Monday, September 2, 2024

George Stevens: D-Day to Berlin (1994)

George Stevens: D-Day to Berlin (1994)

written, directed, produced and narrated by George Stevens, Jr.

46 minutes

This documentary follows film director George Stevens and the men who served with him as they served in the US Army and traveled from the beaches of Normandy, France in early June 1944 to Berlin, Germany in May 1945.

The footage for this documentary is mostly in color and all silent. It was shot by Stevens and the men who served with him. There are audio clips from interviews with a few of the men who served with Steven including Dick Kent, Ken Marthey, Ivan Moffat, Mullinghouse Morse, Jack Muth, and Irwin Shaw. The only footage from the time that the documentary was assembled was of George Stevens, Jr. first introducing and then closing out the film.

George Stevens (the elder) passed away in 1975. His contribution to this documentary, which was made almost 20 years later, is the footage.

Covering a year's worth of time in a 46 minutes documentary means that a number of things are just going to get mentioned. Nothing is really explored in depth, except visually. Thankfully the narration is sparse enough that it provides plenty of time to just absorb the images.

The most remarkable thing about this documentary is that it is almost entirely in color. It is worth seeing if you are interested in the subject but this is not groundbreaking in most respects.

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