The Longest Day (1962)

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  • THE LONGEST DAY


    DIRECTED BY KEN ANNAKIN,(British episodes)
    ANDREW MARTIN(American episodes)
    BERNHARD WICKI(German episodes)
    PRODUCED BY DARRYL F. ZANUCK/ ELMO WILLIAMS
    MUSIC BY MICHAEL JARRE and PAUL ANKA
    20th.CENTURY FOX


    Photo with the courtesy of lasbugas


    INFORMATION FROM IMDb


    Plot Summary
    England in June 1944. Unseasonal storms. Allied troops are massed ready for the invasion of France, some already on the boats. The Normandy beaches will be their destination while paratroopers are dropped inland to take key towns and bridges. On the other side of the Channel the Germans still expect the invasion at Calais, and anyway the weather makes them think nothing is likely to be imminent. Eisenhower decides to go. Hitler sleeps on.
    Summary written by Jeremy Perkins


    The retelling of June 6, 1944, from the perspectives of the Germans, the US, Britain,
    and the Free French. Marshall Erwin Rommel, touring the defenses being established
    as part of the Reich's Atlantic Wall, notes to his officers that when the Allied invasion
    comes they must be stopped on the beach. "For the Allies as well as the Germans,
    it will be the longest day. The longest day."
    Summary written by Michael Daly


    Full Cast
    in alphabetical order
    Eddie Albert .... Col. Thompson
    Paul Anka .... U.S. Army Ranger
    Arletty .... Madame Barrault
    Jean-Louis Barrault .... Father Louis Roulland
    Richard Beymer .... Schultz
    Hans Christian Blech .... Maj. Werner Pluskat
    Bourvil .... Mayor of Colleville
    Richard Burton .... Flight Officer David Campbell
    Wolfgang Büttner .... Maj. Gen. Dr. Hans Speidel
    Red Buttons .... Pvt. John Steele
    Pauline Carton .... Maid
    Sean Connery .... Pvt. Flanagan
    Ray Danton .... Capt. Frank
    Irina Demick .... Janine Boitard (as Irina Demich)
    Fred Dur .... U.S. Army Ranger major
    Fabian .... U.S. Army Ranger
    Mel Ferrer .... Maj. Gen. Robert Haines
    Henry Fonda .... Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr.
    Steve Forrest .... Capt. Harding
    Gert Fröbe .... Sgt. Kaffekanne
    Leo Genn .... Brig. Gen. Edwin P. Parker Jr.
    John Gregson .... British Padre
    Paul Hartmann .... Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt
    Peter Helm .... Young GI
    Werner Hinz .... Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
    Donald Houston .... RAF pilot at flight base
    Jeffrey Hunter .... Sgt. (later Lt.) John H. Fuller (as Jeff Hunter)
    Karl John .... Gen. Wolfgang Hager
    Curd Jürgens .... Maj. Gen. Gunther Blumentritt (as Curt Jürgens)
    Alexander Knox .... Maj. Gen. Walter Bedell Smith
    Peter Lawford .... Lord Lovat
    Fernand Ledoux .... Louis
    Christian Marquand .... Cmdr. Philippe Kieffer (commando leader)
    Dewey Martin .... Pvt. Wilder
    Roddy McDowall .... Pvt. Morris
    Michael Medwin .... Pvt. Watney
    Sal Mineo .... Pvt. Martini
    Robert Mitchum .... Brig. Gen. Norman Cota
    Kenneth More .... Capt. Colin Maud
    Richard Münch .... Gen. Erich Marcks
    Edmond O'Brien .... Gen. Raymond D. Barton
    Leslie Phillips .... Royal Air Force officer
    Wolfgang Preiss .... Maj. Gen. Max Pemsel
    Ron Randell .... Joe Williams
    Madeleine Renaud .... Mother Superior
    Georges Rivière .... Sgt. Guy de Montlaur (as Georges Riviere)
    Norman Rossington .... Pvt. Clough
    Robert Ryan .... Brig. Gen. James M. Gavin
    Tommy Sands .... U.S. Army Ranger
    George Segal .... U.S. Army Ranger
    Jean Servais .... RAdm. Janjard
    Rod Steiger .... Destroyer commander
    Richard Todd .... Maj. John Howard
    Tom Tryon .... Lt. Wilson
    Peter van Eyck .... Lt. Col. Ocker (as Peter Van Eyck)
    Robert Wagner .... U.S. Army Ranger
    Richard Wattis .... British soldier
    Stuart Whitman .... Lt. Sheen
    Georges Wilson .... Alexandre Renaud
    John Wayne .... Lt. Col. Benjamin Vandervoort
    Daniel Gélin .... Bit part (scenes deleted)
    Françoise Rosay .... (scenes deleted)
    Patrick Barr .... Group Capt. J.N. Stagg (uncredited)
    Michael Beint .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Lyndon Brook .... Lt. Walsh (uncredited)
    Lucien Camiret .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Jean Champion .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Bryan Coleman .... Ronald Callen (uncredited)
    John Crawford .... Col. Caffey (uncredited)
    Mark Damon .... Pvt. Harris (uncredited)
    Jo D'Avra .... French Navy captain (uncredited)
    Richard Dawson .... British soldier (uncredited)
    Eugene Deckers .... Nazi officer (uncredited)
    Colin Drake .... Zanuck (uncredited)
    Michel Duchaussoy .... Extra (uncredited)
    Frank Finlay .... Pvt. Coke (uncredited)
    Harry Fowler .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Bernard Fox .... British soldier (uncredited)
    Robert Freitag .... Meyer's aide (uncredited)
    Bernard Fresson .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Lutz Gabor .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Harold Goodwin .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Henry Grace .... Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower (uncredited)
    Clément Harari .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Ruth Hausmeister .... Frau Rommel (uncredited)
    Jack Hedley .... RAF briefing officer (uncredited)
    Michael Hinz .... Manfred Rommel (uncredited)
    Til Kiwe .... Capt. Helmuth Lang (uncredited)
    Mickey Knox .... (uncredited)
    Simon Lack .... Air Chief Marshal Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory (uncredited)
    Rudy Lenoir .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Joseph Lowe .... Ranger at Ponte du Hoc (uncredited)
    Wolfgang Lukschy .... Col. Gen. Alfred Jodl (uncredited)
    Howard Marion-Crawford .... Doctor (uncredited)
    Neil McCallum .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Edward Meeks .... (uncredited)
    John Meillon .... RAdm. Alan G. Kirk (uncredited)
    Kurt Meisel .... Capt. Ernst During (uncredited)
    Bill Millin .... Himself (piper on beach) (uncredited)
    Tony Mordente .... Cook (uncredited)
    Louis Mounier .... Sir Arthur William Tedder (uncredited)
    Bill Nagy .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Kurt Pecher .... German commander (uncredited)
    Rainer Penkert .... Lt. Fritz Theen (uncredited)
    Siân Phillips .... WREN (uncredited)
    Maurice Poli .... Jean (uncredited)
    Hartmut Reck .... Sgt. Bernhard Bergsdorf (uncredited)
    Trevor Reid .... Gen. Sir Bernard L. Montgomery (uncredited)
    Heinz Reincke .... Col. Josef 'Pips' Priller (uncredited)
    John Robinson .... Adm. Sir Bertram Ramsay (uncredited)
    Paul Edwin Roth .... Col. Schiller (uncredited)
    Marcel Rouzé .... Bit part (uncredited)
    Dietmar Schönherr .... Luftwaffe major (uncredited)
    Ernst Schröder .... Gen.Hans von Salmuth (uncredited)
    Hans Söhnker .... Deutscher Offizier (uncredited)
    Heinz Spitzner .... Lt. Col. Helmuth Meyer (uncredited)
    Bob Steele .... Paratrooper (uncredited)
    Nicholas Stuart .... Lt. Gen. Omar N. Bradley (uncredited)
    Alice Tissot .... Housekeeper (uncredited)
    Serge Tolstoy .... German officer (uncredited)
    Lionel Vitrant .... The first landed paratrooper, in a garden (uncredited)
    Vicco von Bülow .... German officer (uncredited)
    Dominique Zardi .... Bit part (uncredited)


