Customer Reviews

Ike - Countdown to D-Day

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With a marvelous and for the most part accurate script based on historical documents (though embellished with "certain composite and representative scenes and characters"), Lionel Chetwynd has written a compelling drama about General Eisenhower and the planning of the D-Day invasion, with thoughtful and well paced direction by Robert Harmon, and a superb performance by Tom Selleck, who captures Eisenhower's strength, manly charisma, and many of the subtle mannerisms reminding me of this hero of mine since youth.
The cinematography by David Gribble is wonderful, and the atmospheric score by Jeff Beal also adds much to the film.

Filmed in New Zealand in less than 3 weeks, the terrific cast is mostly from Australia and New Zealand (with exceptions like Timothy Bottoms, excellent as Eisenhower's Chief of Staff Walter Bedell Smith); stellar among them is Ian Mune who plays Churchill. Others include Bruce Phillips as General Montgomery, and George Shevtsov as Charles DeGaulle, in a scene where DeGaulle displays such arrogance towards Eisenhower that it will vex those of us who remember and honor the American blood left on French soil.

This is far from a wartime action film; it is sometimes sober and introspective, and always fascinating, with the intricacy of the planning for D-Day, and the many characters and huge egos involved, some upset by Eisenhower's insistence of being the Supreme Commander, always holding one's attention. The expectation of the massive casualties for D-Day makes one wonder how this type of operation would be viewed in today's media age, where long-term objectives are rarely considered. Eisenhower in addressing King George VI (Mick Rose) on the king's fear of expected losses says "...but if they do not offer the sacrifice of blood now, we will all pay dearly with added gallons later. So if some must die, it is in a worthy cause".

This production for the A & E Network makes perfect viewing for a day like Veteran's Day, to honor the lives of those who have died so heroically for our freedoms. Total time is 2 hours, and the main DVD "Extra" is an interesting interview with writer Chetwynd (who also produced/wrote the excellent "DC 9/11: Time of Crisis") and director Harmon; both speak of how Selleck has some of Eisenhower's admirable characteristics, and Selleck, who tells how as a non-smoker, he played a man with a 4 pack a day habit.

I admit that I love Tom Selleck. He was always a childhood hero of mine, "Magnum P.I." that is. Let's face it, Tom is a Man's Man. The perfect Hero. He can do light comedy, hard drama and everything in between. Tom rules.

It is only because Tom headlined this story that I was willing to watch it at all. From the first 2 minutes, I was hooked! Instead of your traditional "beginning, middle and end" the first 60 seconds of the story dumps you straight into heavy drama. There is no joking around. Thousands of allied troops are at stake and losses could reach from 80% to Total if these men get this wrong.

The acting is strong and earnest. The director uses many close shots that assist the audience in the feeling that they are also at this tiny table surrounded by smoke. You can feel the tension in the air as the intelligence and counter-intelligence reports come in.

How much do the Germans know? How many troops can we secretly move without being detected? Are all the allied nations and their respective troops on the same page here with us? Is there anything we've missed? Is the new equipment really going to perform as it should? What if it doesn't? What will happen if the weather goes bad?

These and other questions way heavily on Dwight Eisenhower as he tries to negotiate and coordinate the most massive commitment of air, sea and land troops the world had ever seen. So much could go wrong and everything hinged on minutes, not hours to turn the tide of battle.

Tom is fantastic in a role that is unlike anything he's ever done. You can feel the tension and anguish in his voice as he talks about projected allied casualties. You can feel as if you're in the room with his senior staff and even though you may know the history, this film presents the story as fresh. The acting is compelling and the story simply refuses to be put in a box. There is nothing about the elements of this story that couldn't be being played out right now in Iraq, Korea or anywhere else in the world.

This is a story of human courage in the teeth of opposition. Opposition, an enemy, that is strong enough to strike back and destroy you if you get even one part of this wrong. This is drama at it's finest, because they didn't need $100 million dollars of digital special effects to sell the story. It's ALL in the acting. I wish Hollywood would sit up and take notice.

