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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

Spielberg's '1917'


Mark Hone

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There was a brief mention in the press this week that Stephen Spielberg is about to start filming his new movie '1917' somewhere near Stonehenge. One suspects that it may concern US entry into the Great War (although the Americans only arrived in force in 1918). He's missed the Centenary hoop-la and his previous Great War foray 'War Horse' wasn't a big hit as I recall (certainly not on this Forum). Does anyone know further details? 

Edited by Mark Hone
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Chaps. No-one knows anything about the film yet. Might be good, might not, and although Spielberg might be accused of sentimentality, 'Saving Private Ryan' was a tour-de-force of battle depiction. We'll find out if '1917' is good in due course. 

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A pertinent point. They entered the war that year, but that might not be enough to occupy a whole film. 

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Apropos of nothing, the United States was one nation that barely featured on Salisbury Plain during the war, and when they were there it was almost entirely at airfields.

 

Gareth - thanks for the documents - interesting, especially seeing the exact location.

 

Moonraker

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With an English director, and apparently two young English leads, I doubt that the film is going to have anything to do with the American entry into the war. Think aeroplanes and "Bloody April".

A clue? https://news.artnet.com/art-world/spielberg-stonehenge-1458187  

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Perhaps another film where battle hardened pilots of Lafayette Escadrille meet fresh faced youths from the US? I expect to see Billy Mitchell in it too.

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Any hints about the inevitable love interest? Perhaps a winsome village maiden? A gay subtext or an overtly gay romance?

 

Was there as much concern when the MoD built

 

Copehill Down village

 

very close by?

 

Comments appended to the Daily Mail include some that make me grimace, including one that suggests the Allies were fighting Nazis during the Great War.

 

Moonraker

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I hope he doesn't share a drink with Roy Brown when they are both shot down in No Man's Land, as in the beyond-parody German film 'Red Baron'. 

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A WW1 remake of Pearl Harbour, sorry Harbor, where two young pilots fight off the massed enemy hordes...

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On ‎09‎/‎02‎/‎2019 at 21:06, paulgranger said:

Chaps. No-one knows anything about the film yet. Might be good, might not, and although Spielberg might be accused of sentimentality, 'Saving Private Ryan' was a tour-de-force of battle depiction. We'll find out if '1917' is good in due course. 

 

As was Bridge of Spies... and think what you want, but I liked "War Horse"... I just don't see it as a history-movie and don't watch it as a historian... watched it as a girl and horse-fan and cried like a baby at the happy end!

 

But this is going to be interesting... the filming and the discussions on the forum!

 

M.

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I have great hopes for it. The aerial sequences ought to be better than we have ever been treated to before including, as Mark says, the relatively recent but awful Red Baron from 2008. I will also concede that CGI will struggle to beat the real thing, and the heyday for that is probably in the past... However, as above, the story may prove to be predictably awful, let us hope not.

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1 hour ago, Open Bolt said:

I have great hopes for it. The aerial sequences ought to be better than we have ever been treated to before including, as Mark says, the relatively recent but awful Red Baron from 2008. I will also concede that CGI will struggle to beat the real thing, and the heyday for that is probably in the past...

 

On the other hand there's a lot of CGI out there executed without benefit of even elementary research. I know it's the "wrong" war but Enemy At The Gates treated us to Stukas with three bombs under each wing (wrong), plus said bombs had finely-streamlined form such as you might see on a modern fast jet strangely absent in 1942. Then there was TV mini-series which showed Flying Fortresses over Germany (so 1943 or later) under attack by Messerschmitt 109s with tailplane struts and yellow noses (so Summer 1940). And as we know from films and TV, every German aircraft of the Great War was a Fokker triplane painted red overall …

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I wonder why Mr Spielberg was drawn to the RFC of 1917 ? You would think his backers would have propelled him towards the Lafayette Squadron rather than doomed British public school boys.

Edited by Hyacinth1326
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13 minutes ago, Hyacinth1326 said:

I wonder what form the diversity aspect will take ?

Eugene Bullard?

 

From a quick Google, I can't find any references to WWI  Native American pilots, though there might have been some aboriginal ground crew.  Even if there weren't, that wouldn't stop many film-makers including one or two.

 

Moonraker

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24 minutes ago, Hyacinth1326 said:

I wonder why Mr Spielberg was drawn to the RFC of 1917 ? You would think his backers would have propelled him towards the Lafayette Squadron rather than doomed British public school boys.

I presume the usual upper class bully, against the lower class, rising through the ranks, possibly gay earnest chap, who has bit of flunk and is branded the squadron coward.  He is then redeemed by a transferred in hot shot (big star) American, who later shoots down the Red Barron, who has just shot down both upper class bully and heroic young lad, moments after he proved himself after all.  Roll credits America has won again over both ineffectual Brits and dastardly Hun.

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2 hours ago, T8HANTS said:

I presume the usual upper class bully, against the lower class, rising through the ranks, possibly gay earnest chap, who has bit of flunk and is branded the squadron coward.  He is then redeemed by a transferred in hot shot (big star) American, who later shoots down the Red Barron, who has just shot down both upper class bully and heroic young lad, moments after he proved himself after all.  Roll credits America has won again over both ineffectual Brits and dastardly Hun.

 

God Dam'It Cut.... Thats It.  There'll be a queuing round the Block for this one. 

 

From another film.. It's enough to make you weep.

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1 hour ago, PhilB said:

Can I be assured that all concerned will have perfect, excruciatingly white teeth?

And immaculately tailored uniforms, not a hair out of place etc.

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