    Stunts
    Ken Buckle .... stunts (uncredited)
    Yvan Chiffre .... stunts (uncredited)
    Jack Cooper .... stunts (uncredited)
    Gil Delamare .... stunts (uncredited)
    Joe Powell .... stunts (uncredited)
    Nosher Powell .... stunts (uncredited)
    Alexandre Renault .... stunts (uncredited)
    John Sullivan .... stunts (uncredited)


    Writing Credits
    Romain Gary
    James Jones
    David Pursall
    Cornelius Ryan screenplay
    Jack Seddon


    Cinematography
    Jean Bourgoin (photography)
    Walter Wottitz (photography)


    Trivia
    Richard Todd (playing Major John Howard, Officer Commanding D Company of The 2nd Battalion The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, Air Landing Brigade, 6th Airborne Division) was himself in Normandy on D-Day, and participated as Capt. Todd of the 7th Parachute Battalion, 5th Parachute Brigade, British 6th Airborne Division. His battalion actually went into action as reinforcements, via a parachute jump (after the gliders had landed and completed the initial coup de main assault). Capt. Richard 'Sweeney' Todd was moved from the plane he was originally scheduled to jump from, to another. The original plane was shot down, killing everyone on board.


    As a 22-year-old private, Joseph Lowe landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day with the Second Ranger Battalion and scaled the cliffs at Point-Du-Hoc. He scaled those hundred-foot cliffs all over again, for the cameras, some 17 years later.


    Darryl F. Zanuck was quoted in an interview as saying that he didn't think much of actors forming their own production companies, citing The Alamo (1960), produced by John Wayne, as a failure of such ventures. Wayne found out about this interview before being approached by Zanuck, and refused to appear in the film unless he was paid $250,000 for his role (when the other famous actors were being paid $25,000). Wayne got his requested salary.


    Henry Grace was not an actor when being cast as Dwight D. Eisenhower, but his remarkable resemblance to Eisenhower got him the role.


    Sean Connery, who made his debut as James Bond also in 1962, acted in the movie along with Gert Fröbe and Curd Jürgens - two future Bond villains.


    Former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower was considered for the role of himself in the film, and he indicated his willingness. However, it was decided that makeup artists couldn't make him appear young enough to play his WWII self.


    Red Buttons was cast in the film after he ran into Darryl F. Zanuck in a Paris cafe.


    Due to the massive cost overruns on the film Cleopatra (1963) (which was filming contemporaneously), Darryl F. Zanuck had to agree to a fixed filming budget. After he had spent the budgeted amount he started using his own money to pay for the production.


    When cost overruns on Cleopatra (1963) threatened to force 20th Century Fox to shut down production of this film, Darryl F. Zanuck flew to New York to save his project. After an impassioned speech to Fox's board, Zanuck regained control of the company he founded, ultimately finishing this picture and getting the production of Cleopatra (1963) under control.


    According to fellow veterans major Werner Pluskat was not at his command bunker in Omaha Beach when the first wave of the invasion forces landed, instead he was in a bordello in Caen.


    The theme song to the movie, by Paul Anka, was used as the Regimental march of the Canadian Airborne Regiment (1968-1995)


    The piper who played the bagpipes as Lord Lovat's commandos stormed ashore is played by the late Pipe Major Leslie de Laspee who was at the time Pipe Major of the London Scottish Pipe Band, and personal piper to HM the Queen Mother. The actual man who did this stirring deed on D-Day is Bill Millin. He recently donated that very set of pipes to the national war memorial in Edinburgh Castle.


    While clearing a section of the Normandy beach near Ponte du Hoc, the film's crew unearthed a tank that had been buried in the sand since the original invasion. Mechanics cleaned it off, fixed it up and it was used in the film as part of the British tank regiment.


    One of producer Darryl F. Zanuck's big worries was that, as filming of the actual invasion drew near, he couldn't find any working German Messerschmitts, which strafed the beach, or British Spitfires, which chased them away. He finally found two Messerschmitts that were being used by the Spanish Air Force, and two Spitfires that were still on active duty with the Belgian Air Force, and rented all four of them for the invasion scenes.


    An estimated 23,000 troops were supplied by the U.S., Britain and France for the filming. (Germans only appeared as officers in speaking roles.) The French contributed 1,000 commandos despite their involvement in the Algerian War at the time.


    The Spitfire planes needed to be fitted with new Rolls-Royce engines before being usable.


    No gliders of the sort used in the invasion were available, so Darryl F. Zanuck commissioned new duplicates from the same company that built the originals.


    The fleet scenes were filmed using 22 ships of the U.S. Sixth Fleet during maneuvers off Corsica between June 21-30, 1961. The cameras had to avoid shooting the area where the fleet's aircraft carrier was positioned, as there were no carriers in the invasion.


    Just before shooting began in Corsica, Darryl F. Zanuck was approached by a man stating he represented the beach owners. He insisted on a $15,000 payment or else they would drive modern cars along the beach. Zanuck paid the money, but it was later discovered to be a scam as there were no private beaches in Corsica. Zanuck eventually won damages after an eight-year lawsuit.


