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Real Military Flix Blog - Rare Military Flim Historical WWII Movies
| Tuesday, Apr 15, 2008 |
| Review from THE BIOSCOPE - A Site Dedicated to the world of early and silent cinema |
| By JC |
| Tuesday, Apr 15, 2008 06:51 |
| http://bioscopic.wordpress.com
www.RealMilitaryFlix.com is the ungainly name for a remarkable new source of online video. The site has been put together by US Air Force combat camera veteran John Corry, who began building up a collection of war films while producing a television series in 1991. The site comprises 650 films (with 1,200 more promised by the end of the year), and ranges from the First World War to Iraq and Afghanistan today. Military enthusiasts can scour the decades of conflict; here at the Bioscope we concentrate on the silent material from the 1914-1918 conflict, which is significant enough in itself.
There are some thirty titles so far, most of them American official films of one kind or another, shot by the U.S. Signal Corps or produced by the propaganda outfit, the Committee on Public Information. Care has been taken to give correct titles and to determine dates, locations and regiments. I've not yet had the chance to view them all, but here's a quick guide to some of the highlights:
Actualities of the World War
Realmilitary flix says "If you only watch one WWI film, make it this one", and it's not far wrong. This dynamic four-part compilation was made up of American military film after the war, and the material was expertly edited to form a general narrative of American participation in the war 1917-1918. Its correct title appears to be Flashes of Action, and the National Archives and Records Administration's ARC catalogue identifies it as c.1921 (many of these films of this site are duplicated in NARA, and some of the descriptions come from NARA's records). It is filled with vivid scenes of the kind we expect to see of the war, leavened with plenty of human detail.
War As It Really Is
This 1916 production is a single person's effort - the redoubtable Donald C. Thompson, an independent and resourceful American cameraman who filmed British, French, Belgian, Russian and German troops over 1914-1916, speaking volumes for his diplomatic abilities. He was with the French army at Verdun, where he was wounded, and from which conflict much of this film derives. The quality of the footage is evident throughout, while some of it is startling - apparently close shots of trench warfare (one should always be suspicious of footage where the cameraman would have been in peril e.g. being positioned above the trenches), the shooting of a spy (before and after), and shots of corpses and skeletons.
German Film of the WWI Sea Commerce Raider "Moewe"
This, as it says, is a German-produced film, made in 1917, which was captured by the Allies and subsequently released as The Notorious Cruise of the Raider 'Moewe'. It follows the German raider ship Moewe as it captures Allied shipping, several examples of which are shown sinking. Its breezy tone comes over as all the more startling having the matter-of-fact titles translated into English.
British WWI Film on the Mideast and other Naval Operations
This is British official film taken in Palestine and Mesopotamia 1917-1918. There is some very impressive footage here, including a gunboat firing on the Tigris and striking aerial photography of a British convoy at sea. It ends with famous, iconic footage of General Allenby entering Jerusalem in December 1917, with fleeting glimpses of Lawrence of Arabia (in military uniform), if you know where to look.
And there's much more: demonstrations of gas warfare, the operation of observation balloons, the construction of dummy soldiers as camouflage, radio operations, black troops, and the peace treaty negotations at Versailles in 1919. As indicated, one should always take care assessing the authenticity of war footage from this era - the cameramen were frequently brave, but they were severely limited by both equipment and army officialdom, and of course had to preserve their own lives. Overly dramatic footage (always consider where the cameraman was positioned when the film was taken and then ask why he wasn't killed) may show genuine action but may equally have been staged. That said, there seems relatively little fakery here, just much startling footage intercut with skilfully-shot scenes of the mundanities of warfare which somehow bring it home all the more to us today.
