Product Details

• Actors: Studs Terkel
• Directors: Noel Buckner, Mary Dore, Sam Sills
• Format: Black & White, Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: KINO INTERNATIONAL
• DVD Release Date: July 29, 2008
• Run Time: 98 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0018RNEY8
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #59,964 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
The fight for the freedom of Loyalist Spain during the 1936-39 civil war pitted an International Brigade of 35,000 civilian soldiers from more than 50 nations against the well-equipped insurgents of Generalissimo Francisco Franco. Aid to Franco came via Italian fighter planes from Mussolini and from the Nazi Condor Legion of Junker bombers sent by Hitler, who wanted to try out his new weaponry in anticipation of the larger war to come. Spurred by their government s failure to aid Spanish democracy, 2,800 American volunteers fought with distinction in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade within the international volunteer army. Lincoln veterans (over 750 were killed in Spain) returned home after the Loyalist defeat to encounter suspicion as premature anti-fascists. Branded Communist sympathizers, blacklisted for years and unable to get work, many paid dearly for their good fight. Narrated by Studs Terkel, The Good Fight explores a significant gap in our history through its use of newsreels, photographs, interviews with Lincoln veterans and Depression-era music. The eleven surviving veterans of the war who appear in this tough, stirring film share a common pride in their sacrifices of seventy years ago when the rise of world fascism crushed the spirit of democracy in a tragic rehearsal for World War II.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

- Interview with the Filmmakers (1988)
- Bill Bailey Stories: Outtakes from The Good Fight
- Homage with Pete Seeger
- Commemoration of Those Who Served
- Newly Remastered for 16x9 TVs

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Homage to Commitment, December 13, 2008

By	Randy Keehn (Williston, ND United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I developed a fascination with the Spanish Civil War as a teenager. It may have been the idealistic enchantment of a lost cause, an appreciation of the underside of History, the concept of a prelude to WWII, or the reaction to a series of Hemingway novels. Whatever the reason, I read what I could on the subject with a greater focus on literature than history. There is an unusually large selection of good novels for such a relatively obscure although important conflict. "The Cypresses Believe in God" is my favorite novel mainly because of its' impressive ability to weave a story that illuminates the whole of the various factions involved in the conflict. I read all I could of Cela, Hemingway, and Orwell as well as "One Million Dead" and "Peace After War"; the two subsequent novels by Gironella that completed his trilogy that began with "Cypresses". Throughout my 20's and 30's I would revisit the subject and I was always bothered by the inability to change the outcome of the Civil War. However, as I read more and more, especially "Homage to Catalonia", I was gradually realizing the negative side of the Loyalists. Their dominance by Stalinists could have turned Spain into another Albania; a Stalinist country that outlasted Stalin and had a dictator who ruled almost as long as Franco. I never reached the point where I started cheering for the Nationalists but I certainly had lost the idealism of my Youth.

I caught a sense of that idealism last night when I watched "The Good Fight". As my informed mind tried to keep my emotions in check, I found myself absorbed by the members of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade and the thoughts and recollections that they shared on film. There was a lot of newsreels of the events in Spain and film of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade. There was a lot of personal recollections as well as personal observations. The veterans that were interviewed were very dedicated people and I couldn't help but appreciate what their motivations were. I knew that there was a fair amount of socialist propaganda as the producers of the film chose to focus the beginning of the story on the Depression, joblessness and labor union strife in the US. However, in all fairness, this is what seems to have formed the motivation of the selected interviewees. Some were communists but others were seemingly less inclined and their lives after the Spanish Civil War reflected life-long dedication to fighting oppression wherever they found it. They acknowledged a number of shortcomings on their side but they also made the point that, I believe, led me in their direction as a young man; the Spanish Civil War was the opportunity to stop the rise of Fascism in Europe. Europe and America's refusal to aid the Loyalists may have led to WWII which caused the deaths of tens of millions of people. In my "reformed" perspective, I realized that the true saga of the Twentieth Century was the necessity to defeat both Fascism AND Communism. Still, I practically got goosebumps in appreciation for what this film had to share. I rented the copy I watched last night. I know that I will eventually own a copy of my own. This is an excellent documentary (even though I had to debrief myself afterwards).

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Untold History, December 8, 2008

By	K. Krochman "Chicago Ken" (Chicago IL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Franco, with the help of pro-Nazi Americans and with the full support of Adolf Hitler and the Catholic Church was allowed to overthrow a democratically elected government and replace it with a Fascist dictatorship that lasted for decades. This is one of the most important civil wars fought in this century, yet it's barely mentioned in modern American history books.

The Good Fight is an accurate historical account told by the people (mostly Americans) that risked everything they had to fight and support the free people of Spain.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars wow, November 11, 2008

By	Cornerstone (Jacksonville,FL,USA) - See all my reviews

Everybody should watch this!
Wonderfully done, very crisp, complete, emotional and accurate. Really, there are few documents about the international brigades, but thankfully this is of enormous quality!