"3 Battle Scenes Hollywood Actually Got Right" Topic

"It's easy to spot a bad battle scenes in a war movie, but finding a good one can be tough, so we asked an expert.
When it comes to war movies and combat scenes, there are some things that bring the fourth wall crashing down, at least for military personnel and veterans.

Phrases like "lock and load," and "get some," or unnecessary commands such as "hold the line," are just a few. You can also add improper weapons handling, messed-up uniforms, and when a small unit leader says things like "listen here, private" to the list.

As a veteran it's pretty easy to spot a bad military movie, but picking out a good one is a bit trickier, and this is especially true for combat scenes in war movies…"
See here
link

Amicalement
Armand

The article cited by Armand gigs films for getting weapons wrong ("For Dever, getting the right weapons and equipment is just the start."), but then offers Zulu as a film that got things right.

Ok, you have to look at the scenes very carefully, even frame by frame, but some of the British soldiers are using bolt action rifles-you can see some soldiers working the bolt with their right hands, in some frames you can see the bolt itself, and you can also see trigger guards without the Martini Henry long or short lever. As I understand it, the first bolt action rifle used by the British Army was the Lee Metford, adopted in 1888-so none at Rorkes Drift.

I'd guess that in the 1960s they simply couldn't get Martinis in the numbers they needed.

When Hollywood gets ONE right I will take note.

Phrases like "lock and load," and "get some," or unnecessary commands such as "hold the line," are just a few.

My biggest peeve also includes continuous shouts "fire in the hole" everytime someone detonates any sort of explosive.

Mind you seeing a film representing D-Day or the period afterwards up until the end of the war that has, ahem, a more 'diverse' and numerically accurate representation of the Allied nationalities involved would be nice.

There were 5 beaches for the D-Day landings, after all: I know that – as gamers and students of history – we all understand this but Hollywood usually omits (or marginalses and is dismissive of) at least 66% of that courage and effort.

I'm sure some may disagree with my analysis so I will put on my tin hat and await feedback.

Fire in the hole!

John T

PS my nomination for good history is the mini-series Rome: not perfect but – from riding without stirrups to the legion's equipment – I was terribly impressed.

"I'd guess that in the 1960s they simply couldn't get Martinis in the numbers they needed"

IIRC it was more the ammunition that was the problem rather than the rifle. They didnt have enough blanks, so the bolt action rifles were used in the crowd scenes, and the Martini-Henrys just for the close up shots, as it were.

"I'd guess that in the 1960s they simply couldn't get Martinis in the numbers they needed"

IIRC it was more the ammunition that was the problem rather than the rifle. They didnt have enough blanks, so the bolt action rifles were used in the crowd scenes, and the Martini-Henrys just for the close up shots, as it were.

"Hollywood usually omits (or marginalses and is dismissive of) at least 66% of that courage and effort. "

More like 80%, apart from the Longest Day I cant recall a film series which mentions any beach other than Omaha…

The movie Dr. Strangelove, although a comedy, shows a good representation of a Air Force B-52 crew at work. Usually Hollywood screws up anything to do with what happens in an aircraft cockpit. What they got right in this movie was how the aircrew ran checklists and communicated with each other. They got many of the small nuances correct too; like when the aircraft commander glances over at the copilot to make sure he is awake and then shuts his eyes to take a little nap.

What really drives me crazy in most Hollywood movies is when they show an aircraft on fire or some other problem and the pilot starts screaming on the radio that he is on fire. Every pilot knows that some guy listening to the radio on the ground is not going to be able to help you out.
Best aviation movie by far, for realism in the cockpit.

I went to see Platoon with a guy who did two tours in Viet Nam. His reaction? "Pretty good, but they were using Marine Corps radio protocols."

As Hollywood screw ups go, not too bad.

I have to say, the ground combat in Strangelove, when the airborne stormed the airbase, was really pretty good too. But then Stanley did good battle scenes (Paths of Glory, Spartacus, Barry Lyndon).

I thought the "Battle Of Britain" seemed believable.

I believe that Strangelove footage was from newsreels. I remember recognizing it from fairly recent newscasts.

> I have to say, the ground combat in Strangelove, when the airborne stormed the airbase,

For a good while I was having trouble figuring out if it was archive footage they were using for that.

The odd angry shot. Despite its late 70s anti war sentiment and the occasional portrayal of the SASR as being militarily naive and inexperienced. The combat scenes and general jungle warfare tactics are outstanding.

Strangelove ground combat was shot by Kubrick using a hand-held camera from the point of view of someone taking cover. I would hope there was no actual newsreel footage of troops storming a SAC base.

Been a while since I've seen it,I'll take your word on that sequence. But I'm pretty sure some of the other footage is newsreel. I'll look at it again when I get a chance.

A veteran friend was very impressed with "A Bridge Too Far." His exact comment was, "They had everything but the smell."