All of the titles are available in Flash, and look OK blown up to full screen. One notable last point to make - all of the contemporary films of the war are shown silent. Go explore. |
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| Tuesday, Apr 15, 2008 |
| Retired Army Colonel Brings Real World Experience to RealMilitaryFlix.com |
| By PR NEWSWIRE |
| Tuesday, Apr 15, 2008 06:17 |
| Noted Novelist and Historian Hosts Military Video Website
LOS ANGELES -- April 16, 2008 -- The internet's largest military history video website, RealMilitaryFlix.com, welcomed retired US Army Colonel John Antal this week. The 30 year veteran will lend his expertise to guide visitors through the site. RealMilitaryFlix.com spotlights historical movies made by military organizations for documentation, training and even propaganda purposes. It also features new military videos from Iraq and Afghanistan. Other collections such as the WWII secret agent training films were once classified as Top-Secret.
Veteran television producer John Corry founded the site. He first met Antal in 1993 when he interviewed him for the A&E and History Channel series Weapons at War hosted by George C. Scott. "John was one of the most knowledgeable experts I had met," Corry said. "In one day's taping he delivered so many memorable sound bites that we included him in six episodes."
At the time Antal was on active duty with the US Army as a cavalry tank officer and an Airborne Ranger. Before long he was doing more interviews. Thanks to reruns he was appearing on television on a regular basis. "I have a passion for military history," Antal said, "and it was professionally rewarding to describe some of the most dramatic battles of all time."
A graduate of West Point and the US Army War College, Antal is a dedicated student of the "Art of War." He has authored nine books and was the Founding Editor of Armchair General Magazine. He recently helped develop the best-selling Brothers in Arms video game series and a History Channel special based on the game.
In the meantime, John Corry amassed a library of historical military videos. "As we put RealMilitaryFlix.com together I reconnected with Colonel Antal to get his input and we've been collaborating ever since. Our subjects are vast and the library spans more than a century of military history, so it is reassuring to know John Antal is assisting us to present and interpret these military films."
RealMilitaryFlix.com has also joined forces with the internet's leading military resource and information portal, MilitaryConnection.com, to pass the word to military veterans and military history aficionados. |
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| Wednesday, Mar 26, 2008 |
| Rare Military Film Collection Debuts at RealMilitaryFlix.com |
| By MA |
| Wednesday, Mar 26, 2008 07:28 |
| Site Features Once Top-Secret Movies and Training Films from all Eras
LOS ANGELES -- March 27, 2008 - The largest on-line military film and video website was opened to the public today. RealMilitaryFlix.com spotlights hundreds of historical movies made by military organizations for documentation, training and propaganda purposes. The site also features new military videos from Iraq and Afghanistan. Other collections such as the WWII secret agent training films were once classified as Top-Secret.
US Air Force combat camera veteran John Corry spent the past year putting his collection on-line. He started his archive while producing a television series for A&E in 1991. "The Air Force used to care for all US military film masters, but that responsibility shifted to the US archives in the mid-1990's. "During the transfer, many films were deemed unworthy of continued preservation and were simply thrown out. Others wound up on crates in government warehouses," Corry said, "We got there just in time."
Most all military productions eventually become obsolete - deemed to be of little use as technologies evolve and as policies change. The general public rarely, if ever, saw these military films in their entirety. "What makes these films so special is that they are like opening time capsules," Corry said. "For example, the US Government took a hard line while training soldiers to occupy Germany after WWII. The men were taught to not make any German friends and they were warned about the 'aggressive tendencies' of the German people," he added. "Today the film seems un-politically correct, but it illuminates how people felt at the time."
The military videos date back to World War One and the average length is about twelve minutes. RealMilitaryFlix.com currently has 650 films on-line and approximately 1,200 more will be released throughout the year. Military films from the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan and Italy are also featured. "I'd like to see history buffs from all over the world discuss military topics in our forum based on a shared viewing experience. We expect to have extraordinary discussions," Corry said.
Author and Historian Colonel John Antal, US Army (Ret.) recently signed on as the site's military advisor. RealMilitaryFlix.com has also joined forces with the internet's leading military resource and information portal, MilitaryConnection.com, to pass the word to military veterans and military history aficionados.
www.RealMilitaryFlix.com |
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