Back when this movie first premiered on TV on A&E, I had the chance a couple of days later to be sitting around a Doctor's waiting room and an elderly gentleman asked if I had seen the movie. I told him I had and furthermore I was always very interested in WWII history. He was happy to hear that as he was not only a WWII vet, but had had the opportunity to meet and talk with Ike during WWII.

He was quite impressed with Tom Selleck's performance as was I. I think he captured the essence of Ike quite well as a man who was born to lead. The movie seemed historically accurate and the fact that there was so much debate over the D-Day invasion was quite fascinating. I also enjoyed James Remar as Gen. Omar Bradley. Better than average TV movie.

I didn't see this movie until a year ago when it ran on The History Channel, and was unprepared for its excellence. That it received 6 Emmy nominations offers ample proof of the way Selleck's peers saw his efforts.

I've read quite a bit on Ike from his own writings, to Kay Summersby's writing, to other biographies so I was not unfamiliar with background on either Eisenhower or D-Day. And I've been a fan of Tom Selleck for years not only for his adaptable abilities as an actor, but more down to earth that he is an ex-basketball player for U.S.C.

I was not prepared for how well Tom Selleck blended into the role of Ike, I didn't see Tom Selleck, I saw and heard Dwight Eisenhower. For me this is the role of Tom Selleck's life, just as Sean Connery was made for Bond, and Jeremy Brett for Holmes, Tom Selleck was destined to be Ike. I cannot believe anyone will ever improve on his portrayal of Ike.

So if you want a fairly factual movie on the countdown to D-Day when the lives of millions rested on what one man decided and willed, this is the movie for you.

Without any hesitation, nor reservation, I recommend this DVD.

Semper Fi.

I watch this film every weekend since I got it weeks back. What a leader! Ike was a natural leader, his concern for the young men and woman that would die in battle only shows how a true leader should feel about a decision for war. Tom Selleck does a masterful job and should win an emmy and a golden globe for this. He absolutely digs into the character bring out the fair, hard and emotional parts very well.

The directing is excellent, drawing in close when needed and an excellent combination of music and background to capture the momment. I would recommend an emmy also for the director.

This movie should be shown in any leadership class. The world benefited from two great men being together at the same time, Ike and Churchil. I cannot immagine if Montgomery had been made supreme commander, it would have been a riot house. Ike handled the huge egos of the Generals and the political and media pressure very well.

Ike says something, as he contemplates the decision to attack..."THERE IS NO GLORY IN WAR"...how true, how true...At the end he says "WE WILL NEVER SEE THE KIND OF MEN AND WOMEN WHO DIED EVER AGAIN"

We have all seen the movies which depict the horror and heroism of the battle of D-Day. What is often forgotten by historians and filmmakers alike is the magnitude of effort that went into D-Day long before June 6, 1944. Dwight D. Eisenhower was relatively unknown, and a largely untried combat officer prior to Operation Overlord. It speaks volumes to the man's character, that he was able to persuade the Allied leaders to agree to the concept of a Supreme Commander, let alone make himself; an American General with little experience, from a largely untried, American Army to lead military forces from other nations. Ike was able to bring world leaders, hugely successful and famous military commanders, and pompous but useful tacticians together to pull off the greatest logistical accomplishment the world has ever seen. I can pay no greater compliment to Tom Sellek, than he certainly did justice to the role of Dwight D. Eisenhower.

In the director's commentary track, it is mentioned that the idea for this film came from Stephen Ambrose. Then it clicked into place for me, to view Ike: Countdown to D-Day as an introduction, if you will, to Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers. You will get both the view from 10,000 feet and from close up. Similar high production values, and excellent acting in all.

The key to this movie is the scene when Ike stands before the King and Queen of England and allows them to see inside his heart. He no more wants one of his soldiers to die than he wants his son, John to die. If there was some way he could fight a war without losing men, he would be the happiest general on earth. But that's not the way war works. His job is to fight Hitler and Nazi Germany now, with the losses that must be suffered now, rather than hoping for perfect conditions that may never come. Delay decisions that will only cause higher losses. Tom Selleck is brilliantly cast and he plays the part of Eisenhower with deft skill. This movie, like "Twelve O'clock High" examines the plight of command. It's a tough job to play God, to make decisions that affect so many and once the decision is made, to back away and allow others to do their job.

