is what I see in this
film. Paralleling Joseph Conrad's Marlow in his novella The Heart of Darkness , the
protagonist of the film descends into the horror only to step back from the brink. Were he
to take that one additional step forward and into the abyss he would join Colonel Kurtz in
a war beyond the Pale. The flaw in this parallel to the novel is that the narrator of the film
does not lose his soul before our eyes as does Marlow. Captain Willard is already
halfway to the abyss when we meet him. One might argue that all wars have this effect on
the perpetrators and participants. I don't know. I was lucky not to have been invited to go
to Vietnam. I will never know. I can just stand in silent awe of the question. This is a
great film which you should see as a part of your education. There are at least two
endings. One is a quiet disengagement by the protagonist, and one ends with an air strike
which attempts to cauterize the jungle and the thoughts and the nightmares it contains.
Ebert's Review. (The Novel)
Toward a New Europe and the Twenty-first Century

The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979) The 1970s were awful for
fashions, politics, educational curriculum; but great for film. The Germans reawakened
their brilliant film making potential in the 70s. Their leadership in film had been crushed
in the Hitler years by ideology and a drain of talent to America and Hollywood. This film
makes me think of strength and the will to survive and rebuild....and that was done by the
women of Germany whose husbands, sons and lovers were lying dead from Egypt to the
bottom of the Atlantic to the suburbs of Moscow and Stalingrad. That Europe has a
Twenty-First Century to look forward to at all is due to the strengths and life force within
the twentieth century women of Europe. Maria Braun reaches down to pick up the only
tools she has available to survive and grow. She becomes a metaphor for what is left in
the spirit of Germany. And you know that Germany and Europe will rise again and build
on this new energy. I think the women of Russia are currently the motor and fuel which
drives that country onward one day at a time.

The Plague (1992):Novel by Albert Camus. The Plague is a metaphor for many things
which isolate, destroy, kill and devolve individuals as well as nations and cultures. For
Europe to survive the horrors of the Twentieth Century and regain a part of its cultural
and political leadership in a world which needs the positive aspects of its art and talent
and energy it will have to follow the path of Dr. Rieux's reevaluations. I think this book
and film has something to do with these ideas.

Fahrenheit 451 (1966) Franciois Truffaut directs. A fine novel speaking to the anxieties
in the wake of the totalitarian regimes recently defeated and distrubing tendencies toward
Totalism in the republics and democracies which had so recently won. See this along
with 1984 by George Orwell. Think about a parallel development in our time: the loss of
freedoms we have easily given up in order to fight the Drug Wars. Wire taps, search and
seizure, freedom of association and many others have eroded so quietly that few but those
with long memories even are aware it is happening....and often under the most "liberal"
regimes. study guide

A Clockwork Orange (1971) Dirks Review This film, based on the novel by Anthony
Burgess, still bothers people. It deals with some very important issues of government
power and psychological tampering with the mind and soul through the use of drugs and
classical conditioning in order to "reform" the futuristic punk gang leader, Alex de Large.
It is a satire. The government is as frightening as the gangs. Especially as we continue to
deal with the mad behavior of our Psychology and Psychiatric profession in the 1940s
thorough 60s, when lobotomies were treated as routine procedures and teachers
sometimes still graduated with a credit or two in Eugenics. See One Flew Over the
Cuckoos Nest based on the Ken Kesey novel, and Francis on the life of Francis Farmer
and the easy abuse of the individual by a profession out of control with its own
confidence and arrogance in the 1950s. There are intellectual histories to be written here.
Connections to the behavior and research of some of the darkest events in Europe in mid
century have been made.

Savior (1998): An American mercenary fights for the Serbians in Bosnia. He has joined
the Foreign Legion after his wife is killed in Paris by Islamic Fundamentalists. It is out of
yesterdays headlines and deals with the frightening world of ethnic politics and
nationalism.

Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984): Europe will enter the Twenty-First Century with greater
hope than it appeared to have in the middle of the Twentieth because of books like this.
Orwell brought us the first warnings of the dead end that the mad, romantic, idealism of
Communism was in reality. The fact that we may not have to face the successors to the
Stalins, Lenins and Robespierres of the future is due to this book and books like it. This is
a darn good film version of the book. Richard Burton and John Hurt.

The Buddha of Suburbia [in English]
Dir. Roger Miche or My Beautiful Launderette 1986 [in English] Dir. Stephen Frears,
With Daniel Day Lewis. Presentations of multiculturalism in modern Britain, based on
the scripts by Hanif Kureshi.