World War I Expert Rates 6 WWI Battles in Movies | How Real Is It? | Insider

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World War I historian Alexander Watson rates six First World War battle scenes from movies and TV shows for realism.
He discusses the accuracy of trench warfare in "All Quiet on the Western Front" (2022), featuring Daniel Brühl, and "Wonder Woman" (2017), starring Gal Gadot. He also comments on aerial combat and gas masks in "The Red Baron" (2008) and "The Lost City of Z" (2016), starring Charlie Hunnam. Watson analyzes the guns, artillery, tanks, grenades, and other weapons used in "Sajjan Singh Rangroot" (2018) and "Gallipoli: End of the Road" (2013).
Watson is a professor of history at Goldsmiths, University of London, and an expert on World War I. He has written three books on it: "Enduring The Great War," which explores how British and German soldiers coped on the Western Front; "Ring of Steel," about the war from the German and Austria-Hungarian perspective; and "The Fortress," about the siege of Przemyśl on the Eastern Front.
You can find Alexander Watson's books here:
Ring of Steel: Germany and Austria-Hungary at War, 1914-1918: www.penguin.co.uk/books/13325...
The Fortress: The Siege of Przemysl and the Making of Europe's Bloodlands: www.basicbooks.com/titles/ale...
Enduring the Great War: Combat, Morale and Collapse in the German and British Armies, 1914-1918: www.cambridge.org/us/academic...
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World War I Expert Rates 6 WWI Battles in Movies | How Real Is It? | Insider

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ThatRedDude 5 aylar önce

I always like when war experts breakdown movies because they confirm my belief that there is no reason to falsely portray war in movies. The reality of war is already dramatic, sensational and insane so why not portray it as historical accurate as possible?

Curiosity 5 aylar önce

Because war is boring

deathbefore dishonor 5 aylar önce

I’ll say what I think Mel Gibson said or whoever directed we were soldiers “this is a movie not a documentary”

high2death 5 aylar önce

Historically accurate takes skill and knowledge about the subject matter that the film maker might not have. It's much harder to make it accurate than just winging it.

Philly_ Lando_18 5 aylar önce

A really big thing which causes in accuracies is the elaborateness of real life tactics and strategy that to portray in film has so many moving parts it would be very hard to recreate in an understanding manner for an average film watcher. As someone in the military I don’t think a film could accurately portray an assault on a fixed position without confusing the audience because soldiers like us are confused in reality. It’s hectic and hard to see what’s going on. When it comes to certain aspects like details that just comes down to a price and timing thing

Hunter 5 aylar önce

All Quiet On The Western Front was freaking intense. One of the most intense war movies I’ve ever seen.

mark r 5 aylar önce

are you talking about the 1930 one or the remake?

Krieg enjoyer 5 aylar önce

@mark r1930 one is better.Made all from ww1 vets. The new one is a real depiction of what some battles could go. Its just an unbiased depiction of death and suffering

Katelyn Onthank 4 aylar önce

Nothing can compare to the 1930’s, the original, All Quiet on the Western Front. That movie was bone chilling!! Phenomenal movie in my opinion

Erika 4 aylar önce

The Netflix remake fell so short compared to the 1930 version and, honestly, even the 1979 version. So much focus on action, so little focus on the characters and their journeys, so much essential stuff cut out to make room for more gore and weird sideplots. It was so disappointing.

David Benjamin 4 aylar önce

Was rubbish IMO - and acting was clearly acting. Shouldn't be able to eat popcorn in a war movie. Watch Come and See and grow up.

Anthony Medina 3 aylar önce

He is absolutely right about needing to properly portray any war shown in a movie with the most amount of historical accuracy as possible. If you are trying to show what soldiers went through it’s only right you make everything accurate. Still love All Quiet on the Western Front

PearTree 3 aylar önce

An artist job isn’t to portray things accurately. It’s to tell a story. If you want an accurate portrayal l watch a documentary.

Ephin 3 aylar önce

@PearTreeit is if you’re basing your art on real people’s real experienced

TJ G 3 aylar önce

It is impossible to show what soldiers went through because no matter what they are observers that are not in danger

Ephin 3 aylar önce

@TJ G it’s also impossible to stop all crime. Does that mean we should stop enforcing laws? No, you get as close as you possibly can.

Ski Mask Flats 3 aylar önce

i don’t know, i think about it like this - he criticizes All Quiet because the best chance of survival would’ve been to shoot a flair gun - but we literally know not all battles occurred exactly the same, nor their circumstances, and that’s a big reason some are won/loss, so one side having flaws is inherently apart of war and yet he’s criticizing it as being a flaw in the movie because they’re not being as “optimum as possible” based on information we only have looking back. If they’re portraying a specific war and not taking any creative liberties - sure, but the novel is fiction and took creative liberties, so did the movie.

Hawkeye 03 4 aylar önce

One interesting thing in the original 1930 All Quiet On The Western Front is that most of the extras were Germans who had fought in WW1. The director(who was also a WW1 veteran) asked them how they would set up barbed wire for the scene where the characters do it in order to get it right. Also, the famous scene with the French soldier’s hands on the barbed wire was something that one of the German extras had witnessed.

verdun16 3 aylar önce

Finally, somebody who acknowledges the old AQOTWF movies. That 1930 one was nightmare fuel, not really much to say about the 1979 one however.

TheMetalus1 2 aylar önce

@verdun16You mean 1979.

verdun16 2 aylar önce

@TheMetalus1 yeah my bad

Pauntbull Aylar önce

@hawkeye0378 average wendigoon viewer.

caissa222 Aylar önce

That battle scene in the 1930 version was the most intense I have ever seen, though it didnt give me nightmares like the bridge.

