"The Lines of Wellington" Topic

As the tedium of lockdown plumbs new depths and there is a complete absence of anything worth watching on TV or online in the UK, I have returned, yet again, to "The Lines of Wellington" – a 2012 Portuguese production covering the 1810 French Invasion of Portugal. From a field of way less than 10, I think it's by far the best film about the Peninsular War. Fast forward through any scene involving John Malkovich as Wellington (Why? Why? Why?) and it's a really good film. It's made by a Portuguese, in Portugal and it looks great – the uniforms/costumes are excellent and there are some superb vignettes of campaign life. It's available on DVD or Blu-ray and you have to be able to cope with sub-titles, even with the "English" soundtrack. Highly recommended.

In 2010 Wellington was 40/41. The film was made in 2012 when John Malkovich was 59. Why do film makers do that all the time? Also isn't Malkovich's hair too long for Wellington in 1810.

Wargamorium, you've given new ammunition to the Napoleon fans/apologists. If Wellington was 40/41 in 2010, now they'll be able to say that he wasn't even born at the time of Waterloo.

I seem to recall from the "extras" that Malkovich was an admirer of the original director – a celebrated Portuguese film-maker who died during or just before production. He really is dreadful but thankfully appears only briefly.

The age question is one which films usually get a bit wrong. Soldiers tend to be younger than portrayed and it gets worse with officers and generals. The latter tend to be portrayed as in their late forties or fifties whatever the period. And yes there were old generals (Radetsky was still winning battles from horseback at 82!) but war is truely a young man's activity. Napoleon's marshals were in their thirties and early forties when promoted and Wellington's generals were not much different. Even in the peacetime British army battalion commanders are 39-40 and in wartime even brigadiers can be younger than 30.

Well done Aussie Andy – I was wondering who would be the first to spot that.

Of course that should read 1810.

Meanwhile, Melvil Poupaud was 39 at the time of the film. He played Massena, who would have been 11 years older than Wellington in real-life.

Conaughtranger is right about the fact that you don't have a lot of movies about Peninsular war. But this movie was awfull and a terrible flop, an ageing director, actors not really involved, historicaly wrong and full of cliché, French and British ridiculous characters, poor way of depicting battles, not worth to see or just as an oddity, or a good lesson in dramatic Arts school of what not to do.

"….you don't have a lot of movies about Peninsular war."

I have 5 in my collection:

The Pride and the Passion 1957
The Miracle 1959
The Adventures of Gerard 1970
Bruc 2010
The Lines of Wellington 2012

Anyone know of any others?

5 is not "a lot" if you compare to WWII or even ACW or WW1.I should have add, in the non anglo-speaking world and worth of any good movie encyclopedia and easliy found. Bruc is a spanish movie isn't it ? But that seems never to be available easily, what can you tell us about it ?

Bruc is a bit weird but if you're a geek (me) it counts as Peninsular War! It looks superb – the stunning Catalonian landscapes – but the story is rubbish. A sort of French Dirty Half-Dozen try to hunt a Spanish Drummer responsible for the first ever defeat of a French Army! They have all manner of innovative weapons including an 1808 model line thrower come Japanese Knee Mortar. It's a Spanish film financed by umpteen Catalan organisations so you know how it's going to end. One for the serious Napoleonic purist!