    As there was a nudist colony two miles inland from the Corsican beach, it was necessary to post signs warning the colonists not to approach the water during filming.


    During shooting in Ste. Mère-Eglise, traffic was stopped, stores were closed and the power was shut down in order not to endanger the paratroopers who were unused to night drops in populated areas. Still, the lights and staged fire proved too difficult to work around, and only one or two jumpers managed to land in the square - with several suffering minor injuries. One of the initial jumpers broke both legs in landing. Ultimately, plans to use authentic jumps were abandoned, opting instead for rigged jumps from high cranes.


    The cameo part of the British Padre was first offered to Dirk Bogarde.


    Eddie Albert, who played Colonel Thompson, was a World War II veteran. However, Albert actually served in the Pacific, not in Europe.


    As would be done again later in the WWII epic, Patton (1970), the Twentieth-Century Fox logo is never shown onscreen in this film.


    With a $10,000,000 budget, this was the most expensive black & white film ever made until Schindler's List (1993).


    During the filming of the landings at Omaha Beach, the American soldiers appearing as extras didn't want to jump off the landing craft into the water because they thought it would be too cold. Robert Mitchum, who played General Norm Cota, finally got disgusted with them and jumped in first, at which point the soldiers had no choice but to follow his example.


    In Italy for the filming of Cleopatra (1963), Roddy McDowall became so frustrated with the numerous delays during its production, he begged Darryl F. Zanuck for a part in this picture just so he could do some work. He ended up with a small role as an American soldier.


    A number of sources credit Christopher Lee and Geoffrey Bayldon as being in this project but Lee denies working on the film and Bayldon is nowhere to be seen in the final print.


    One of the very first World War II films made by an American studio in which the members of each country spoke nearly all their dialog in the language of that country: the Germans spoke German, the French spoke French, and the Americans and the British spoke English. There were subtitles on the bottom of the screen to translate the various languages.


    Richard Todd, veteran of the action at the bridge at Benouville (later renamed Pegasus Bridge) (see Item 1 above), was offered the chance to play himself but joked, "I don't think at this stage of my acting career I could accept a part 'that' small." He played the commander of the actual bridge assault itself, Major John Howard, instead.


    Leslie Phillips only has one line in this movie.


    Alec Guinness was sought for a cameo.


    The role of Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin Vandervoort was actively sought by Charlton Heston, but the last-minute decision of John Wayne to take a role in the film prevented Heston from participating.


    In his memoirs Christopher Lee recalls being rejected for a role in the movie because he didn't look like a military man (he served in the RAF during WW2).


    Average Shot Length = ~8 seconds. Median Shot Length = ~6.5 seconds


    The Messerschmitts used to portray Luftwaffe fighters were not Bf-109s, but were actually Bf-108 Taifuns, a four-seat cabin monoplane design with a wider fuselage.


    Kenneth More, playing Capt. Colin Maud, carried the shillelagh Maud had used in the actual invasion. Maud loaned it to More so the actor could use it in the film.


    Sean Connery asked that his scenes be filmed quickly so he could get to Jamaica in time to star in Dr. No (1962).


    Richard Dawson's film debut.


    In researching his contribution to the script, Romain Gary uncovered one of Cornelius Ryan's mistakes: the casino at Ouistreham had not existed on June 6, 1944. Since the casino set had already been built, however, the scene taking place there was filmed anyway.


    Despite the Cornelius Ryan connection, the only stars to appear in both this film and A Bridge Too Far (1977) are Sean Connery and Wolfgang Preiss.


    The character who calls the homing pigeons on Juno beach "Traitors" when they appear to fly east towards Germany is Canadian journalist Charles Lynch, who landed with the Canadians and covered the landings for Reuters.


    There was some controversy over the casting. At 54, John Wayne was 27 years older than Colonel Vandervoort had been at the time of D-Day. At 52, Robert Ryan was fifteen years older than General Gavin had been.


    Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's (Werner Hinz) son, Manfred Rommel is played by Michael Hinz, the real life son of Werner Hinz.


    First film of Siân Phillips.


    Four Spitfires were used in the strafing sequence. They were all ex-Belgian target tugs and all were MK9's. The serial no.s were MH415, MK297, MK923 and MH434 and all are still extant. The Spitfires were assembled and co-ordinated by former free French Spitfire pilot Pierre Laureys who flew with 340 Squadron, a free French unit in the RAF. The 4 Spitfires were of course re-painted in 340 Squadron markings. Spitfire MK923 was between 1963 and 1998 owned by film actor and Oscar winner Cliff Robertson.


    Colonel Benjamin Vandervoort was very disappointed to find that he was being played in the movie by John Wayne, since even 17 years after D-Day Vandervoort was still a decade younger than the 54-year-old Wayne.


    John Robinson, who plays Admiral Ramsay, actually took part in the D-Day landings.


    Dewey Martin filmed scenes playing the cameo role of Lt.Wilder, but his scenes were deleted in post-production.


    Despite being one of the more lengthy cameos it only took four days to shoot John Wayne's major cameo.


    In 1963, Black civil rights organization the NAACP accused Hollywood studios of racial discrimination. Using The Longest Day as an example, it said that there were some 1,700 black soldiers who took part in the actual landings, but this movie featured not a single black actor.


    Russell Waters is credited by various who's who's as being in the film, but he is nowhere to be seen.


    Alongside the three credited directors, Gerd Oswald directed the parachute drop scene and Darryl F. Zanuck himself did some pick-ups.


    Producer Darryl F. Zanuck paid the original author Cornelius Ryan $175,000 for the screen rights to his book.


    Many of the military consultants and advisers - drawn from both sides - were actual participants on D-Day itself.


    The Germans were deliberately not portrayed in stereotypical style. The words "Sieg Heil", for instance, are never said, although they can be seen written on a bunker wall in Ouistreham.


    Richard Todd was one of the real-life participants in the D-Day landings. He was offered the chance to play himself but he declined, believing the part to be too small. Instead, Todd asked to play his former commanding officer.


    Curd Jürgens plays General Blumentritt. In real life, Jurgens had actually been imprisoned by the Nazis.


    Although the screenplay is credited to Cornelius Ryan, many other writers worked on the film.


    Many of the beach scenes were filmed in Corsica.


    20th Century Fox were taking a real gamble making this film. At $10 million, it was a hugely daring venture, but even more risky was Cleopatra (1963) which was being filmed concurrently. This was to set Fox back the then unprecedented sum of $40 million. Although Cleopatra (1963) did well at the box office, it was simply too expensive to recoup its costs and nearly bankrupted the studio. Fortunately The Longest Day (1962) turned out to be one of their biggest hits to offset the damage caused by the Egyptian epic.


