Customer Reviews

World War I in Color

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

WWI in Color is not simply a hodge-podge collection of colorized WWI footage. While the colorization is certainly muted and tasteful, the color is, in fact, the least significant aspect of the series. Had the footage been entirely in black and white, the documentary would still be a superb visual introduction to the conflict.

Clearly, several episodes are not enough to cover every detail of WWI, but major battles, strategies, and technologies are covered nicely. The series devotes separate segments to trench warfare, the air war, the conflict at sea, and the eastern front. A background introduction to the conflict takes up the first episode and the sixth segment presents the conclusion of the war. Two bonus segments round out the series -- a discussion of tactics and strategy and a "making of" piece.

Of course, WWI in Color contains copious footage (for the time) that gives the viewer an invaluable visual sense of the conflict. Many of the film clips are stunning and unforgettable. Yet the series also interviews the few living veterans of the war and asks military historians to expound on various topics. The well-paced narration provides numerous and interesting details.

All in all, a fine and worthy effort that deserves to be viewed.

Some of the best historians of the Great War have contributed to this feature, Gary Sheffield and Norman Stone are among the finest in all of military history.

The colorization process is excellent and the historical accuracy is even better.

This is not a day by day running of the war but is rather more of an overview. This is essentially a true account of how the allies came to win the war. It is not however the accepted 'schools' version of events and is in my view all the better for that.

This is perhaps one of the most enjoyable documentaries I have seen in recent years. Do not be put off by the colorization process used to tint the existing archival footage; indeed, it actually improves upon the viewing experience and compliments Sir Kenneth Brannah's lucid and absorbing narration. Everything is included here and covered with enough detail to satisfy and entertain either the armchair historian or the seasoned PhD. It is good to see that more high quality documentaries are being made about WWI--in many respects a war that was truly the world's first "modern war" that changed the map of Europe forever.

Stunning! COLOR makes this footage more realistic than any other documentary of "The War to End All Wars". Today's technology makes a huge difference, but the narration (Kenneth Branagh) and personal accounts from men who were in the war make even more impact. This series is a great overview-not a complete history, but certainly covers the important segments. More than that, it offers the emotion, the feel of that war, the hardships. I personally learned a great deal about the war that my American grandfather lived through. Most who will watch this amazing footage will have never talked to a living soldier that survived, there are few left, and most of today's population is too young. This is an important piece of DVD saved history, necessary in every library and historical department of school.

As important as the technologically added film color, is the educational focus on war machinery and weaponry that WWI inspired. I learned carriers, folding winged planes, tanks, flame throwers, and so much more was first used in WWI, not WWII. WWI was not all horse drawn equipment. The civilian footage (now in color) is dramatic as well. Literally seeing those early 20th century lifestyles & people on footage that is typically only found in still B/W photos is powerful.

ALL 6 episodes as well as 2 excellent Bonus segments (one longer than an episode) provide SUBTITLES. The bonus material is as interesting and well done as the episodes. 20 bios, facts bonus, a time line, plus a booklet pack even more of the war into this set. Topics reachable in scene selections: classroom friendly.

Episode details:
1___"Catastrophe" The cause: assassination in Sarajevo-1914, trenches, death, fighting, letters, wounded, survivors, diaries, air fighting, subs, steam and horse power--all there--now in color.
2___"Slaughter in the Trenches" 700+ miles of trench warfare proved a stalemate 1915-17, going 'over the top' meant almost certain death, new weaponry-more death.
3___"Blood in the Air" Dog fights, bi-planes lifting off a rigged battleship, ace hero's, bombing raids seen in color. Aerial reconnaissance, bi-planes with machine guns (fighters), Red Baron (in red), Flying circuses, sea planes, astonishing footage of air force action only 11 yrs after Kitty Hawk.
4___"Killers of the Sea" U-boats or submarines replaced battleship warfare, Lusitania-1915, Dardanelles, Jutland sea battle, ships going down, Hydrophone, depth charge, all covered with period film, now in color.
5___"Mayhem on the Eastern Front" German, Austrian & Russian western front trenches were horrific and as much a stalemate of the eastern trenches. The Russian Tzar falls leading to revolution and Lenin. Russian defeat adds to the eastern front difficulty.
6___"Victory and Despair" 1918 scenes of the bloody final year, victory, the cost, the aftermath, all of the pageantry and destruction colorized. A suspenseful final year for both sides. Then: 11th hour, 11th day, 11th month.

