Product Details

• Actors: Michael Caine, Bob Hoskins, John Lithgow, Ed Begley Jr., Jan Tríska
• Directors: Joseph Sargent
• Writers: David W. Rintels
• Producers: Bruce M. Kerner, David W. Rintels, Ethel Winant, Victoria Riskin
• Format: Black & White, Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 2
• Studio: Mpi Home Video
• VHS Release Date: August 31, 1994
• Run Time: 194 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 630310679X
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,776 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful. History comes alive! Great entertainment., May 22, 2003

By 

Roger J. Buffington (Huntington Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World War 2 - When Lions Roared (TV Mini Series) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This is great entertainment and great historical drama. It is based upon actual cables between Washington, London, and Moscow during the Second World War, and deals almost exclusively with the relationship between the leaders of these countries throughout the war. Franklin Roosevelt (played by John Lithgow), Winston Churchill (Bob Hoskins) and Josef Stalin (Michael Caine) spring to life as real but imperfect people who nevertheless are great leaders fighting a great war. Incidentally, the film focuses almost solely on the European war--the war against Japan is largely in the background, which has the effect of causing the film to somewhat diminish America's contribution to the war. This is a minor quibble, however. This is a wonderful film.

The miniseries does a wonderful job of juxtaposing dialog between the great war leaders with actual footage of combat scenes from the war. It tells a great story in a highly entertaining fashion, and does a splendid job of showing the viewer some of the problems, controversies, and arguments between the allied powers while the three leaders struggled to hold together the greatest coalition of nations in history.

The striking thing about this film is that it never deviates from its theme--to tell the story of the allied war leaders and the problems they faced. No bogus "love interest" material--this is historical drama with emphasis on the "historical." In fact, only a few actors in this film even have speaking parts--Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, Molotov, and Henry Hopkins are the only ones I can recall.

The acting is very fine. I thought Lithgow did a great job as Roosevelt--although he looks and speaks differently than FDR did, he nevertheless pulled it off very well in my opinion. Bob Hoskins was quite literally perfect as Churchill, and as far as I am concerned is virtually indistinguishable from him. Michael Caine was taller and better-looking than Stalin ever was, but nevertheless did a great job in the role. Ed Begley Jr. did well playing Henry Hopkins, although since I have never even seen a photo of the real Hopkins I have no idea if he were true-to-life. Ditto Jan Triska as Molotov.

Wonderful historical drama that will draw and retain the interest of viewers interested in World War 2.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Words Cannot Describe How Incredible This Movie Is, February 10, 2006

By 

Kevin D. Wroblewski (Salt Lake City, Utah) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World War 2 - When Lions Roared (TV Mini Series) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This movie is quite literally my all time favorite movie. I saw it originally air on NBC way back when I was in 10th grade and I was awestruck by it. The acting alone blows me away and since I have become an actor and director in my own life, I look to this movie quite frequently for inspiration. The fact that a three hour movie where only five people even speak and every line of dialogue is historical accuracy can so captively hold an audience's attention alone speaks for its greatness. That being said, I can understand that this movie wouldn't be for everyone. In this age of dumbed-down, attention-deprived American culture, I doubt most people would be interested in this movie for more than 5 minutes. But, those who enjoy history or just fine acting, this movie speaks volumes. I actually intend to adapt this as a stage-play in the future. I can only hope that someday it get's released on DVD.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars when lions roared, March 20, 2007

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M. Edwards "mystery buff" (clinton ct) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World War II - When Lions Roared (DVD)

This was a very good movie. It gave us a chance to see behind the scenes of policy making in World War II even if there was a little dramatic license taken. I recommend this movie highly to anyone interested in this time period in history