    The biggest grossing black and white film up until the advent of Schindler's List (1993).


    To create a more sympathetic stance to each of the different parties, Darryl F. Zanuck had Englishman Ken Annakin direct the British segments, the American parts were handled by Yank Andrew Marton, while German Bernhard Wicki took care of the scenes with the German army officers.


    Adolf Hitler doesn't make an appearance in the film. In reality, he slept through the start of the D-Day landings, having taken a sleeping pill.


    Only 6% of the paratroopers depicted actually achieved their goal. 60% of the men and equipment parachuted in on D-Day was lost.


    One of the uncredited writers on the film was James Jones, author of "From Here to Eternity".


    The French Resistance woman shown at the start of the film is played by Irina Demick, who was Darryl F. Zanuck's girlfriend at the time.


    Darryl F. Zanuck was continually at Andrew Marton's shoulder when he was directing the American sequences.


    The production had 36 real landing craft and 2 real German planes at its disposal.


    Darryl F. Zanuck and Cornelius Ryan collaborated on the screenplay but they immediately hated each other upon their first meeting. It was up to producer Elmo Williams to liaise between the two and keep the peace.


    During the making of the film, Darryl F. Zanuck effectively commanded more "troops" than any of the generals during the actual campaign.


    Pundits nicknamed the film "Z-Day".


    Donald Houston who plays the one scene RAF Pilot actually was in the RAF during the Second World War.


    The two German "Messerschmitt 109 fighters" attacking the beach were actually four-seat Messerschmitt 108 liaison planes. In real life, Priller and Wodarcyk flew Focke Wulf 190's. Both survived.


    The picture at the top of the first page of this movie profile showing John Wayne, playing the character of Lt. Colonel Benjamin Vandervoort, and wearing a helmet with two stars (Major General) is slightly inaccurate. While Vandervoort was promoted before his retirement in 1946, his highest achieved rank was full Colonel, which has an eagle as rank insignia. Major General is two full ranks above Colonel. During the entire time period portrayed in this movie, Vandervoort was still a Lt. Colonel, which has a silver oak leaf as rank insignia. His final promotion, to Colonel, took place after the time period portrayed in this movie.


    In the Spanish version, actors Fernando Rey and Jesús Puente dubbed actors Henry Fonda and Peter Lawford.


    SPOILER: Despite being in two scenes Gert Fröbe never actually says a word.



    Goofs
    * Revealing mistakes: The shots that kill Private Martini occur too quickly in succession to have been fired from the indicated bolt-action rifle.


    * Factual errors: A compound fracture of the ankle indicates blood and/or protruding bones, of which Vandervoort's ankle had none. It also would have been impossible to put any weight on the ankle.


    * Crew or equipment visible: Shadow of the dolly against the smoke of battle during the invasion of Omaha Beach. The direction of the shadow and the geography of the beach indicate that this scene, while set at dawn, was filmed in the afternoon.


    * Anachronisms: Features LCM-8s, which weren't built until 1954.


    * Anachronisms: German general Max Pemsel says: "Wir haben starke RADAR-störungen" (We have strong radar interference). The word "radar" was not used, perhaps even not known in Germany in 1944. They used a somewhat similar system, but called it "Funkmeßgeräte" (radio measuring equipment).


    * Errors in geography: During the final scenes of the movie, when an American general is taken up "Omaha" beach, it's actually Juno beach, where the Canadians landed.


    * Continuity: When two German planes strafe Gold-Juno beaches, the airborne camera overruns the set exposing the empty beach ahead which has no obstacles, vehicles, or men.


    * Factual errors: Before Oberstleutnant Priller and Unteroffizer Wodarczyk attack the Allies there is some stock footage of weaponless BF-108 "Taifun" liason/observation aircraft. Priller and Wodarczyk flew FW-190s on that mission.


    * Factual errors: Most of the Americans armed with Thompson submachine guns are wearing M1 rifle clip ammo belts instead of Thompson magazine belts.


    * Errors in geography: The German observer who first sees the invasion fleet does so with binoculars made in Germany. We know this because it is written so on the bottom of the binoculars, in English.


    * Revealing mistakes: When Pvt. Schultz is lost and finds fellow soldiers across the wall from him, he crosses the wall by swinging his leg over it. When he does, it shakes.


    * Factual errors: There's a typo on the caption introducing General Pemsel. It says "Befehlssab 7. Armee" where has to be "Befehlsstab 7. Armee"


    * Anachronisms: When the ships are about to begin bombarding the beaches you see a group of planes fly by the camera these are Douglas Sky Raiders which did not see service until the late 1940s.


    * Continuity: During the British glider assault on the bridge, the same glider lands three times.


    * Revealing mistakes: When LTC Vandervoort uses his flashlight to illuminate his map (while having his broken ankle taped), the flashlight illuminates the map, but displays a flashlight-shaped shadow in the center of the map (indicating the stage light used to "really" illuminate the map).


    * Continuity: When the coded radio messages are read out in French, the awaited second line of the poem by Verlaine, "Blesse mon coeur d'une langueur monotone" ("Wounds my heart with a monotonous languor") sets the French resistance-group in motion. They leave the hiding Allied pilots and take up rifles. The next line heard on the radio before it is shut off is "J'aime les chats siamois" ("I like Siamese cats") But when the Germans hear and are recording the identical broadcast and hear the line of poetry, the coded message after that is a message heard before the French resistance-fighters heard the poetry line: "Daphné à Monique: Il y a le feu à l'agence de voyage. Inutile de s'y rendre." ("Daphne to Monique: There is a fire at the travel agency. It is no use to get there").


    * Factual errors: When we see Lovat's British commandos land, one of the men is carrying an M-3 "Grease Gun". That was an American weapon never given to the British.


    * Revealing mistakes: When the two men are on the rocking boat in the beginning, the straps on their helmets remain at a 90 degree angle to the car they're sitting in despite the boat's drastic rocking back on forth, showing that it was the camera, not the boat wobbling.


    * Factual errors: When Lord Lovat leads his men to Pegasus Bridge, he can clearly be seen holding a Mannlicher Schoenauer Model 1903 carbine. One of the well-known eccentricities of Lord Lovat was that he always carried an old Winchester rifle in combat.


    * Anachronisms: During the go/no go sequence, a jet can be heard flying overhead as the naval representative is speaking.


    * Factual errors: The real Ouistreham casino had been destroyed and replaced by a German bunker before the D-Day landings, rather than having a bunker built into its basement as shown. The casino seen in the film was a set built on the harbour at Port-en Bessin.


    * Errors in geography: In the scene where the gliders land at Pegasus Bridge, the caption on screen states "Orne River" and the bridge can be seen below. Pegasus Bridge, where Major Howard's glider landed, is on the Caen Canal, not the Orne.


