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Adam_S · 04-04-2008, 11:05 AM

The Longest Day - 8 of 10
Stars list - Robert Mitchum

Robert Mitchum plays one general in an ensemble of generals in the Longest Day, in particular, he'll be landing at Omaha Beach, not a good place to be on D Day as it turned out.

the film is a sweeping and seemingly methodical overview of the French resistence, Allied invasion, and German occupation on June 6th 1944. Starting a few hours before midnight the night before the film covers 24 hours leading into the invasion. up until the actual landing on the beach the film was absolutely outstanding, then you get the impressions the allied forces stormed the beach and took it with about five percent casualties. Men are being gunned down everywhere, but it lacks the impact of recent WWII films, most especially Saving Private Ryan. Some of the aerial shots, on the other hand, are amongst the most breathtaking I've ever seen, some truly incredible work there.

The ensemble cast is very good, lots of great actors, Richard Burton is especially memorable in only two scenes he stands out more vividly in my mind than any other actor. John Wayne is omnipresent throughout the movie, and his barking distinct tone and commanding size and presence make him dominate the rest of the cast. Henry Fonda takes the opposite route, underplaying Theodore Roosevelt jr so that he's almost not a presence in the film. Various other performances from Sal Mineo and others are pretty damned good.

The scale of the film is impressive, and for having three directors it is one hell of a lot more cohesive and coherent than How the West Was Won. Production Design is top notch and the effects are phenomenally effective.

04-04-2008, 11:05 AM	#331 of 460
Adam_S *Adam_S* Member Location: Marina del Rey, CA Join Date: Feb 2001 Local Time: 12:34 AM Local Date: 08-30-2008 Posts: 5,008	Re: AFI 100 Years Series Discussion & Challenges, vol. 2 The Longest Day - 8 of 10 Stars list - Robert Mitchum Robert Mitchum plays one general in an ensemble of generals in the Longest Day, in particular, he'll be landing at Omaha Beach, not a good place to be on D Day as it turned out. the film is a sweeping and seemingly methodical overview of the French resistence, Allied invasion, and German occupation on June 6th 1944. Starting a few hours before midnight the night before the film covers 24 hours leading into the invasion. up until the actual landing on the beach the film was absolutely outstanding, then you get the impressions the allied forces stormed the beach and took it with about five percent casualties. Men are being gunned down everywhere, but it lacks the impact of recent WWII films, most especially Saving Private Ryan. Some of the aerial shots, on the other hand, are amongst the most breathtaking I've ever seen, some truly incredible work there. The ensemble cast is very good, lots of great actors, Richard Burton is especially memorable in only two scenes he stands out more vividly in my mind than any other actor. John Wayne is omnipresent throughout the movie, and his barking distinct tone and commanding size and presence make him dominate the rest of the cast. Henry Fonda takes the opposite route, underplaying Theodore Roosevelt jr so that he's almost not a presence in the film. Various other performances from Sal Mineo and others are pretty damned good. The scale of the film is impressive, and for having three directors it is one hell of a lot more cohesive and coherent than How the West Was Won. Production Design is top notch and the effects are phenomenally effective. top 20 films 2008 film list My DVDs; S&S List 62...212 AFI lists: - DONE! Last edited by Adam_S : 04-04-2008 at 07:52 PM.