Author Topic: Five Came Back (Netflix)  (Read 1894 times)

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Offline hefdaddy42

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Five Came Back (Netflix)
« on: May 01, 2017, 10:39:11 AM »
Anyone else catch this?  It's a 3-part documentary on the experiences of 5 legendary directors (John Ford, William Wyler, John Huston, Frank Capra, and George Stevens) as they left their studios to do work for the military during World War II.

The narration of footage is mostly done by Meryl Streep, but when dealing with the individual directors, modern directors do the bulk of the talking.  Stephen Spielberg covers Wyler, Francis Ford Coppola covers John Huston, Guillermo del Toro covers Frank Capra, Paul Greengrass handles John Ford, and Lawrence Kasdan covers George Stevens.

The footage is incredible, and it is fascinating to hear (and see) what these extraordinary people experienced and did for their country, including footage of later interviews with them, and also to see the impact of these men on the lives of the modern directors who participated, and the love that they obviously hold for them.

Just a singularly interesting piece, and I highly recommend it.  Altogether, I guess it's a little over 3 hours.

Also, the original films that these guys made during the War are also currently streaming on Netflix, so you can see the primary sources, as well.
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Offline Podaar

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #1 on: May 01, 2017, 10:55:34 AM »
I'll check it out.
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Offline DragonAttack

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2017, 01:27:55 PM »
My wife and I will be starting this some time in the next couple of weeks, thanks to your post.
...going along with Dragon Attack's Queen thread has been like taking a free class in Queen knowledge. Where else are you gonna find info like that?!

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2017, 01:39:20 PM »
My wife and I will be starting this some time in the next couple of weeks, thanks to your post.
:tup
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline Shooters1221

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2017, 04:36:44 AM »
I never heard of this, thanks. I'm always fascinated by anything dealing with WWII.

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2017, 07:47:36 AM »
I never heard of this, thanks. I'm always fascinated by anything dealing with WWII.
Same here, that's why I was so excite to see it.

But it is very recent, it's not like it's a thing you've been missing out on for a long time.
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline Shooters1221

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #6 on: May 08, 2017, 05:20:28 AM »
Just finished this. It was really interesting and brave how they sacrificed an easy life to take those chances to get some of the best footage of the war. Especially the footage from Memphis Belle, and of course, D-Day. The war department during this time disappointed me in certain cases where the footage was restricted or not shown at all. Yes, I understand that flooding the screens with slain soldiers was unthinkable at that time, but there was so much other footage that could have been used in a positive manor. I think Goebbels was such a master at propaganda and tricking, so to speak, the German people to believe things that were just not accurate. The US was way behind on that and it actually took a movie director to grab the German propaganda footage and use it for our purpose. I was also moved by the "PTSD" hospital footage after the war. It's just sad.

Offline DragonAttack

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #7 on: July 13, 2017, 08:25:21 PM »
We finally watched it this week, one episode per night.  I'll just say it was A++.  A MUST see!  A guide for those who make documentaries.  This is how it's done.  Perhaps the best tip I've had from DTF.
« Last Edit: July 14, 2017, 06:45:32 PM by DragonAttack »
...going along with Dragon Attack's Queen thread has been like taking a free class in Queen knowledge. Where else are you gonna find info like that?!

Offline DragonAttack

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #8 on: July 28, 2017, 04:18:46 PM »
Just spent the past two nights watching 'The Best Years Of Our Lives', directed by William Wyler (one of the 'Five').  Released in 1946, all it did was win seven Academy Awards.  One ignores a thing or three, and then you get totally moved by what soldiers faced upon returning from WWII, and the strong women mostly portrayed throughout.
...going along with Dragon Attack's Queen thread has been like taking a free class in Queen knowledge. Where else are you gonna find info like that?!

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: Five Came Back (Netflix)
« Reply #9 on: July 30, 2017, 06:39:24 AM »
Just spent the past two nights watching 'The Best Years Of Our Lives', directed by William Wyler (one of the 'Five').  Released in 1946, all it did was win seven Academy Awards.  One ignores a thing or three, and then you get totally moved by what soldiers faced upon returning from WWII, and the strong women mostly portrayed throughout.
Sweet!  I still need to do that.
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.