    * Revealing mistakes: During a long continuous shot on the deck of a troop ship involving one soldier discussing his "Dear John" letter to another soldier, a young soldier playing a harmonica can be heard and seen in the background, playing a variant of the film's title score. In the middle of his playing, the musical key changes, and then returns to the original key. With a harmonica (capable of only playing one key), the soldier would have been required to change harmonicas,
    and never does.


    Although the end credits begin with the phrase "in alphabetical
    order", John Wayne is listed last even though he is not last alphabetically
    (although he was "nearly" last).


    * Factual errors: A compound fracture of the ankle indicates blood and/or protruding bones, of which Vandervoort's ankle had none. It also would have been impossible to put any weight on the ankle.


    * Crew or equipment visible: Shadow of the dolly against the smoke of battle during the invasion of Omaha Beach. The direction of the shadow and the geography of the beach indicate that this scene, while set at dawn, was filmed in the afternoon.


    * Anachronisms: Features LCM-8s, which weren't built until 1954.


    * Anachronisms: German general Max Pemsel says: "Wir haben starke RADAR-störungen" (We have strong radar interference). The word "radar" was not used, perhaps even not known in Germany in 1944. They used a somewhat similar system, but called it "Funkmeßgeräte" (radio measuring equipment).


    * Errors in geography: During the final scenes of the movie, when an American general is taken up "Omaha" beach, it's actually Juno beach, where the Canadians landed.


    * Factual errors: Before Oberstleutnant Priller and Unteroffizer Wodarczyk attack the Allies there is some stock footage of weaponless BF-108 "Taifun" liason/observation aircraft. Priller and Wodarczyk flew FW-190s on that mission.


    * Factual errors: Most of the Americans armed with Thompson submachine guns are wearing M1 rifle clip ammo belts instead of Thompson magazine belts.


    * Revealing mistakes: When Pvt. Schultz is lost and finds fellow soldiers across the wall from him, he crosses the wall by swinging his leg over it. When he does, it shakes.


    * Factual errors: There's a typo on the caption introducing General Pemsel. It says "Befehlssab 7. Armee" where has to be "Befehlsstab 7. Armee"


    * Anachronisms: When the ships are about to begin bombarding the beaches you see a group of planes fly by the camera these are Douglas Sky Raiders which did not see service until the late 1940s.


    * Continuity: During the British glider assault on the bridge, the same glider lands three times.


    * Revealing mistakes: When LTC Vandervoort uses his flashlight to illuminate his map (while having his broken ankle taped), the flashlight illuminates the map, but displays a flashlight-shaped shadow in the center of the map (indicating the stage light used to "really" illuminate the map).


    * Continuity: When the coded radio messages are read out in French, the awaited second line of the poem by Verlaine, "Blesse mon coeur d'une langueur monotone" ("Wounds my heart with a monotonous languor") sets the French resistance-group in motion. They leave the hiding Allied pilots and take up rifles. The next line heard on the radio before it is shut off is "J'aime les chats siamois" ("I like Siamese cats") But when the Germans hear and are recording the identical broadcast and hear the line of poetry, the coded message after that is a message heard before the French resistance-fighters heard the poetry line: "Daphné à Monique: Il y a le feu à l'agence de voyage. Inutile de s'y rendre." ("Daphne to Monique: There is a fire at the travel agency. It is no use to get there").


    * Factual errors: When the second line of the Verlaine poem is said ("Blessent mon coeur d'une langueur monotone"), the subtitle reads "Wounds [singular] my heart with a monotonous languor". It should say "Wound", plural, as the subject of the verse is the plural "sobs".


    * Revealing mistakes: When the two men are on the rocking boat in the beginning, the straps on their helmets remain at a 90 degree angle to the car they're sitting in despite the boat's drastic rocking back on forth, showing that it was the camera, not the boat wobbling.


    * Factual errors: When Lord Lovat leads his men to Pegasus Bridge, he can clearly be seen holding a Mannlicher Schoenauer Model 1903 carbine. One of the well-known eccentricities of Lord Lovat was that he always carried an old Winchester rifle in combat.


    * Anachronisms: During the go/no go sequence, a jet can be heard flying overhead as the naval representative is speaking.


    * Factual errors: The real Ouistreham casino had been destroyed and replaced by a German bunker before the D-Day landings, rather than having a bunker built into its basement as shown. The casino seen in the film was a set built on the harbour at Port-en Bessin.


    * Anachronisms: During a very early scene in France, the back end of a Citroen 2CV can be seen parked at the side of the street as the German soldiers march down it.


    * Factual errors: When Lovat orders the piper to play "Blue Bonnets over the Border", the song he actually plays is "Black Bear".


    * Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Lovat"s commandos land, the piper is playing "Black Bear"; however, when we see the piper he is still trying to inflate the bagpipe using one hand.


    * Factual errors: The British pathfinders land on the HQ of General Von Salmuth, commander of the 15th army. However, the pathfinders had actually landed on General Reichert's HQ (Reicher was commander of the 711 division in Normandy) and also, Von Salmuth and the 15th army were actually at the Pas De Calais.


    * Factual errors: The movie shows that the German 159mm guns on Pointe du Hoc were gone when Colonel Rudder's Rangers got there. It doesn't show that the Rangers continued inland, found the guns and destroyed them.


    * Factual errors: In the film, the helmets worn by the 2nd Rangers at Pointe-du-Hoc have no markings. In reality, Ranger helmets had an orange diamond on the back, with a number indicating battalion.


    * Factual errors: According to Ryan's book, far from being deafened by the church bell, John Steele said that he didn't notice it.


    * Crew or equipment visible: During the shelling at the beginning of the invasion the French farmers mirror breaks and its position shifts. In doing so a stage light is clearly seen.


    * Revealing mistakes: In the early scene between Generals Gavin and Cota, the sentry pacing in the rain outside the Quonset hut walks through a shaft of sunlight several times; also, his shadow is clearly visible.


    * Continuity: When the French first attack the casino there is barbed wire, but when they run from the hotel to the casino there is none.


    * Continuity: In the scene where Brig. Gen. Teddy Roosevelt, Jr. (Henry Fonda) lands at Utah Beach he can be clearly seen completely falling in the water as he steps of the landing craft (look for Fonda holding the walking stick), and with clothes completely soaked running up the beach. As the scene continues he crouches behind a beach obstacle with other officers. As the scene cuts to a closeup, his clothing is suddenly dry.


    * Continuity: At the beginning of the movie Field Marshall Rommel is giving a speech. He disappears briefly, then reappears, while the background stays the same.


