16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ok transfer- not restored but definately worthwhile, March 4, 2000
This review is from: World War II - Volumes 1-5 (DVD)
These are directed by Frank Capra and include the seven "Why We Fight" films. They are excellent for a number of reasons,, but since they are famous you can read commentaries elsewhere about their value. This review is about this set's particular transfer to DVD.
The contents are:
Volume 1: "Prelude to War" 53 min., "The Nazi Strike", 43 min..
Volume 2: "Divide and Conquer" 57 min., "The Battle of Britain", 53 min..
Volume 3: "The Battle of Russia" 84 min., "The Battle of China", 64 min..
Volume 4: "War comes to America" 66 min., "D-Day the Normandy Invasion, 51 min.
Volume 5: "The World at War" 44 min. "Appointment in Tokyo" 55 min.
I am new to DVDs, and do not have a lot of experience in assessing relative quality. I will comment factually on what I have seen. This may well be a conversion from video because when I looked closely, I could see little lines that look like scan lines on a TV. This is satisfactory for viewing, but it has not been restored. The spots and scratches are what you would expect from historical newreels, but it is not a distraction. The biggest damage I saw was on volume 3, at the concluding statements of "The Battle of Russia" where the recording ends abruptly cutting the narrator off in mid sentence.
The added features aren't huge like you'd find on a heavily annotated Hitchcock Vertigo DVD, but what is there is interesting- especially some of the propaganda posters. Each of the 5 disks have:
6 single page biographies of some WWII personalities related to the particular volume.
2 propaganda posters
5 trivia questions (I liked them but there were too few!)
Brief exmples of Newsreels (less than a minute on one disk)
There are no subtitles available on this, nor alternate languages.
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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not very good, May 5, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: World War II - Volumes 1-5 (DVD)
After reviewing the World at War Series I found that World War II Volumes 1-5 pale in comparison. The series tends to be a remake of old war propaganda news reels. The historical value tends more towards film making in the 1940's than to history during the second world war.The facts are shrouded in bias and there is no view point from the other side (i.e the axis powers). I was greatly dissapointed with this series and will sell these disks as soon as a buyer becomes available.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Every American alive today should see these films., November 15, 1999
This review is from: World War II - Volumes 1-5 (DVD)
In many ways it pains me to think that these films are not required viewing in public school, but then, our children might learn something about the trechery of man. These tremendous films, called "Why We Fight" show in a very understandable way, how lies, deception, and trechery from within can undermind a country and cause it's over throw.
Every school child, and every mother, should view these film so they might be armed with the knowledge necessary to protect this young and still growing nation.
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