The World Wars have always been very compelling. There is a wealth of World War Two movies, documentaries, and literature. And while there’s plenty of World War One material as well, it doesn’t seem to get as much coverage. Part of that has to do with the fact that portable filmmaking and photography was much easier in the 1940’s than in the 1910’s. They were still hand-cranking film back in 1914. But this documentary attempts to shed light on “The Great War” like no other documentary before it.
The technical work on this film is nothing short of extraordinary. Peter Jackson and his team bring life to 100-year old footage. Not only do they colorize much of the footage, they also correct the frames per second so that people and things move naturally, instead of the jagged, sped up motions you’d see in an old Buster Keaton movie. They also add full audio accompaniment, which further modernizes the experience. It’s an incredible piece of restoration, and the highlight of the film. We get to see the world of The Great War like those who lived during that time would have (or at least as close as we can make it). I know hardcore historians and cinefiles might take offense to this. But it really humanizes the era. It makes it feel so much closer. That’s the film’s biggest strength.
I did find the structure a bit lacking. They have WW1 veterans telling their stories over the course of the film. I believe I heard there were over 50 interviews used as a sort of narration. There is no other modern narrator. just the words of the veterans themselves. Which is admirable, and highly interesting. But from a documentary plot perspective, this caused the whole film to feel a bit disjointed. There was no connective tissue to tie everything together. So that made it a little less engaging and accessible than I was hoping.
But overall, this is definitely a must-see for any World War buff, or anyone interested in seeing another side of a global human event that shaped the course of history.