    * Factual errors: Although Vandervoort and Steele are shown wearing "jump" boots, as befitted their status as paratroopers, Pvt. Schultz, also a paratrooper, wears two-buckle infantry "combat" boots. This type of boot was not worn to any degree on D-Day, even by the regular infantry (they wore ankle-high "field" boots with canvas leggings), much less the paratroopers.


    * Factual errors: Colin Maud and his pug, "Winston" are shown spurring "British" Soldiers into advancing up the beach. In actual fact the incident took place on the sole "Canadian" Beach, Juno - and Maud's dog was an "Alsatian" - the (then) politically correct designation for "German Shepherd".


    * Factual errors: During some of the scenes they show U.S. paratroopers bailing out of British "Lancaster" bombers. They used C-47 Dakota transports exclusively.


    * Factual errors: Kenneth Moore, playing beach master Commander Maud, wears four stripes of a captain rather than three of a commander.


    * Continuity: When the French Commando Commanding Officer, Keiffer goes to get a tank he jumps out a window and is followed by another commando. This man is armed with a STEN Mk V (version with a wooden butt-stock and grips) when he jumps out the window, but when he runs across the street and takes cover with Keiffer before going to the bridge, he is armed with a STEN Mk II (version with steel skeleton butt-stock).


    * Factual errors: The American paratroopers are incorrectly shown jumping with a jumpmaster standing in the plane and commanding them to "Go!" "Go!" one at a time. On D-Day, as on all combat jumps, the jumpmaster was always first out the door, with the rest of the paratroopers following immediately behind him, exiting the plane as fast as they could in order to land as close together as possible.


    * Factual errors: During the meeting with LtC Vandervoort, Brig. Gen. James M. Gavin is wearing branch insignia for Infantry. General officers at that time, (and until recently), did not wear branch insignia as they could command any type of unit.


    * Anachronisms: During the preparations for the landings, landing craft can be seen entering the water from the inside stern of a ship. These types of ship were not yet available at the time. They were carried atop assault ships at the time.


    * Factual errors: At the beginning of the film and again when the bombardment takes place prior to the invasion, The French farmer is seen watching Sergeant on horseback, delivering coffee to the beach gunners. First of all it's hard to believe the Germans would have allowed the French farmer to continue living in such close proximity to the ocean, where it would be possible to signal passing ships. And secondly, the shells detonating at such close proximity would have severely damaged if not demolished the house and the concussion would have killed the man and his wife.


    * Audio/visual unsynchronized: When FO David Campbell is sitting, drinking a beer, we see someone standing and playing the piano in the background. The music heard is a slow rendition of the main theme of the movie, but the player is playing several notes with his right hand in the time only one note is heard in the soundtrack.


    * Factual errors: The "Rupert" paratrooper dummies dropped on D-Day were not the highly elaborate and lifelike rubber dummies shown in the film. The actual dummies were fabricated from sackcloth or burlap stuffed with straw or sand and were only crude representations of a human figure. They only appeared human from a distance during the descent and were equipped with an explosive charge that burned away the cloth after landing to prevent the immediate discovery of their true nature. A total of 500 dummies, accompanied by a handful SAS troopers, were dropped at four locations. The SAS played recordings of battle noise, set off smoke grenades and used their weapons to further enhance the deception. The whole operation was code named Operation Titanic.


    * Factual errors: Actors Robert Ryan and John Wayne - both in their mid 50s when the movie was made - were (and looked) some 20 and 30 years too old respectively to be portraying their real-life counterparts. Ryan's character Major General James Gavin (the youngest man to hold that rank in the U.S. Army) was only in his mid 30s at the time of D-Day, and Wayne's character Lt. Col. Ben Vandervoort was only 27.


    * Factual errors: Richard Burton's character is introduced early on in the movie by an on-screen caption giving his rank as "Flight Officer". There is (and never has been) any such rank in the Royal Air Force. The correct title is "Flying Officer".


    * Factual errors: All vehicles to be used in the invasion had invasion stars, which is a star in a intermittent circle.


    * Revealing mistakes: During the cliff-scaling sequence, when the Allies use grenades to kill men at a cliffside gun outpost, the men who fall from the cliff following the explosion are obviously dummies.


    * Anachronisms: General Gavin is wearing a Senior Parachutist badge in 1944.The Parachutist Badge was formally approved on 10 March 1941. The senior and master parachutists badges were authorized by Headquarters, Department of the Army in 1949 and were announced by Change 4, Army Regulation 600-70, dated 24 January 1950.


    * Continuity: When Sal Mineo is shot dead, we hear two shots, but we only hear the bolt action rifle cycled once.


    * Factual errors: During the sequence where the dummies were being dropped and the Germans were firing upon the aircraft, the Germans were firing both Bofors anti-aircraft guns, and an American 12.7mm quad anti-aircraft gun, when the Germans were not equipped with either weapon.


    * Factual errors: In the sequence where the French attacked a town, the Germans were using a 2.0 cm Oerlikon gun which was primarily a naval gun. (It is possible the Germans really used such a gun but it is unlikely.)


    Memorable Quotes


    Filming Locations
    Château de Chantilly, Chantilly, Oise, France
    (Kommandantur scenes)
    Cyprus
    Fox Boulogne Studios, Boulogne-Billancourt, Hauts-de-Seine, France
    (studio)
    France
    La Pointe du Hoc, Calvados, France
    La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime, France
    Orne, France
    Ouistreham, Calvados, France
    Plage de Lotu, Saint-Florent, Haute-Corse, France
    Plage de Saleccia, Saint-Florent, Haute-Corse, France
    Pont-du-Bessin, Calvados, France
    Sainte-Mère-Eglise, Manche, France
    Île de Ré, Charente-Maritime, France


    Watch the Trailer:-


    [extendmedia]nqFn_pM5QxU[/extendmedia]


    Previous discussion:-
    The Longest Day

  • The Longest Day is a 1962 war film based on the 1959 history book
    The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan, about D-Day, the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944,
    during World War II.
    Producer Darryl F. Zanuck paid the book's author, Cornelius Ryan, $175,000 for the film rights.
    The screenplay adaptation was written by Romain Gary, James Jones,
    David Pursall, Jack Seddon, and Ryan.


    It was directed by Ken Annakin (British and French exteriors),
    Andrew Marton (American exteriors), Gerd Oswald (parachute drop scene),
    Bernhard Wicki (German scenes), and Darryl F. Zanuck (uncredited).