Tom Selleck stars as General Dwight D. Eisenhower in this powerful film about the events leading up to the invasion of Normandy by the Allied forces. Eisenhower's first task was to convince British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (Ian Mune) of the need for one solitaty supreme commander for the invasion. Churchill liked Ike's direct style and no-nonsense approach, and he readily endorsed Ike for the job.

Meanwhile, British General Bernard Montgomery (Bruce Phillips) was more than a bit miffed at being passed over for the job. Despite his victories over Rommel at El Alamein and Tobruk, he was denied the supreme commander job, but was still put in charge of all of the D-Day ground forces. One poignant part of the film was seeing General George Patton (Gerald McRaney) have to practically beg Ike not to send him back to the States. A hard-nosed tank commander who always got results on the battlefield, Patton routinely disobeyed orders from superiors. Perhaps his most well-known incident was calling a shell-shocked soldier a coward and forcing him back into combat. This incident did not sit well with Ike. Despite all of Patton's shortcomings, Ike kept him on for the invasion.

James Remar stars as General Omar Bradley. Remar gives a simply superb performance as Ike's right-hand man. Bradley was in charge of the assault troops on D-Day and he lobbed Ike hard to keep the paratroop drop on despite very bad weather. Ike agreed, and the paratroopers played a significant role in causing confusion among the German defenders.

Timothy Bottoms stars as General Walter Bedell "Beetle" Smith, Ike's chief of staff. A person would have a difficult time finding a soldier more loyal to his commander than Smith was. He typically ran interference between Ike and the press and he kept all of the operations flowing smoothly.

This is one of the best war films I have seen. The historical correctness of the film is evident from beginning to end, including the cold relationships between Ike and Montgomery and Ike and French General DeGaulle. The build-up to D-Day during the final few days is remarkably depicted, with the uncooperative weather, the hourly weather reports, and Ike's agonizing decision to go ahead with the invasion despite less than ideal conditions. The movie even shows Ike mingling with one of the glider paratrooper crews before take-off. Ike was a soldier's soldier, and this trait is shown throughout the movie.

I give this movie my highest recommendation. The acting by all members is tremendous, and the attention to detail is magnificent. I'm a huge fan of World War II movies, and after seeing this movie, it has quickly become one of my favorites. Watch this movie and see how one of America's greatest generals and his staff planned and executed the greatest invasion the world has ever seen.

This movie is about as far removed from Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan as were the American men who found the war were removed from their friends and families back home.

Yet, far from moving away from the reality of war, IKE does a better job of acknowledging the realities of war than the unbelievable gore in Saving Private Ryan. Although the latter was true to form with respect to D-Day, the reality of war is that it often involves long stretches of sheer boredom, only briefly interspersed with short moments of sheer terror.

Yes, IKE is a nostalgic movie. But in so doing, it moves us far closer to that time, to what really happened, than does Saving Private Ryan, which, although quite entertaining, was more along the lines of Star Ship Troopers Meets The Third Reich.

IKE faces the reality of war head on. Eisenhower's apparent rank distance from the fighting soldier is expertly reversed by Tom Selleck, who in my opinion has passed Tom Hanks both in terms of depth of character and authenticity - he's just that good. Selleck's way of anknowledging this difference not only diminishes it, but reduces it to rubble. He brings things home in a way Saving Private Ryan never could.

The litmus test here are the tears. Although moved by an aging Ryan's performance at the cemetary, I shed no tears, having been thoroughly numbed by the adrenaline-exhausting blood, guts, and gore throughout Saving Private Ryan. In stark contrast, a simple change of fate followed by the closing scenese began a rush of tears that turned into totally unexpected gut-wrenching sobs, in a mixture of joy and grief for the boys that made it through, for those that didn't, and for their friends and families that were impacted forevermore.

Before I saw this movie, I would have given Saving Private Ryan a score between 4 and 5 stars. IKE, however, has created a new genre of movies which will, I'm sure, soon be emulated, and IKE masterfully raised the bar so high that by contrast, SPR is reduced to, at best, a score of 3 stars.

IKE is just that good.