Petite 2 aylar önce

I like how he effortlessly reminds us that people in history, and in this case WW1, weren't dumb like modern society likes to portray them. In fact, they quite ingeniously worked around problems, using the means that were available to them at the time.

bombomos 4 aylar önce

This guy seems like a fun dude. Gets very into the videos and explains what's great and what's not with a lot of excitement. I would love to have him do more videos

phiwvey 4 aylar önce

im curious of what his thoughts would be on games like Battlefield 1 on how ww1 was portrayed

PearTree 3 aylar önce

@phiwveyprobably hate it.

George Baker 2 aylar önce

2 Cor 4:4, repent- Heil GOD

MASRR Aylar önce

@phiwveyBattlefield 1 is egregious with it's inaccuracies, terrible game

deadlaser3 5 aylar önce

This one is one of my favourites to date. He really got into it and gave us a proper examination of the movie specifically on its historical accuracy. Well done!

Ice Swallow 5 aylar önce

“the guns in 1915 were actually light brown not dark brown” 1/10

Brian Haugen 5 aylar önce

I like how you can tell he gets excited when they do things right, and is groaning when they do something silly

Repent and believe in Jesus Christ 5 aylar önce

Repent to Jesus Christ “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” ‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬ H

Misanthropic Servitor of Mars 4 aylar önce

The medieval war expert is also a favorite. These guys have the same vibe. Love it.

constance mohrbacher 4 aylar önce

@Repent and believe in Jesus Christ I am not a religious person. That being said, I understand that there are no atheists in a war. And I understand why

Jazmine Evans 2 aylar önce

I hope they continue this series for future films like 'Oppenheimer' its always so interesting to hear an educated opinion. The fact an individual can study something so extensively and gain so much knowledge about something, mainly because they can or want to, is just amazing to me!

adude123 2 aylar önce

necromanced Oppenheimer rates the accuracy of film "Oppenheimer"

7mgtesup1 4 aylar önce

It always amazes me that they are willing to spend millions on films but not hire a guy like this to point them in the right direction for kit and tactics of the time period.

完岡兼崇チャンネル 3 aylar önce

It is more likely that they knew about the errors but decided to keep it more dramatical. As long as they don't advertise as "documentation piece" or "historically accurate", there is not much of a big problem. You really think they did not know that a tank cannot drive into a trench? Of course they knew, but a human being squished by it is incredibly bone chilling, so they went with that.

Ultimate Stuff 3 aylar önce

Most of them do, they just prefer sacrificing realism over a better looking film, aqotwf isn’t that accurate but it’s an amazing movie

完岡兼崇チャンネル 3 aylar önce

@Ultimate Stuff i wrote the exact same thing, your comment is pointless

soupy 3 aylar önce

@完岡兼崇チャンネル You realize they might've replied without even reading your comment first, right? Doesn't revolve around you - saying it's pointless isn't true

完岡兼崇チャンネル 3 aylar önce

@soupy he just repeated pints i did

ChooseyDrop96 2 aylar önce

I just like how quickly and accurately he is able to break down a scene so it feels more like a breakdown than just him watching movie scenes and rating authenticity

Anthony Rizzo Aylar önce

I like how at the end he acknowledges that the significance of a film is not always in it's technical accuracy, even if it's an historical drama. It's a film after all, it's meant to engage and immerse us in a visceral, emotional experience first and foremost.

Charles Finnigan 5 aylar önce

The 1930 original of All Quiet on the Western Front does a great job of depicting a World War I trench battle. Probably some of the best work ever done in a movie.

Tarumarugan 5 aylar önce

The tank scene from All Quiet was actually scary. The build up and the reveal was awesome.

Telly Savalas1974 5 aylar önce

The tank battle from "Company of Heroes" (2013 ) was the bomb!

Tarumarugan 5 aylar önce

@Telly Savalas1974 for a minute I thought you were talking about the video game lolz. But thanks, I’m gonna watch it

Telly Savalas1974 5 aylar önce

Fury tank scene is better!

R 5 aylar önce

@Telly Savalas1974 fury sucks

YouReallyDontKnow 5 aylar önce

@R a lot of people disagree with you. It’s called opinions, bud.

omnivorous65 4 aylar önce

He impressed me the most at 2:02. Any ordinary viewer would not even given any significance to the church tower, just a random feature in the background... But he has a trained eye that hones in on details that others would miss.

Matthew Hodson 2 aylar önce

The tank scene in All Quiet was the first time I felt like I was seeing something new in war films since Saving Private Ryan. Upon first viewing, you could really feel the sheer terror of the German soldiers.

Fancy McDancy 5 aylar önce

I've read Watson's "The Fortress: The Siege of Przemysl" and listened to an hour plus lecture on the same subject by him via the Western Front Association's on-line lecture series. Very impressive (knowledgeable and engaging) historian. His books are worth a read.

Logan Hallard 2 aylar önce

All quiet gets a lot of the visual and visceral beats right, which I believe is what they were going for, and so I still think it's an excellent war film. But yes, the actual battles depicted are generally anachronistic (especially the tank battle). The film is primarily set on a solidly static battle line, which was basically non-existent by late 1918. Early tanks were visually scary, and could transport large weapons fairly well, but were extremely slow (walking speed slow), got stuck in mud and debris very easily, were extremely vulnerable to several forms of attack, and as a result, generally couldn't (as a primary tool anyways) break defensive lines. I believe the flamethrowers were used in the film to add, again, to the visual horror, which is reasonable. Though the way they're used doesn't make a lot of sense. They're deployment would have been a lot more surgical. Cutting off your own route for advancing (assuming that's the goal) is not generally a good idea. I believe the goal was to depict tanks and flamethrowers (which as sheer tools of war, are not anachronistic for a ww1 film) in a way that evokes shock and horror in the audience, like they might have for soldiers actually fighting 100 hundred years ago. However, to show these weapons more accurately, they may have come off as only mild inconveniences to a modern audience, and thus wouldn't have had the proper dramatic effect.

ShawsOwn 5 aylar önce

This expert was great. I feel like he really understood what he was there for. His explanations were very real but very entertaining. More of him please.

Hang Yuri Yang 3 aylar önce

He has been here before.. twice or something famously known as the trench guy

George Baker 2 aylar önce

2 Cor 4:4, repent- Heil GOD

COELACANTH 5 aylar önce

This guy is awesome. He's like a time traveler. A young man from the First World War who time traveled here to the 21st century to educate us on the First World War.

C Moran 4 aylar önce

I love these videos. A quiet, confident expert speaking about something he knows inside out, it's so calming (even if the subject is horrible haha)

Aidan Walker 4 aylar önce

I would love to hear his opinion on Wings. It was remarkable for its time, of course, and had the benefit of multiple cast and crew who had in fact served in WWI, but I would be curious to see how it has held up in general.

SuperCyborgSama69 2 aylar önce

This was an amazing video and no criticism is meant at all, obviously portraying the horrors of direct combat is important. But it would have been interesting to see him analyze some scenes of nurses, civilians, and other people affected besides the troops on the front. Again, fantastic video, this guy is clearly not only knowledgeable but passionate which is the most important thing.

RaccoonEyes99 5 aylar önce

Loved this guy. Sooo informative. As a history buff myself I love to learn more about the small details

Cat Hat 5 aylar önce

Lets review realistic War movies- first off the bat Wonder Woman???

SplendidBlu 5 aylar önce

@Cat Hat "realistic" no, they just said "WW1 Battles." He's ranking the realism of them but these aren't all realistic movies are you are claiming they are saying

Cat Hat 5 aylar önce

@SplendidBlu I was hoping he might review a scene in '1917'.

D 5 aylar önce

bit creepy though 😒

SplendidBlu 5 aylar önce

@Cat Hat Ok 👍

Valium762 2 aylar önce

His last comment about the scene in All Quiet on the Western Front not representing 1918 was my biggest issue with the movie as well. Especially the beginning where you see our characters with a very naive, 1914 outlook on war being a grand noble adventure before enlisting. No. In 1918 Germany was starving to death and they were melting down church bells to make bullets. No one would have had that same mentality that far into the war. The front was a death sentence and all of society knew it.

The Teletrap 2 aylar önce

I would love for an analysis of the initial assault in the new AQTWF. I feel there’s a lot to be examined in that as well, between the use of grenades and close quarters trench fighting.

Lewis Taylor 2 aylar önce

I would have loved to hear his opinion on scenes from The Lost Battalion. It didn't have a big budget and comes from before CGI was used like it is now, so it has its limitations. But even today I am still impressed by scenes in it like the push over no mans land. On a personal note, it was catching it on tv (it is a made for tv movie) decades ago now, that really jumped my interest in WW1 into high gear. On a more general note, even though he didn't outright say it, you can see the disappointment in how poorly WW1 is portrayed. I think it might be hard to portray it accurately in a movie that is meant for a general audience as well. The warfare was so modern yet so backwards (to our eyes) that in order to make it "realistic" (read: believable to a general audience), you either need to make it feel like the 19th century or make it feel like WW2. Or just embrace the BS and run with it. None of which are good options imo. I also would have liked to see him talk about Deathwatch. A low budget British horror movie set in the trenches of the western front. It is first and foremost a horror movie in a war setting, not a war movie with horror elements. So realism isn't the biggest and most important thing for it. But you do see things like early Mills bombs and crystal radio sets in use. So there was a legitimate attempt at some degree of accuracy. It would be nice to see such an expert discuss those elements of that kind of film. (I really liked it too)

Christos Kapsalis 4 aylar önce

I really enjoyed Alexander Watson's explanation and overall approach, calm, measured, against the cinematic bombast and you come away with some solid, useful info about WWI tactics. Hope we get the chance to watch him again in the future.

Mayeoli22 5 aylar önce

He just got SO into it, I love it. He was great, I would love to see more of him.

Annie Cober 5 aylar önce

Good to see WWI finally getting some attention - and nobody better to do so than Alexander Watson! Hope to see him again on this channel soon, he's fantastic. My favourite part is about the Red Baron - he painted his aircraft "because he could". As a 19th century historian, I often see people overinterpreting the tiniest details, to the point it gets absolutely ridiculous. But often the answer, just like it is nowadays, is "they did it because they liked it", end of story.

anh duc 5 aylar önce

I do think he liked it, but the best iteration I've read is he did it because, well, he's cocky. He's the best and he knew it. It's like a skin in a game, he wanted people to know who he is.

pal1d1nl1ght 5 aylar önce

@anh duc And honestly eventually once he is infamous, that red plane WOULD absolutely terrify the enemies.

ThejollyFrenchman 4 aylar önce

Exactly. It's like WW2 airmen painting pin up girls, sharks and eagles on the noses of their planes, or writing messages on the bombs. No practical use, but it looks cool, and people like to look cool.