A quality DVD documentation of WWI with more education narration than entertainment, astonishing old footage, personal interviews, realistic action scenes, and a must see for history and/or war interests. This set's presentation you WILL NOT be able to forget.

World War I in Color is a wonderful documentary. It provides a surprisingly comprehensive look at World War I. The footage is remarkable. I am not a fan of colorizing black and white movies, but in this case it works well. I am a fan of military history and have a blossoming interest of World War I after having toured Verdun, Somme, and Ypres battlefields.

The only fault I have with the DVD is playing chapters and picking scenes. It is awkward. There are four major sections and about five or six chapters in each section. The chapters play smoothly one into the other, but the Sections end and you have to start the next section manually. This is a minor problem in an otherwise wonderful documentary.

I am not much of a "history buff", but I enjoy good history programmes, especially about military history and campaigns. Although "World War I in Colour" is not as comprehensive and thorough as "The Great War", it is a great mini-series giving a detailed account of the 1914 war.

I was a bit disappointed at the electronically coloured archive footage at first, but I changed my mind. The producers added sound effects, which help the viewer experience the battles first-hand. The colouring process is also top-notch. Letters from the front are read by actors while the footage is shown, which enhance the experience (the fake accents for the Russian, German and French letters are quite irritating, though). Finally, the narration of Sir Branagh is excellent - very calm and articulate.

This is a great item for history buffs or people simply interested in war history. If you are looking for in-depth analysis of the World War I, though, turn to "The Great War", still the best reference for that conflict.

I have been a student of this conflict for many years, and while it is certainly impossible to cover every nuance of this unbelievable struggle in a few hours of film, the makers of the program have come as close to the mark as one could reasonably expect. The addition of colorization only serves to bring the videos closer to the present; slowing down the motion also helps eliminate the "silent movie" jerkiness of most old flics, end result being a realistic, poignant and sobering representation of the war and the bravery with which the participants faced daily horror.

What is most notable, aside from the technical aspects noted above, is the narrative, which accurately depicts the underlying reasons for the conflict as well as the all-important opening weeks which directly led to the slaughterhouse of trench warfare. Most histories deal superficially with set-piece battle information and vague overviews. Watching this series actually presents an accurate and insightful understanding of the roots of the conflict as well as how and why events happened in the way they did. I was reminded of Barbara Tuchman's Pulitzer-prize winning "Guns of August". All in all, a somber, informative yet thrilling work.

This would be an outstanding asset for any secondary school history department.

This is, without question, one of the best series on WW1 that I have seen. The narration by Kenneth Branagh is perfectly paced and not overpowering. Though the computerized coloring does add some flavor to the series, it would be worth the cost even if in the original black and white. If you are looking for the bright colors of today's films you will be disappointed. The colors are muted and dull, but still there. Since the amount of film available from WWI is limited, some of the film footage was used multiple times, but the way it was integrated into the history kept the flow perfectly. Though my main interest is in WW II, I wanted something in my collection to help clarify the beginnings of that war. This series did just that. If you are looking for a clear, unambiguous description of the story behind WW I, look no further. This is it. Brilliant!

A much better dvd series on WWI would be The First World War: The Complete Series (2004). World War I in Color is not a complete set, but less comprehensive and informative. The colorization is an attractive feature to augment the more complete version.

This is the greatest documentary so far I have ever watched and the story telling part is especially interesting. It sheds tremendous lights on how things started to happen and how it ends.

On top of the contents of the DVD, the "colouring" of those motion pictures gave a more realistic feel of the war, setting audiences with a virtual environment where war is really happening around them.

It is amazing that WWI survivors were also being (and able to be) contacted and interviewed to add more spice to the documentary.

Though, some scenes were actually being used repeatedly throughout the film and it is a little boring and seemed BBC has limited footage in this subject area.

All in all, it's a great documentary and it is especially useful to be a medium in instilling interests in youngsters to get more involved in history and fact-findings of the past.