Has anyone seen the complete miniseries of War and Remembrance?
I recently bought Winds of War (the prequel) when it came out and luckily found good deals on the two (oversized) box sets of War and Remembrance so I bought them too. I've seen all of Winds of War so far and now am viewing War and Remembrance.
The complete movie with both miniseries is over 40 hours long! Talk about time commitment.
So far it's good. I've always liked the format of miniseries. I was just wondering if anyone had seen it before, and if so, what did you think of it?
Giles
06-29-04, 10:34 AM
I remember watching this when it first aired on TV and thought it was amazing. Notably the concentration camp massacre scenes really upset me and disturbed me (as it rightfully should). At some point I would like to rewatch the entire series.
I find it sad that the networks nowadays seem really cheap and just produce lesser expensive 'reality' shows and not undertake or resurrect the 'mini series' genre.
Caricature80
06-29-04, 04:39 PM
Giles, thanks for the reply. Yeah, I wish they'd go back to making such good miniseries like these again. A majority of the time, they were really great entertainment.
movielib
06-29-04, 06:17 PM
I saw both when they first were aired. Two of the best miniseries ever. I bought The Winds of War during the DDD sale but could not get myself to spring for the two parts of War and Remembrance because they were too pricey even with 20% off. Some day when the price is more reasonable I'll pick it up.
Caricature80
06-29-04, 10:18 PM
Movielib, you might try ebay. I noticed that they have imported versions of War and Remembrance on dvd. The completely same movie uncut (albeit with a few Japanese characters added on the cover), but the price is dramatically lower. Plus the packaging is more of a reasonable size.
movielib
06-30-04, 09:37 AM
Originally posted by Caricature80
Movielib, you might try ebay. I noticed that they have imported versions of War and Remembrance on dvd. The completely same movie uncut (albeit with a few Japanese characters added on the cover), but the price is dramatically lower. Plus the packaging is more of a reasonable size.
I did check eBay out and I found those. I'm just a little bit skittish about those "Asian imports." Are they also sold on reputable sites?
Red Dog
06-30-04, 03:10 PM
I bought W&R off ebay earlier this month (paid $70 incl shipping for the complete W&R). They were the Asian imports. No problems whatsoever - just click off the subtitles and you are good to go. Plus the packaging is a standard size. You can find W&R on reputable sites, but they cost almost $200 total.
In the last month, I watched all of WoW and W&R. Definitely a marathon but well worth it.
movielib
07-01-04, 01:33 AM
Originally posted by Red Dog
I bought W&R off ebay earlier this month (paid $70 incl shipping for the complete W&R). They were the Asian imports. No problems whatsoever - just click off the subtitles and you are good to go. Plus the packaging is a standard size. You can find W&R on reputable sites, but they cost almost $200 total.
In the last month, I watched all of WoW and W&R. Definitely a marathon but well worth it.
Thanks, Red Dog. As long as the quality is the same, I'm game. I've got my eye on one. I'll let you know how it went after my snipe.
movielib
07-04-04, 11:10 PM
Well, I'm just getting frustrated. People are bidding these things up way too high now ($100-$120 shipped) and I keep cancelling esnipes. It looks like all of a sudden War and Remembrance is a hot item. I'll wait.
Caricature80
07-06-04, 05:22 PM
Yeah, those imported sets will sometimes go up really high on ebay. I kept checking for a while before I got the US versions. Once in a while you can see one end for both sets at around 50-60 bucks! I guess you'll just have to keep checking Movielib. I'm sure you'll find a good deal eventually.
movielib
07-06-04, 07:38 PM
Originally posted by Caricature80
Yeah, those imported sets will sometimes go up really high on ebay. I kept checking for a while before I got the US versions. Once in a while you can see one end for both sets at around 50-60 bucks! I guess you'll just have to keep checking Movielib. I'm sure you'll find a good deal eventually.
One just sold for $45.99 plus $20.00 shipping but I'm not going to bid when the seller has 8 negatives in the last month. Sellers with bad feedback or none at all eliminate a lot of the sets for me. I need patience.
except that eSnipe messed up my bid (eBay connection problem). :mad:
movielib
07-07-04, 11:20 PM
I finally got it for $46.65 plus $20.00 shipping from a seller with 99.7% positive feedback. I passed on one just the other day from the same seller which went for almost $100.00 shipped.
Caricature80
07-07-04, 11:39 PM
Sounds good movielib. You got a great deal!!
Red Dog
07-08-04, 11:24 AM
Originally posted by movielib
I finally got it for $46.65 plus $20.00 shipping from a seller with 99.7% positive feedback. I passed on one just the other day from the same seller which went for almost $100.00 shipped.