    The Longest Day, which was made in black and white,
    features a large ensemble cast including John Wayne, Kenneth More,
    Richard Todd (an actual Normandy veteran), Robert Mitchum,
    Richard Burton, Sean Connery, Henry Fonda, Red Buttons,
    Rod Steiger, Leo Genn, Peter Lawford, Gert Fröbe, Irina Demick,
    Bourvil, Curd Jürgens, Robert Wagner, Paul Anka
    and Arletty.
    Many of these actors played roles that were virtually cameo appearances.


    The film employed several Axis and Allied military consultants who had been actual participants on D-Day.
    Many had their roles re-enacted in the film.
    These included: Günther Blumentritt (a former German general),
    James M. Gavin (an American general), Frederick Morgan (Deputy Chief of Staff at SHAEF),
    John Howard (who led the airborne assault on the Pegasus Bridge),
    Lord Lovat (who commanded the 1st Special Service Brigade),
    Philippe Kieffer (who led his men in the assault on Ouistreham),
    Pierre Koenig (who commanded the Free French Forces in the invasion),
    Max Pemsel (a German general), Werner Pluskat (the major who was the first German officer to see the invasion fleet),
    Josef "Pips" Priller (the hot-headed pilot) and Lucie Rommel (widow of Erwin Rommel).


    Although the Canadian Army landed at Juno Beach on 6 June 1944,
    it was the only Allied nation not mentioned in the film.


    I have this film both, in the original black and white,
    and also the colour version, which is screened in a different
    format, and different dialogue captions!
    I really rate this film, with it's massive cast of cameos
    of almost every actor in the world, so it seems!!


    Curiously Duke was only in the film 8 times,
    for a total of 12 minutes and 15 seconds!
    but with careful editing, he appears to be in it all the way through.
    He got paid $250'000 , for 4 days work, not bad heh??


    The crew consumed 63'000 meals, 145,000 bottles of wine and drinks,.
    These costs amounted to almost one-tenth of the budget!!!
    I thought he played a credible part, and looked
    confident and at ease with his role.
    I thought the whole thing was great, and I could watch it endless times,
    and still see something, I'd missed.


    User Review

    .

  • The Longest Day is a great movie and when you think of all the star performance in that film it is the scenes with Duke that are most remembered.


    It also cost Darryl Zannuck a lot of money to get Duke which paid him back for his comments on The Alamo.

  • Scenes from The Longest Day, were filmed in these locations


    Sainte-Mere-Eglise


    Normandy, France



    Sainte-Mère-Église is a commune in the Manche department
    in Normandy in north-western France.


    The town's main claim to fame is that it played a significant part
    in the World War II Normandy landings because this village stood right
    in the middle of route N13, which the Germans would have most likely
    used on any significant counterattack on the troops landing
    on Utah and Omaha Beaches.
    In the early morning of 6 June 1944
    mixed units of the U.S. 82nd Airborne and U.S. 101st Airborne Divisions
    occupied the town in Operation Boston, giving it the claim
    to be one of the first towns liberated in the invasion.


    D-Day battle
    The early landings, at about 0140 directly on the town,
    resulted in heavy casualties for the paratroopers.
    Some buildings in town were on fire that night, and they illuminated the sky,
    making easy targets of the descending men.
    Some were sucked into the fire.
    Many hanging from trees and utility poles were shot before they could cut loose.
    The German defenders were alerted.


    ..


    A famous incident involved paratrooper John Steele of the 505th PIR,
    whose parachute caught on the spire of the town church,
    and could only observe the fighting going on below.
    He hung there limply for two hours, pretending to be dead,
    before the Germans took him prisoner.
    Steele later escaped from the Germans and rejoined his division
    when US troops of the 3rd Battalion, 505 Parachute Infantry Regiment
    attacked the village capturing thirty Germans and killing another eleven.
    The incident was portrayed in the movie The Longest Day by actor Red Buttons.



    Later that morning, about 0500, a force led by Lt. Colonel Edward C. Krause
    of the 505th PIR took the town with little resistance.
    Apparently the German garrison was confused and had retired
    for the rest of the night.
    However, heavy German counterattacks began later in the day and into the next.
    The lightly-armed troops held the town until reinforced by tanks from nearby
    Utah Beach in the afternoon of 7 June.
    Other notable soldiers in the Allied assault on the town:
    * Lt. Colonel Benjamin H. Vandervoort (played by John Wayne)
    * Lt. Turner B. Turnbull
    * Capt. Ben Schwartzwalder
    * Cpl. Edward A. Slavin, Sr.
    * Sgt. George Bowler Tullidge III.


    Krause and Vandervoort both received the Distinguished Service Cross
    for their actions in the capture of the town.
    Tullidge received the Bronze Star, and it is noted that a collection
    of Bible verses and of his letters home, A Paratrooper's Faith,
    was distributed throughout the 82nd Airborne by his parents
    following his death until the 1990s.


    Henry Langrehr was also involved in the capture of Sainte-Mère-Église.
    He crashed through a greenhouse roof, as retold in the movie The Longest Day.
    On 6 November 2007 he received, along with five other men, the Legion of Honor medal from the President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy.


    This village is depicted in the game Call of Duty,
    the first battle is fought in this village by the player's character.
    Information from wikipedia
    edited and suplemented by ethanedwards
    __________________________________________________________________________
    La Pointe of Hoc


    Normandy, France



    Point du Hoc is a small step on the Normandy coast in the English Channel ,
    situated in the Calvados .
    It overlooks a cliff 25 to 30 meters high with a pebble beach
    of about ten meters wide at its feet.
    The tip is on the Common Cricqueville-en-Bessin .



    It was the scene of one of the Allied landing in Normandy on June 6, 1944 .
    Located between the beaches of Utah Beach (west) and Omaha Beach (east),
    the tip had been fortified by the Nazis and, according to Allied air reconnaissance
    was equipped with heavy artillery whose scope threatened the two nearby beaches.
    It was considered essential for the successful landing, artillery pieces
    that are put out of service as quickly as possible.



    This mission was entrusted to the 2nd battalion of U.S. Rangers
    who managed to take control of the site with heavy losses.
    Subsequently, the artillery will prove to have been displaced
    by the Germans shortly before and installed 1.5 kilometers back to the inland.
    Information from wikipedia
    For more information:-
    Pointof Hoc-wikipedia
    ___________________________________________________________________________
    Ile-De-Re


    La Rochelle, France



    Île de Ré is an island off the west coast of France near La Rochelle,
    on the northern side of the Pertuis d'Antioche strait.


    This island is completely flat; it is 30 km long and 5 km wide.
    A 2.9 km bridge, completed in 1988, connects it to La Rochelle on the mainland.



    During World War II, the beaches of the Île de Ré were fortified by German forces
    with bunkers, in order to block a possible seaward invasion.
    Many of the bunkers are still visible, in a more or less derelict state.
    Several scenes of the 1962 movie The Longest Day were filmed
    on the beaches of the island.


