Danger Close

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BONUS EPISODE: Independence Day (1996) Jul 04, 2022

Show notes

Get ready for an alien-invader stompin' good time! In the rare case where Liam loves a film just because it is so fun, we go back to our childhoods and reminisce over the roll-out and execution of this Roland Emerich gem.

From a time when a relatively sane Randy Quaid played insane characters (as opposed to just playing himself), comes this surprisingly well-aged "War of the Worlds" style adventure.

Buckle up! We are armed and ready, and we're packin!

If you enjoy this episode and want to hear us return for T2, you can sign up for just $4 a month at: www.dangerclosepod.com/support

You will get access to our entire catalogue, and a brand new episode every month of Danger Close...Enough, the show where we discuss sci-fi, fantasy, and comedy war films (or close enough).

The Northman (2022) Jul 01, 2022

Show notes

Robert Egger’s third film, following The VVitch (2015) and The Lighthouse (2019), The Northman has the largest budget and the biggest scope by far. Set in the late 9th/early 10th centuries in central Europe and Iceland, this epic revenge story is undoubtedly the most thoroughly researched and most accurate Viking film to date.

With a phenomenal cast that includes Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Ethan Hawke, the story goes all the way back to the Norse myths that inspired Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and the meticulous production and costume design immerses you in a world from over 1000 years ago with flawless attention to detail.

We debated for a bit whether this belonged on the Danger Close list as a war film, or whether the psychedelic feel and mythical elements pushed it over into our war adjacent film category for DCE. In the end, there is enough pillaging and conflict in this that we decided it qualified, and we wanted to give this episode the exposure it deserved.

We are joined by special guest Dave for this one, as his background in HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts), and his knowledge of Viking history made him the perfect person to join our discussion.

So, do we think Eggers pulled off this ambitious project, and did we like it? And just how accurate is it?

Next Episode: Danger Close : The Battle of Long Tan (2019)

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warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #vikings #middleages #vikingage

A Bridge Too Far (1977) Jun 17, 2022

Show notes

Well, here we are again. It’s World War II. Another three-hour war film, another big ensemble cast!

In some ways a follow-up to The Longest Day (also written by Cornelius Ryan), this time in color, this film depicts Operation Market Garden, which followed the Normandy Landings in September 1944.

The Allies dropped forces from the First Allied Airborne Army into the Netherlands, where they would assault and hold several bridges and wait for XXX Corps of the British Second Army to bring in armor and supplies to continue the push into Northern Germany.

Directed by Sir Richard Attenborough, with huge names in the cast like Sean Connery, Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine, Robert Redford, and many more, this film featured an actual paradrop of over 1000 troops, with on-location filming in the Netherlands.

So, what did we think of this one? It’s our first film featuring Gene Hackman, and he plays a Polish General! Which one of us will have the hot take? Join us and find out!

Next Episode: The Northman (2022)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #WWII

Outlaw King (2018) Jun 03, 2022

Show notes

From director David Mackenzie, who brought us the excellent modern western Hell or High Water in 2016, comes a retelling of the First War of Scottish Independence in the early 14th century.

Taking place during and after the capture and execution of William Wallace, this film focuses on Robert the Bruce and his allies in their fight for freedom from Edward I Longshanks and from the English invasion and occupation of their homeland.

Filmed entirely on location in Scotland and England, it is undoubtedly gorgeous, with great cinematography, wonderful acting, and impressive costume and set design.

So what did we think of this film in a post-Braveheart world? Is it more historically accurate, and did we like it? Join us and find out!

*Available on Netflix

Next Episode: A Bridge Too Far (1977)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #middleages #scottishindependence

The Longest Day (1962) May 20, 2022

Show notes

Hot on the heels of our Saving Private Ryan episode, we return to the beaches of Normandy (this time filmed in Corsica) with the WWII two-time Oscar winning classic, The Longest Day.

Clocking in at three hours, this is the longest film we have covered so far, and our first John Wayne flick!
It has a star-studded cast that includes Richard Burton, Henry Fonda, Robert Mitchum, and a few of our old favorites like Edmund O’Brien and Rod Steiger. They portray everyone from General Eisenhower to the junior Officers hitting the beach, with varying levels of historical accuracy.

Many in the cast were not only WWII Veterans, but actually took part in Operation Overlord less than twenty years prior to filming, and there is plenty of realism to go around, including a lot of subtitled foreign language.

But is all that enough to make a good film? How has this one aged over the years, and how does it compare to Spielberg’s film? Join us and find out!