That's good. Sounds like it may be from the same seller I bought from. I think I paid $50 + $20 s/h.
movielib
07-08-04, 10:46 PM
Originally posted by Red Dog
That's good. Sounds like it may be from the same seller I bought from. I think I paid $50 + $20 s/h.
Did you buy yours from charonss? Seems like a good seller.
New question: does anyone know if the Star Trek: The Next Generation Asian DVDs are of good quality?
Red Dog
07-09-04, 09:57 AM
Originally posted by movielib
Did you buy yours from charonss? Seems like a good seller.
Yes. Fast shipper. Took only a week from China.
Caricature80
07-12-04, 11:09 PM
*SLIGHT SPOILER*
I just finished episode 2 of War and Remembrance. A good portion of it dealt with the concentration camps and even showed a mass gassing of nude jews, and later their bodies were dumped in piles of mass graves. I found it very moving and disturbing. I was really surprised that the ABC network would show so much nudity including frontal on tv. I'm sure the miniseries got some type of special pardon since it was trying to recreate historical accuracy. It was good that they let them do that instead of trying to water down the situation.
movielib
08-01-04, 02:15 AM
Originally posted by Red Dog
That's good. Sounds like it may be from the same seller I bought from. I think I paid $50 + $20 s/h.
Well, after waiting 23 days, I emailed charonss that I hadn't received it (I emailed him about a week ago and he asked me to wait three weeks). He immediately gave me a refund (which I confirmed on PayPal) and asked that if I finally do receive it to pay him back the bid amount but not the shipping. Sounds OK to me but it would have been better to just have received it in a reasonable time.
He really does seem to be a good seller and his feedback reflects that. But I fear the package has been lost forever. :(
Caricature80
08-01-04, 02:33 PM
I'm sorry to hear about that Movielib. I wonder how it could have got lost in the mail like that. At least he's being nice and giving you your money back until the package arrives. Let us know if you get it! I just finished watching my copy of the first half of War and Remembrance (I've been nursing it now for several weeks a little at a time since I last posted on this thread). I bought the US releases but got pretty decent deals from superduperclub and deepdiscountdvd. Still, I'd rather have gotten these import copies since they were so much cheaper. I certainly hope yours arrives.
movielib
08-17-04, 12:27 AM
I never did receive that first order.
I did just receive my second try at an Asian W&R set and it is a disaster. The "Final Chapter" set had two copies of discs 3&4 and none of discs 1&2. Almost every disc was a floater and all scratched up. I emailed the seller and, fortunately, got an immediate refund. I am through with the Asian eBay DVD market.
Caricature80, you are lucky you got the U.S. versions. I should have ordered the sets from DDD during their 20% off sale. I will if they repeat the sale in December as many of us are hoping.
Caricature80
08-18-04, 09:49 PM
Actually, movielib, it might be a blessing in disguise that it worked out this way. It turns out MPI Home Video that make the War and Remembrance boxed sets, have decided to size down their over-sized packaging on the miniseries. I happened to come across it recently. The price for the US versions is now dramatically lower, and a search on amazon yielded the link I pasted into this thread. I'm not sure why they decided now to repackage them, and on amazon it has a August 24th release date. Perhaps it has to do with Winds of War being released back in May by Paramount. It looks like they are packaged more like the Asian versions (a much more reasonable size). I just thought I'd let you know. You might check out the MPI website. I think I also saw it on deepdiscountdvd as an upcoming release.
Thank you very much. I looked around and many sites have these although DVD Price Search hasn't gotten it yet. It must have just happened. I'll bet you're right that it is a reaction to the release of The Winds of War at a reasonable price. Also, they may have seen all those sales on eBay of the Asian editions.
I decided to get them from Digital Eyes. With coupons I'm paying about $60 per set shipped. Plus I get frequent buyer points. Plus, if I'm lucky and they ship by August 25 I get double points.
So I'm paying less than twice as much as the Asian sets which were, for me, a big bust. But this is one purchase that really is cheap at twice the price.
:)
Caricature80
08-22-04, 05:30 PM
Movielib, and anyone else interested, I came across the newly re-packaged and re-priced War and Remembrance sets on deepdiscountdvd.com:
The double frequent buyer point promotion was extended to 8/28 so I got 'em. :)
movielib
08-30-04, 11:23 PM
I got my War and Remembrance sets from Digital Eyes. I spot checked them and they appear to be perfect. :banana:
Thanks Caricature80 for informing me of these. :up:
Caricature80
08-31-04, 05:01 PM
That's great news Movielib. Believe it or not, I'm still finishing up watching my set. I've been watching the entire miniseries including Winds of War slowly but surely since May!!
