WWII in HD

2009

Seasons & Episodes

  • 1
  • 0
8.7| 0h30m| TV-PG| en| More Info
Released: 15 November 2009 Ended
Producted By: History
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website: http://www.history.com/content/wwii-in-hd
Synopsis

WWII in HD is a 10-part American documentary television miniseries that originally aired from November 15 to November 19, 2009 on the History Channel. The program focuses on the firsthand experiences of twelve American service members during World War II, including an Army nurse, a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, a second generation Japanese American and prisoner of war, and an Austrian Jewish immigrant. The twelve members recorded their time in both theaters and some had later interviews; found footage from the battlefield was paired with the stories of the twelve service members. The episodes premiered on five consecutive days, with two episodes per day. The series is narrated by Gary Sinise and was produced by Lou Reda Productions in Easton, Pennsylvania, United States.

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Reviews

JinRoz For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!
BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See
KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
donowitz WWII in HD is (in my opinion) one of the best series History has produced in the last few years. In it's storytelling style it is cohesive, which is surprising because most project such as this, with multiply narratives, skip around. However, WWII in HD flows smoothly, its transitions between characters and resolutions to every episode is clean cut without being dismissive. It is unrelenting in its pace without loosing the core of the story or demeaning them. At times, it is horrifying (the opening episode to the series, Darkness Falls, comes to mind) and at other times, it is triumphant and then the next second, heartbreaking. The vast views of the war (from a combat nurse to infantry to war correspondents) to the amount of theaters included (North Africa to Europe, a mention of Mediterranean and to the Pacific) WWII in HD sets itself apart incredibly well.Unlike a previous review said, this documentary wasn't meant to be an in depth view at the theaters of war, but rather an examination of what the characters experienced. If you want a general overview that rehashes the same Brass-oriented view of the war, then by all means, go watch World War II in Color. This program was about the people, what it was like for someone on the front lines - whether that meant caring for the wounded, or carrying a weapon - instead of hearing the same rehashed story from a General's view. The narration of each character is very distinct, all incredibly memorable and each bring something to the program. I'd definitely recommend this program to anyone and everyone.I give an 8/10 just because I wish they had included more of the Mediterranean and the China-Burma-India theater.
Brian Hougaard Baldersbaek (dk6400brian) My expectations were sky high when I hit the Buy-button and sat waiting for this BluRay 2 disc-set to arrive.I expected rolls of color footage transferred to BluRay so I could sit in my den, going time traveling for hours. But no. Instead I got small second sized fragments of footage here and there, drowned in dramatic music and a male drama voice telling the stories.I agree with one of the other reviewers, that this is a MTV-like presentation. Not worth a penny, unless you won't miss a second of color footage from World War 2.The bonus material tells a story of a 2 year hunt for footage and how they transferred the old color films into 4K resolution digital video. All their efforts are not present on this 2 disc BluRay. I repeat, not present.I'm giving this presentation a 2 out of 10 vote. One for the glimps of color footage and one for being in almost FullHD, 1080i.Honestly, I'm deeply disappointed. I waisted my money. There it is. I said it.
mattmccleary I think people are generally misunderstanding that just because the film footage is not as clear or detailed as recent films that this is not "high definition". It is a high definition transfer of the footage we have of the war. This is just about as good as we are going to get this footage. A good complaint would be that this footage would generally be properly displayed in a 1.33:1 format, but people are unfairly complaining of the video quality of the film footage.The work they did here is generally fantastic, even if it is not in the correct aspect ratio.
Brian Bagnall (brianberwyn) Having seen the 1970's World At War series plus many other WWII old color documentaries I was not expecting much new in WWII in HD. Much to my surprise I found the entire series absolutely compelling and I watched it all in one day recorded off the TV. It is so much more than just restored old color movie clips (that are very far from HD quality). The story-telling around a number of real-life American war veterans, including recent interviews with them, brings the five year history of the US role in WWII into fresh focus today. The role of Allied military forces is barely covered, however, furthering the misconception that the US alone won the war. Although the story jumps between war theaters around the world the brilliant editing shocks the senses with scene after scene of the horrifying cruelty inflicted on soldiers and civilians throughout the world. Graphic footage of blasted bodies and wounded children is very hard to watch but the end result is the most effective anti-war film I have ever seen. The fanatical resistance of the Japanese military plus their diabolical cruelty caused tens of thousands of US soldiers to die in epic battles on small Pacific islands. Now I understand better why Truman decided to drop the atomic bombs rather than risk up to a million more US soldier deaths in an invasion of the Japanese mainland (I just wish he had given civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki a few hours to evacuate beforehand). The combination of actual color footage plus unique editing makes this series a must-see even if it takes nearly eight hours to watch. Very highly recommended.

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