    For more information:-
    Ile-De-Re-wikipedia
    __________________________________________________________________________
    Plage de Saleccia


    Corsica, France


    One of the beaches used for location



    Plage de Saleccia, off the Désert des Agriates on the north coast
    and west of Saint-Florent.
    Bastia is the nearest large town and ferry port.
    Saleccia has perfect soft sand, clear azure water and a natural backdrop.

  • Hi
    It is the last Duke's film that I have seen, it was released here not long ago. It is a great movie, I like it very much. I have black and white widescreen version.
    And it was mainly interesting for me because I knew this war better from the other fronts.
    Regards,
    Vera

  • This is an excellent huge scale ware movie that is completely engrossing, even though John Wayne has a very small part in it he is still excellent and is a major force in holding the movie together.


    I honestly believe that this movie is better than 'Saving private Ryan' and for me in one of the best war movies ever made.


    :agent:

  • Hi


    Two books which give a great deal of information on the making of the Longest Day are:


    Zanuck the biography of the Direct Darryl F Zanuck by Leonard Mosely


    and


    MItchum by Lee Server


    The second contains a great deal of information about the stars involvement with the making of the film and of the battles he had with the army.


    Another great article on the film is Itdo's article in The Trail Beyond Volume VI issue 2004 which is probably still available from Tim Lilley.


    And finally the souvenir brochure from the film is also worth a read.


    Regards


    Arthur

  • Hi


    Sean Connery who appeared in the film had been at twentieth century for a number of years and the only film he appeared in for the studio was The Longest Day shortly before his contract expired.


    Travelling on a crowded train during the journey because of his lowly station he was forced to sit on the floor.


    When asked by a British companion what his future plans were he said I'm going to play a special agent called James Bond in a lousy movie called Dr No.


    The companion later revealed that after that not only would he be guaranteed a seat he would have probably been able to buy the train.


    Regards


    Arthur

  • Quote

    Originally posted by arthurarnell@Jan 29 2006, 01:12 AM
    The companion later revealed that after that not only would he be guaranteed a seat he would have probably been able to buy the train.

    [snapback]26135[/snapback]


    Isn't that the truth?


    Sean Connery is up there awful close to John Wayne in my book.


    Not so much for the James Bond movies, but we especially enjoyed him in Darby O'Gill and the Little People and the Indiana Jones movie, The Last Crusade.


    The Longest Day is probably one of the best non-documentary WWII movies around, and is available at Deep Discount DVD as part of a boxed set, and you can purchase it from Amazon, where you pay through Amazon and arrange for local pick-up at a store near you.


    Chester :newyear:

  • This is another of my all-time most favorite movies. The cast cannot be beat and I (upon learning it here) do wish that Charlton Heston had made it into the movie but in another role. I can't imagine John Wayne NOT being in this fine movie.


    A bit more trivia for you.


    General Norman D. Cota was the C.G. of the "Keystone" Division nicknamed: The Bloody Bucket Division." They were to get this name because of losing so many men in the Battle of the Huertgen Forest-which took place later in 1944-to early 1945.


    Also on Cota: This General was known as "The G.I. General" because he rose up through the ranks from Buck Private to his current position as General.


    _______


    A good friend of mine who lives in Washington owns a complete Corporals uniform to a soldier who fought with Richard Todd. This man was one a a VERY few who came through that fight uninjured. Sadly, this man passed away last year. :-((

    Es Ist Verboten Mit Gefangenen In Einzelhaft Zu Sprechen..

  • I must repeat what everybody else has said: one of the very best war movies ever. I especially like how it is all about strategy, chances, mistakes and the people involved in the both fronts, and not about ideologies or other reasons behind the war. The black and white photography is brilliant, and so is the way how the bits and pieces form a coherent picture of the invasion.
    All actors are good, and so is Duke, but he also manages to stand out more than anybody during his 12 minutes on screen.

    I don't believe in surrenders.

  • There is a special edition vesion coming out on DVD which will get the annoying letterbox version a nice goodbye. The video and audio will be enhanced and it will be in the widescreen format. Look for it in June. I posted on this site the exact dates but I cannot remember where I posted it at. :headbonk:

    Life is hard, its even harder when your stupid!!
    -John Wayne

  • I have to say that The Longest Day is by far my favorite of the Duke's war movies. The cast is supurb, and the acting is excellent. One of my favorite of JW's lines is from this movie. When he is on the ship and is addressing the men "You can't give the enemy a break. Send 'em to hell." That line chills me.

  • Absolutely stunning, fantastic cinematography, great acting and a mind boggling, all encompassing view of the invasion on D-Day. I just saw this one on tv because it was remembrance day and I can't compliment it enough. Despite knowing the actual outcome of the invasion, I was holding my breath during parts of the movie, unsure just what would happen next.

    The only problem that I have with the movie is that it is just a little too spread thin. By which I mean, you don't have a chance to get attached to many of the characters. I know that with an epic like this (and I most certainly believe that it is an epic) some character development is lost. But a small price to pay for a fantastic movie.

    A must for any John Wayne fan or anyone who appreciates the sacrifices made so that we can all be here now.

    Beautiful and gritty.

    10/10

    [SIZE=3]That'll Be The Day[/SIZE]

  • This movie is one of my earliest memories of movies and of John Wayne. Over the years and consertively speaking, I have seen this film at least 80 times being seconded by The Green Berets. I might add that I "broke in" my portable DvD player with The Longest Day playing on it as I sat eating lunch at a Mexican Restaurant. People at the table next to me were also watching and commenting on the movie (positive comments of course ;-))

    Es Ist Verboten Mit Gefangenen In Einzelhaft Zu Sprechen..

  • AMC is showing The Longest Day right now. And I noticed something a bit strange. Jeff Hunter is in the movie and it seems like he played two different characters. They just showed a scene where he and Tommy Sands are on one of the transports heading for the invasion. Well, the troops on that ship are Rangers heading for Pointe du Hoc. But, in later scenes, Hunter is on Omaha Beach heading up a demolition crew trying to blow a hole for the U.S. troops to rush through. Now, he was either a Ranger or he was with one of the divisions on Omaha but, he couldn't be two places at once. And he couldn't have gone astray ending up from the Rangers on Pointe du Hoc to Omaha. I think the director might have forgot just where Hunter character was supposed to be.

  • I was initially reluctant to watch this film, cause it was a war film and for the longest time I had the strongest aversion to that genre. But after deciding to suck it up and watch it, I found it to be an extremely enjoyable film with no weak parts whatsoever other than a miner deficiency of vitamin Duke.