It really is a gripping miniseries, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I'm glad it worked out for you in the end too. As you start watching it, as well as anybody else, post on here your thoughts about it as you progress through it. There are many very unforgettable moments, and I'd love to get a discussion started, since so few people have seen or even know about this miniseries.
flyboy
08-31-04, 06:02 PM
I love both the WoW and WAR...my fav mini series. I was 17 when WOW came out in 83 and after that I read all the books. I have been hooked ever since. Nice to see others that loved these mini series as well.
I am still partial to all the original lead characters though..like Mcgraw, Houseman and Vincent. Not that the others did badly..
movielib
08-31-04, 07:36 PM
Originally posted by Caricature80
That's great news Movielib. Believe it or not, I'm still finishing up watching my set. I've been watching the entire miniseries including Winds of War slowly but surely since May!!
It really is a gripping miniseries, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I'm glad it worked out for you in the end too. As you start watching it, as well as anybody else, post on here your thoughts about it as you progress through it. There are many very unforgettable moments, and I'd love to get a discussion started, since so few people have seen or even know about this miniseries.
I watched it all (WoW and WaR) when they were first on TV. I know they are two of the best all-time miniseries. I remember they split up WaR into the two parts which were shown several months apart, IIRC. What I remember most is the portrayal of the holocaust which was probably at least as good as it was in the Holocaust miniseries (which I would also love to have on DVD).
BTW, after seeing the miniseries, I also read The Winds of War and War and Remembrance. Very much worth it.
I don't know when I'll get around to the DVDs.
dhmac
08-31-04, 07:58 PM
Originally posted by Caricature80
The complete movie with both miniseries is over 40 hours long! Talk about time commitment.
You think that's long, try reading the book War and Remembrance! (It's over 1000 pages long.) I had to read it for a history class years ago - easy read, being basically a soap opera and all - and then I later watched the miniseries. The miniseries is a good adaptation but left out my favorite part of the book - a translation of some fictitous German general's memoirs that was interspersed throughout to give a German side to things.
I don't know if the networks could do miniseries like this anymore. The cost of producing anything really skyrocketed by the early '90s and with the network's declining audience share, such massive, expensive miniseries would probably lose money big time.
Caricature80
08-31-04, 10:30 PM
flyboy, I agree that the originals you listed did a fine job, however I've found John Gilguid's Aaron Jastrow to be my most favorite out of the entire WOW and WR. I also thought Ali McGraw and Jan Michael Vincent were too old in their roles, but did do a good job.
movielib, I agree about the depiction of the holocaust being the most memorable aspect of the miniseries. It is just shown in such gut-wrenching detail and really brings you into the moment. I've always been supportive of tv productions and was glad to know that the producer/director was given full control of the censors in order to bring his vision to the screen. That way it could have the quality of a big screen movie. I'd love to see that Holocaust miniseries that you mentioned as well.
dhmac, I'm sure I'll find myself reading the books one day to find out all the things that had to be left out in the miniseries. Thanks for that bit of info too. Perhaps one day the miniseries format will return. As for now, (which I've posted before on this board), we're left to low budget reality shows to keep audiences coming back night after night. The networks are making a killing off of them.
For those of you who have seen the entire miniseries including WOW, which Hitler do you prefer?
flyboy
09-01-04, 12:06 AM
Oh by far the Hitler in WAR....
Caricature80
09-01-04, 05:42 PM
I agree flyboy, although there was something truly evil about the first actor's portrayal in WOW, although it borderlined cartoony.
By the way, an interesting bit of trivia. The actor playing Hitler in WOW is the guy who played Slugworth in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
The second actor definately looked the part more, who coincidentally is Jewish.
flyboy
09-01-04, 05:46 PM
Ha! yep he was Victor Maitland in Beverly Hills Cop...but he sure did bury himself in that role..love the scene when he is totally going off and one of his General's tells him...you lost the war the minute you declared war on America...I wonder if the real Hitler thought so..ha.
Caricature80
09-01-04, 10:15 PM
I like that scene too flyboy. I also liked the scene where Hitler is watching filmed footage of the execution of his betrayers and laughing. How macabre.
I thought they guy who played Heinrich Himmler gave a particularly chilling performance in War and Remembrance as well. He looked just like him too.
There was also some German commander in W&R that had a similar role in the classic Star Wars movies, and I can't think of his name right now. I think his name in Star Wars was Admiral Piett.
I think I ended up liking a lot more of the secondary characters (even the historical figures) better than most of the main stars.
Caricature80
09-04-04, 02:37 PM
I just finished watching War and Remembrance.
I thought it was really good and such a major accomplishment for television that must be seen to be believed.
I do wish they had given time to explaining Hiroshima more. It was tacked on at the end and mentioned literally in passing. Otherwise, a very solid series especially in the recreation of the Holocaust and all it's horror. I think it would make a good companion piece to a college course in WWII to be shown as the course progresses.
Buy: