OVERLORD

OVERLORD - 1975 (Not released in U.S. until 2006)

RATED - NT but PG/PG-13. Some language, very brief glimpse of bare breast when a young woman starts to undress in a dream-like scene. No sex or other nudity. Some fairly tame war violence by today's standards.

RATINGS - 11 Amazon (3.5/5), 6,706 Netflix (3.0/5), 583 IMDB (7.5/10), Roger Ebert (4/4).

AWARDS - Won two and nominated for one the 1975 Berlin International Film Festival.

STORY - The film, shot deliberately in black & white, opens with a young man in England leaving home for boot camp. He appears to be the definition of average, neither overly bright nor stupid. Naive might be a label that applies, if anything. Young men all over England are being called up as casualties mount on the European front and the Allies prepare for D-Day. The strength of the film is in its use of terrific archival footage from the Imperial War Museum within the movie. Our young soldier survives boot camp and thanks to a fellow soldier becomes a little more worldly than before he entered the service. The use of the archival film to show the massive buildup of troops and equipment contrasted with the loneliness and fear of the solitary soldier is effective in understanding D-Day. Some of the footage from the archives is amazing and worth watching the film for that alone. You have the most massive military invasion in history and yet at its core is the individual soldier. He meets and falls in love with a very nice young girl but will there be a future together-will there be a future at all? Neither of them can be sure. His unit learns that they will be among the first to land on D-Day. Cannon fodder-that's what they begin to see themselves. How would you react knowing your chances of surviving the invasion are slim and none? While some see this an anti-war film, I think it is more a reality of war film. While war may be a necessary evil in the face of greater evils, that doesn't change the fact that is evil and young lives and families are forever changed. A film that will make you pause and consider the consequences of even the most just war. The extras are very worthwhile. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews. 11/7/2009.

LINKS - AMAZON, IMDB, ROGER EBERT