Next Episode: Outlaw King (2021)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #WWII

Tumbledown (1988) May 06, 2022

Show notes

Starring a young Colin Firth and probably no one else you would recognize, this film released on television in the UK six years after the conflict it depicted. We can’t blame you if you haven’t heard about the 1982 war between Argentina and the United Kingdom; after all it only lasted ten weeks. It’s known as the Falklands War to most of the world, and Guerra de las Malvinas to the Argentinians.

More about trauma, recovery, and PTSD than it is about the war, Tumbledown tells the story of Scots Guards Lieutenant (that’s LEF-tenant for you Americans) Robert Lawrence, deployed to the Falkland Islands and gravely wounded just hours before the end of the conflict.

The script and the editing have an experimental feel, showing a mix of the young officer’s very subjective memories of the combat, his struggles to recover and return to civilian life, and his treatment by the government post-war.
What did we think of this very unique look into a very obscure conflict? And did Colin Firth’s exceptional acting manage to pull this one together, or is this story-telling in this one too confusing? Join us and find out!

available free on youtube
https://youtu.be/jTkIbpxIJ_I

Next Episode:
The Longest Day (1962)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #falklands #uk #argentina

Charlotte Gray (2001) Apr 22, 2022

Show notes

Directed by Gillian Armstrong and starring Cate Blanchett in the titular role, this is the fictionalized story of a British SOE (Special Operations Executive) operating in Nazi-occupied France in 1942. The character is a composite of several real women who worked as spies for the Allies during this time period. She is sent on missions to deliver packages to the resistance and help blow up a train, all the while searching for her lover who was shot down behind enemy lines.

A mix of spy film, biopic, and WWII thriller, this movie tries to do a lot; and between Blanchett and a supporting cast that includes Billy Crudup and Michael Gambon, it is certainly not lacking talent.

But can they pull off these three different genres in one? And how well does the film work overall? Join the Danger Close team and find out as we explore our first film featuring the French Resistance in Vichy France!

Next Episode: Tumbledown (1988)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #WWII #worldwartwo

1917 (2019) Apr 08, 2022

Show notes

Easily the biggest WWI film of recent memory, 1917 conjured a variety of opinions from critics and viewers alike. Its 3 Oscar wins (Cinematography, Visual Effects, and Sound Editing) and over 200 total award nominations speak for themselves.

Director Sam Mendes, with Roger Deakins as Director of Photography, boldly chose to shoot and edit the film as a “simulated one-shot”, à la“Rope” or “Birdman”.

Aside from the usual rivet-counting that always accompanies high-profile war films, the “single-shot” technique might be the most discussed aspect of 1917.

So, what did we think about the film, the shooting technique, and the story (loosely based on Mendes' grandfather’s experiences as a runner in the Great War)?

Join us for our 30th episode of Danger Close!

Next Episode: Charlotte Gray (2001)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #WWI #worldwarone

The War Below (2021) Mar 25, 2022

Show notes

In his directorial feature-film debut, J. P. Watts stretches a £600,000 budget to show us an aspect of World War I we hadn’t really seen before: the British efforts to tunnel underneath no-man’s land in order to lay mines under the German trenches.

For those of you who have seen 1917 (our next episode), you will find some familiar territory: filthy trenches, (not so) filthy uniforms, higher-ups obsessed with gaining ground at all costs, and some great cinematography. As you would expect, a $94.2 million budget difference yields…different results.

Join the Danger Close team as we examine this brand new film!

Next Episode: 1917 (2019)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #WWI #worldwarone

The Imitation Game (2014) Mar 11, 2022

Show notes

Part biopic, part historical drama, this film tells the story of Alan Turing and the team at Bletchley Park (the eminently secretive Project X) whose work led to the breaking of the German Enigma machines, and arguably to the Allies winning the War.

This is one of the best performances we have seen out of Keira Knightley, who plays a brilliant mathematician, opposite Benedict Cumberbatch’s phenomenal portrayal as an awkward and very closeted Alan Turing.

Another film that plays fast and loose with the actual historical facts, it embellishes Turing’s direct contributions to the project, while simultaneously downplaying his personality and sexuality (which he was famously open about and which created much friction in his life).

So what did they get wrong, what did they get right, and did we like this one? Join us and find out!

Next Episode: The War Below (2021)

warmovies #warfilms #war #film #films #movies #history #cinema #documentary #WWII #worldwartwo

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