Seth Gilman 4 aylar önce

"The Fortress" is a masterpiece. It brilliantly uses the fighting in Galicia as a microcosm of the great power conflict and the tragedy is was for those caught in between. The perfect companion to "Bloodlands".

Joe Rogers 4 aylar önce

Well I mean if you're called the Red Baron of course you'll end up painting your airplane red... right?

kueller 5 aylar önce

I remember catching Journey's End in the theater and it really was excellent with just life in a trench. My favorite depictions of combat are still the older ones. 1930's All Quiet on the Western Front and 1932's Les Croix du Bois. They didn't have modern tech but they captured the chaos far better without trying to make everything more WWII-ish. A special place also goes to Au Revoir la Haut, which largely takes place _after_ the war ends but I thought was excellent at depicting the aimlessness and anger that was left on a scarred generation. Recommendations I guess if anyone finds this comment.

It's Siyric 4 aylar önce

After seeing what Alexander said about the scene from All Quiet on the Western Front, I'm curious to learn more about what combat was like at the end of WW1.

Germany_Hawks Fan Aylar önce

The Lost Battalion is an underrated WWI movie. It is fairly accurate to what happened and portrays a certain type of WWI warfare accurately (i.e. not trench warfare)

Pier-Luc Garand Dion 2 aylar önce

I can't believe "Joyeux Noël" (2005) was not chosen as a movie to review. From my limited perspective (as in I'm a movie buff but no historian), it was one of the most realistic WW1 movie I have ever seen, so I woulda been very excited to hear this expert's comments on it. Bring him back please! :) Also for "1917" for crying out loud...

Never2Late_MTB 2 aylar önce

Fun facts. During WWI the Brighton Pavilion was turned into a military hospital for Indian troops as it was felt that the architecture would help the wounded by them being in a somewhat familiar surrounding. Also, the British government changed the law to allow open air cremations. The Chattri still stands up on the downs as a memorial with the cremation stones still in place and a plaque bearing the names of those who died of their wounds and were cremated there. Worth a visit if you are ever travelling the South Downs way, though it is a mile or so South from Clayton Hill the SDW. It's easy to find on Google Earth at 50,53, 03 N 0, 08, 49 W

D McBirb 5 aylar önce

It's probably worth noting that a lot of movies seem to act as if WWI battles were all just a bunch of allied soldiers attacking a single German trench and somehow not being able to figure that out in four years, when the reality was a bit more complicated. Both sides typically constructed quite a few lines of trenches, with the expectation that the enemy would be able to take the first line or two in an attack, and instead relied on depth and reinforcements to repel attacks, especially towards the end of the war. This worked because, in an era before the invention of the portable radio, field telephone networks let defending forces in trenches communicate in real time but attacking forces typically had to rely on runners and messengers once they left their trenches. This meant that the attackers could plan their initial attack pretty well, suppressing the enemy's front lines with artillery and taking the trench with grenades, but after that their ability to call for reinforcements or artillery support, or coordinate with other units became almost nonexistent. The defender, meanwhile, could pick up a telephone and talk in real time to neighboring units, ask for artillery fire to hit attacking troops, and direct trainloads of reinforcements to swarm the attacker's position with counterattacks. It shouldn't be surprising that most offensives were quickly kicked back to their starting points within a few days or weeks. As the attacker, you could try to pre-plan every part of an offensive to make sure your attacking infantry had the support they needed, but inevitably something would go wrong and your infantry would find themselves unsupported and running out of supplies halfway through the enemy trenches, facing counterattacks by fresh enemy troops on three sides and the offensive would die out (along with many of its participants). The belligerents on the Western front tried literally every idea imaginable (including some that would have been better left on the drawing board) to solve this basic problem, and made some notable progress as the war went on, but never fully solved it.

Rags Almighty 5 aylar önce

I take it you have read Rommel's boom Infanterie Greift An (Infantry Attacks). In it he describes his experiences in France and Italy in WWI, one thing that amazed me was the sue of flying telephone linesmen to both set up forward bases and to guide follow on troops. At one stage at Caporetto he sent a squad forward to work a way around an enemy elevated defence, the group took a linesman with them who set up a telephone and called back what they saw in real time. Rommel then sent the rest of the company to attack, they followed the laid out telephone line to find where they had to go - genius !

Ben Chesher 5 aylar önce

That’s really interesting! One of those things I’ve often wondered but never sought out to learn, thanks!

Briggie 5 aylar önce

Also of course in those days having no air support doesn’t help.

D McBirb 5 aylar önce

@Briggie aircraft capable of reconnaissance and ground attack existed, but the lack of portable radios made them less useful. It was common to use aerial photographs to plan operations and to use aircraft and balloons to adjust artillery fire, but it was nearly impossible for pilots to talk directly to troops on the ground.

NefariousKoel 5 aylar önce

Good points, although wireless radio did exist during WW1. They just weren't feasibly man-portable and mostly only viable on warships and, later on, some artillery spotter aircraft. It was still early technology at the time, and not terribly good.

The Captain 5 aylar önce

The Flying Circus always makes me think of knights and heraldry. A lot of those men were from old cavalry families and nobility, it makes sense they would want to be dashing, recognizable and unique.

Rob Robertson Aylar önce

If I were a director making a film about WWI, this historian guy would have to be on my set all day...

Scharnhorst_42 5 aylar önce

I love when the experts come in and hardline it. Not just handing out points cause its a movie. Asked to review the accuracy, rate it on its accuracy. Very much enjoyed this lad.

Peter 3 aylar önce

I wish we would have had him talk about journey's end. The one snippet of the soldier in the trench waiting for an attack looked like the footage from trench combat coming out of Ukraine. Because they are taking cover in the trench, they have a limited line of sight and that's exactly what we see in the footage. It's stressful because you know they are under attack, but the guy only sees the enemy until he is close. If he were to pop his head out more to get a better sight of the oncoming attack, he would take a bullet.

NHD 5 aylar önce

These breakdowns are always so cool. Seeing someone passionate about a topic discussing the good/bad from movies is very informative

Mach Fiver 5 aylar önce

I find it odd that you didn't go on to say that those antitank rifles needed to hit the tanks armor at 45° or minimal slope in order to actually penetrate the tank. At a slope angle not only do you get deflection but you increase the amount of metal that the round has to pass through. And 13mm needs the right circumstance to work. The slope of the French tanks even head on would have defeated those rounds. And I believe it on any tank it went up against it could only penetrate the side and rear of the tanks armor. 13mm though when it did penetrate (rounds had an armor piercing core to them) the spalling from the impact would be more lethal or injurious to more of the crew than the round itself was. Which is more often than not the case with any armor piercing rounds of all sizes. It's also why tanks and aircraft add kevlar spall liners to the inside of the plate to absorb such shards from dying about shredding the crew.

ShadowdaleA 5 aylar önce

I'm sometimes skeptical of the "expert" videos but this guy definitely nails it and is deserving of the title.

Casey DuBose 5 aylar önce

And has citations, good stuff.

Barn Owl 5 aylar önce

Well, he's an actual historian with academic publications, conversely to self proclaimed experts

CrazyNikel 5 aylar önce

@Barn Owl Sadly "academic" doesn't mean much these days with all the "social studies" experts. :/

Karl with a K 5 aylar önce

The problem is, as shown by your considering you are qualified to judge him, it that everything he says is obvious to everyone. Only the carelessness of the director gets these movies made.

Kasumi Rina 4 aylar önce

@CrazyNikel I'd rather have social studies experts platformed than tankie linguists like Chomsky or other Kissingers.

Aman Haman Aylar önce

I love his enthusiasm. We need a sequel of him

Simon Nachreiner 2 aylar önce

Mono directional defenses were actually really important to both sides as part of the ubiquitous defense in depth strategy. If the enemy can take cover in your own trench it defeats the whole purpose of having a second line. To counter attack from. As for Gallipoli I feel the makers were trying too hard to emulate saving private Ryan. Establishing a beachhead is bloody work but the real casualties came when the fighting dissolved into the same ubiquitous trench warfare that was found in Europe.

Teresa Albin-Davis 2 aylar önce

Except Gallipoli was first

Teresa Albin-Davis 2 aylar önce

Oops, sorry, was thinking of the older one

Drunkmanatee 5 aylar önce

This was awesome. Well explained and very informative. He explained the "why" very well. Great video.

Jorge de los Reyes 5 aylar önce

I love how he speaks so smoothly about such a violent war.

Zoddy 2 aylar önce

I think the issue with most WWI movies is they want to show the sheer brutality of the war, while also portraying the soldiers in it as if they’ve never seen a gun. Like, yes that form of warfare was new to everyone, but by the halfway point soldiers had come up with unique ways to effectively fight.

Luke C 5 aylar önce

Might not be the most accurate, but All Quiet On The Western Front was heartbreaking in its own way.

dan 5 aylar önce

For me it was heartbreaking in terms of quality and realism, both lacking.

insertsomethingfuni 5 aylar önce

If the lack of realism took you out of the movie you weren't really watching it

Tom Selleck 5 aylar önce

@danew gross you’re that guy

insertsomethingfuni 5 aylar önce

@Tyler huh?

Walter Sullivan Gaming (real) 5 aylar önce

The book and the 1930 movie were already heartbreaking

Conniejay542 4 aylar önce

I love the depth of knowledge this guy has its amazing, I also appreciate the stricter scoring. Love it 👍🏽

Brendan Frost 2 aylar önce

Dude I wish that they did the part more often where the expert names movies that they DID love!!! I want a friggin list from all eras lo.

telauw 4 aylar önce

Great video! I love history! And this man explained it all perfectly. Awesome video!!

Ranger 4 aylar önce

I really like how in depth his explanations were. We could see how passionate he is and that's really nice

Pascal P 2 aylar önce

World War One pilots also had metal darts that they would drop on enemy troops when flying over their lines. If dropped high enough, they could easily penetrate metal helmets. They were inaccurate though, but the troops still feared them.

DorklyAsmr 5 aylar önce

Let's hope there's a second video that covers 1917, and maybe the original All Quiet on the Western Front. This one was great.

John Cartwright 5 aylar önce

The 1931 version was much more authentic, even the 1979 version was better than the latest version!

Wiz Corn 5 aylar önce

Just letting you know there’s a second video

DorklyAsmr 5 aylar önce

@John Cartwright Yeah I imagine filming it just a 15 years or so after the war helps nail down the realism! Never saw the one with John Boy from the waltons but I've heard good things

Koolaid 5 aylar önce

@DorklyAsmr I'm pretty sure they also used a bunch of WW1 vets for the movie, making it even more accurate

Peter Richardson 5 aylar önce

Hoping for him to cover Blackadder Goes Forth next 😛

MrHorror Gaming 5 aylar önce

I'd love to see this man break down my favorite WW1 movie, The Lost Battalion. This was a great one

planet avila 5 aylar önce

aspiring history professor (hopefully focusing on WWI and imperial/colonial history) and i love these historical videos, please please please keep it up!!

Nyarlath_Hunters 4 aylar önce

I love these harsher critiques because while the films skip out on things for sake of budget or just to make the scene flow better. Its nice to have information pointed out how many details are actually missing that these soldiers really had to face.

Bill Wendell 2 aylar önce

That Wonder Woman trench crossing took my breath away. I had a neighbor growing up who drank the proverbial champagne from the proverbial skull in France, he finally wanted to talk to someone about when he was in his 90's. He was not one to exaggerate. W W is what he described. PS Behind Enemy Lines and Full Metal for urban fighting. And Dr Strangelove too. Saving Private Ryan all for as real as they could make it. At least a list of recent films. PPS Hell's Angels for the air war. That head on crash that looked like models was two real pilots dying. And the bomber crash killed the guy running to smoke pots who didn't hear the call to bail out. Howard Hughes killed something 7 people making it.

INFECTED_Dredgen 3 aylar önce

My favourite ANZAC movies/series was Gallipoli very emotional and it really portrayed how the British ranked and elites viewed the Aus and kiwi soldiers as nothing more then cannon fodder for their own troops and it really makes you mad for the complete disregard they had for the ANZAC’s if it wasn’t for Murdoch we would’ve been on the line till the end of the war and that really would’ve put strain on the main WF lines.

AnimatorofAnimation 3 aylar önce

this kind of opinion only really shows your lack of WW1 knowledge. More British and French troops died at Gallipoli than ANZAC. The idea that is was a soley ANZAC fight is an extremely false but unfortunately pervasive myth. Gallipoli was a meat grinder for everyone there, British, French, Ottaman, and ANZAC. If you don't know very much about a topic, don't speak with authority about it, especially when it comes to assigning blame

Alasdair Greig 3 aylar önce

Australian mythology. ANZAC forces were 15% of the total invasion force at Gallipoli. The ANZAC losses were both lower in total and as a percentage of committed troops than the British and Irish. The total is significantly lower than the Turkish losses.

Heather Garnham 16 gün önce

Perhaps, but as a % of the population it was devastating. When ypu have only a small population, the loss of any % of young men is devastating. There are memorials in small towns that show the loss of entire families or entire generations of young men.

Kevin Butler 5 aylar önce

Should have used the 1930 version of All Quiet on the Western Front. That was significantly more accurate since they used German advisers who had been in WWI. I believe that the realism and grittiness reflected excellently in that movie.

Felix 5 aylar önce

eh i still liked the 2022 verison but ofc that's just mo

Wesley McBride 5 aylar önce

@Felix one thing I will add is that I feel like the 2022 version cut a lot of character moments I like the battle scenes but ehh it doesn’t have the same impact I feel the older movies did a way better job at the source material

Felix 5 aylar önce

@wesleymcbride8084 that's fair but still the 2022 will probably be my favorite out of the three.

kingleech16 5 aylar önce

@Felix Why? It's not like your opinion was "I think 'The Pest' should've won an Oscar."

Holger Christiansen 5 aylar önce

@Felix But why should anyone "hate you" for that opinion. You like a different movie better than another person. Nothing to hate about that.

65FASTBACKMAN 5 aylar önce

I loved All Quiet on the Western Front and would say it’s definitely my favorite WWI movie thus far. I think that the sheer chaos, horror, and desperation of the soldiers is perfectly depicted in the movie. I also loved the music as well as the background scenery and the anti-war elements as well. I’m honestly not sure why the battle he talks about is only given a 5 out of 10 as pretty much all of the issues or gripes that he has with it were likely artistic or visual liberties done by the filming crew. Movie makers love fire, they love tracer rounds, smoke, sound effects and anything else that will make you more immersed in the movie. Was it 100% accurate from a tactical standpoint? Probably not, but it was something that could’ve potentially happened and that was done to entertain the audience whilst still being pretty realistic. The movie is a piece of historical fiction after all, similar to Saving Private Ryan, where both wars took place but the events in the movie as well as the persons involved never existed. I’d give it more like a 7 or an 8 out of 10 instead of just a 5.

Declan Kealy 5 aylar önce

Totally agree. Watched this on Netflix. Fantastic film

65FASTBACKMAN 5 aylar önce

@Declan Kealy Indeed. I’ve watched it probably 4-5 times already and plan on doing so again soon. And I think the craziest part of it all is that the budget for the movie was only $20 million. Which to me just goes to show that a movie doesn’t need a $200 million budget or more just to be great. This one was done for a fraction of the cost with no name actors and it’s phenomenal imo and much better than 1917.

dlr _rosa 4 aylar önce

Have you thought about watching the original? I strongly recommend it if you want to learn more about WWI! The history of the book and og film is interesting in itself, so I really push people to dip their toes in it. I'm glad the recent remake sparked interest into this story again!

65FASTBACKMAN 4 aylar önce

@dlr _rosa I’ve seen the original, though it’s admittedly been a few years since I’ve last seen it

jer1515 4 aylar önce

Hes not rating the quality of the film. Hes rating the realism. Thats why they got a ww1 expert for the video and not a film critic

Mahatma Gandhi 2 aylar önce

Loved listening to him. His book 'Ring of Steel' is awesome as well, definitely worth seeking out.

Sadie Lapiers 2 aylar önce

This was great! I wish he could’ve taken a look at 1917 and broken that one down, it’s one of my favorite movies :)

Wladislav Aylar önce

Love the analyses by Mr Watson! Great eye for detail and very informative. That flamethrower scene in All Quiet on the Western Front really annoyed me as I was watching it.

Kevin Liegey 2 aylar önce

I always wonder why the movie the Lost Battalion is often passed over in WW1 review videos. It was an incredible movie worth checking out .

P. B. 5 aylar önce

I have finished his book "Ring of Steel" lately. It's about Germany and Austria-Hungary in the First World War. Amazing detail and a third of the book is used to list his sources, that are overwhelmingly from the time period. Very informative and unbiased, something I value very much, since history needs to be seen like that to truly understand it. I recommend it to everyone interested in the topic.

SealLesák 5 aylar önce

Yeah its nice to see a history conflict expert. But it would be nice to have tactics expert. Someone who actually understands tactics.

LadyTenzs 2 aylar önce

It’s good to know expert historians are just as bother by these things as I, a amateur historian, am! Probably more so!😊

John Simpson 3 aylar önce

Actually, trenches that had been recently captured would have the defensive features reversed. Firing steps and parapet on the wrong side. Captured trenches would have to go through an immediate rebuild to move the defensive feature to the opposite side.

Aaron Hunter 5 aylar önce

1:50 I find it interesting that using tracers against troops was considered a war crime but mustard gas and flamethrowers weren’t considered.

Paul Mutzel 4 aylar önce

interesting how All Quiet on the Western front is maybe not as accurate as I would have thought but I'd say thats okay because the scenes used here play so much into the atmosphere and dread that the movie wants to achieve. It's great to learn a bit more about how it would actually be done though. What I think is missing also in most movies about the western front is the Spanish Flu. I can't recall from the top of my head any war movie of that time and place where the flu is a problem in terms of its deadliness and it's toll on the usable manpower

Average Person 5 aylar önce

I like that he mentioned Journey’s End at the end. That film often gets overlooked or disregarded because it’s not very action heavy, but the acting, the story and the portrayal of the characters makes it well worth a watch.

TallulahSoie 5 aylar önce

Great analysis. Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it.

Wolf.gaming 2 aylar önce

i love everytime he would smile when something was accurate thats how you know hes happy that its right or he just loves explaining history

undefined 5 aylar önce

One explanation I heared frequently for von Richthofen and his squadron's (is the right term for the German "Geschwader"?) bright coloured planes was, that they painted them that way in protest of the introduction of "unchivalrous" camouflage paint schemes for fighter planes.

Jeff Patterson 2 aylar önce

I really enjoyed "A Very Long Engagement" , director Jean-Pierre Jeunet's follow up to Amelie with Audrey Tautou set against the backdrop of WWI too. Maybe that could be another one to analyze. :)

SouthPaw718 5 aylar önce

Waiting for part 2 featuring 1917, War Horse, Fly Boys, and Lawrence of Arabia.

Yabusaki Ao 5 aylar önce

It would be great if he can review Our World War

Kumquat Lord 5 aylar önce

And the King Man

Logan L 5 aylar önce

@Yabusaki Ao Our World War was so good! Shame more people haven’t seen it.

Nicholas Malouin 5 aylar önce

You forgot Paths of Glory.

TheCheeseLord 5 aylar önce

Don't forget Blackadder!

sharkboar 5 aylar önce

I'd say the reason the tanks stopped to fire was because their turrets aren't stabilised meaning the they'd need to stop to shoot accurately. Otherwise the barrel would be going up and down as the tank went up and down with the terrain.

Im Bored 3 aylar önce

Movies need to hire experts like this guy

Anna_ in_Aotearoa 5 aylar önce

Really interesting to hear about the Indian troops in WWI! That was completely new to me, & would have to agree with the expert here that they seem to be sadly ignored in most discourse/coverage of the war?

The Cluckster 4 aylar önce

I would be interested to see them do the original All quiet

Thomas 5 aylar önce

This guy is great, super interesting! Let's see more of him please. I thought Journey's end was a great film.

Benjamin Matheny 5 aylar önce

The thing I hate about war movies in general, and WW1 war movies are particularly bad about it, is how pervasive the drab color filter is. We really should see the bright colors in the areas the war doesn't reach. Keep the clear sky blue, and grass green away from the front. The contrast makes the horror of war more clear. As they are, it just looks like everything was brown/gray back then.

Kasumi Rina 4 aylar önce

It's not just about war movies either, people assume WW2 was black and white, WW1 was drab and Victorian era was sepia-colored when it had the most gaudy color schemes in clothing and items as chemical dyes became commonplace. Also the opposite case of 80s when everything looks neon like Blade Runner or T1 club scene in movies, while real 1980s were brown and wood grain was everywhere.

Geechy Guy 3 aylar önce

@Kasumi Rina Yep, the worst are the medieval movies, my guess is that GOT succeeded really well with the grey vibes in Winterfell and the North, so directors of medieval movies just started implementing it to their own. Personally I vote for more Napoleonic War movies, arguably the most colorful wars in history, French wore blue, Russians wore green, British wore red, Austrians wore gray/Orange, Prussians wore black - every army had variations.

Tomasz Skowroński Aylar önce

17:38 The reason is pretty obvious- they're trying to recreate Spielberg's Omaha in Saving Private Ryan. Some of the scenes are nearly shot for shot homages, like the soldiers being massacered when trying to leave the boats, the diving for cover at the shingle, etc. They know what they're doing

GratedCheddar 5 aylar önce

I would say that the most authentic WW1 battle scene to me, is the French assault in the 1930 version of All Quiet On The Western Front.

lucas trask 4 aylar önce

Another very good knowledgeable expert who is an excellent presenter. Thanks for one of the most informative channels on the web.

Alex.Supertramp 3 aylar önce

they definitely did not have stabilizers in the Saint Chamond and other ww1 tanks. it was common practice in ww1 to stop moving before you shoot even in ww2 tank commanders were trained to stop moving for accurate fire.

Steamsmith GG 2 aylar önce

you know I always wanted to see a film about the battle of Jutland, a sort of docu-drama thing to explain better what happened during the battle, why 3 British Battlecruisers for example exploded or why Hipper thought that his plan to wipe out a portion of the Royal Navy would work and the aftermath......tbh though I doubt something like this would be made

Christopher Wang 5 aylar önce

The 2022 version of _All Quiet on the Western Front_ may not be as iconic as the original 1930 film, but it is an admirable and relevant portrayal of the horror and tragedy of the First World War. With all the participants and witnesses of the First World War already passed away, it is important that the memories of the war and its aftermath are kept alive so that its lessons and significance could be preserved and not forgotten.

Salzwasser Sam und die Soljanka-Brüder 5 aylar önce

The 2022 version is brilliant in that it creates a story different from the original source material while retaining its core message. They could‘ve just copied the 1930 movie with modern effects but that wouldn’t do justice to the original movie and the book. As a result of their approach, we now have two movies that are both cinematic masterpieces in their own right without having one just copying the other. It should also be noted that there is more to history than just troop movements and correctly depicting the grey tone of german shovels. To this British historian it doesn’t make sense to depict the last days of the war since they are not as intensive as the Battle of the Somme for example. From a German perspective however, it makes perfect sense since these are some of the most important days in German history. At this point, the German revolution has already begun, the Kaiser has abdicated and over 1000 years of German monarchy have just abrubtly ended. The movie shows the real time collapse of prussian militarist rule and its inability to cope with it. The general is the perfect embodiment of this prussian arrogance, blaming others for their own mistakes and sending men into certain death to save some of their honor. The lies that the general spouts about the war outcome also serve as an early version of the „Dolchstoßlegende“, one of the lies that Hitler will later use in his rise to power. The movie doesn’t only show the horrors of war but also some of reasons why they happened. In that respect it is more political than the original work, at the same time it matches more recent accounts of historians on Germany in WW1. But hey I guess thats all not as interesting as knowing whether a St Chamond stops or not while firing🤷‍♂️

wolf310ii 5 aylar önce

@Salzwasser Sam und die Soljanka-Brüder Sorry but thats just BS, the movie has almost nothing to do with the book, not even the core message. Its just gore p0rn without much story or realism, for people who slow down on the highway, causing a traffic jam, to watch and film an accident on the opposite lane.

Salzwasser Sam und die Soljanka-Brüder 5 aylar önce

@wolf310ii lol Calling this movie gore porn is like calling the war paintings of Otto Dix deviant art.

Playergamer 5 aylar önce

lmao you have interpreted his complaint exactly backwards. His point was that it’s dishonest to pretend that the last days of the war were as intense as the Somme, and it obscures the true ending of the war. yes, Germany was collapsing. so was the army. no German general could’ve ordered an assault on November 11th - his own men might’ve shot him. there’s an extremely interesting story to tell about German soldiers trying to survive the last months of the war and the disintegration of the army, the pursuit east, etc. but All Quiet (2022) relies on generic tropes of trench warfare instead

Green War 5 aylar önce

It is precisely because the protagonists are dead that we manage today to praise these films without being lectured

Outta 4 aylar önce

I'd love to see this guy give a review on "The Great War: Western Front" game, and judge people on how they play. or watch him play it himself. that would be amazing.

yomama obama 5 aylar önce

can they do the real "all quiet on the western front" next? I'm curious as to what he would think about it

tankninja1 2 aylar önce

I remember reading Alexander Watson’s books in college. Very well done books.

M C 5 aylar önce

the best thing about these very knowledgeable experts is that they don't try to shove an agenda down one's throat but rather are just very interested in historical accuracy. Love it!

Sean Gannon 16 gün önce

If you want to hear the story that inspired the WW2 movie “Fury”. Look up the story of the WW1 British tank “Fray Bentos”. ( Fray Bentos was a brand of cheap canned meat. Gotta love British humor) it’s an amazing story.

Paco Cheung 5 aylar önce

Personally I'd say 1917 is one of the most accurate ww1 films in recent years, it had some flaws and overall very little actual combat, but had on par emotional drama with classics like all quiet on the western front and War Horse, really want to see those covered next

Green War 5 aylar önce

It's the one of the most accurate of the last year because the level was really not very high

Telly Savalas1974 5 aylar önce

Stalingrad from 1993 was the most accurate one!

Bob Smith 5 aylar önce

@Telly Savalas1974 Stalingrad is WW2 🤦‍♂️

Mitchell Sommer 4 aylar önce

*gives it a 4/10*

NickMG 3 aylar önce

@Telly Savalas1974 ww2

Fraser McGeough 4 aylar önce

I love watching these videos where experts break down movies

A K Aylar önce

This dude should help directors and writers get the details right, it’d be great to se a realistic portrayal of the war to end all wars

Só os 4 4 aylar önce

what I really like about all quiet on the western front is that they show what the technology innovation such as the tanks are way scarier on their perspective, it didn't exist before, they didn't even imagine the power of these machines