Ike: Countdown to D-Day (Part 1 of 9)

[@kashgar108]

The screenplay is sublime, the acting is magnificent, and the movie as a whole is a masterpiece.

[@mikerobinson9504]

One more thought ... "the cigarettes." From the very first scene to literally the very last - the screenwriters incorporated this one simple motif to tie the entire movie together. Masterful.

[@8roundclip]

This is the finest biography I've ever seen. Definitely my favorite role of Tom Selleck's. I've seen it several times and it never gets old. The camaraderie of the characters is very well played.

[@joemckim1183]

This is definitely the best WW2 film that doesn't show any of the actual fighting. Darkest Hour with Gary Oldman as Churchill is also another really film in the same vein.

[@Ingens_Scherz]

Even though he not exactly a physical match for Eisenhower, Tom Selleck was brilliant in this role.

[@Rob-eo5ql]

I agree

[@hanno21664]

my students loved this A&E speical movie. however i taught my students that it was not only the americans, but all the allies present in london who colaborated together to mastermind D-Day. The Logistics of this massive operations is beyond anything ever concieved. awesome thank you for posting this. Blessed Be.

[@GarioTheRock]

I may be 11 years late, but someone hasn't a clue of a little phrase: "Operation Barbarossa"

[@hanno21664]

@@GarioTheRock greetings friend I hope you are well during these crazy times we are in. When wrote my response eleven years ago I was only thinking about Ike and what he must have felt or had been thinking that entire time before the big day. I did not mean to offend by leaving out: Operation Barbarossa. Personally, for me, one of the best facts to remember is that The Finnish army also took part in the invasion. They supplied 17 divisions and 2 brigades. Following the Soviet invasion of Finland earlier in the war, they were eager for revenge. the list can go on and on and never end. I didn't mean to hide away or sound crazy thank you and be safe

[@GarioTheRock]

@@hanno21664 Ah! A response! By golly, I thought the odds of a response to be genuinely nill 😭

[@GarioTheRock]

@@hanno21664 You're all good brother, I merely meant to supply perhaps formerly less acknowledged fronts (many people still view the scale of the Eastern front as dismissable due to their lack of knowledge on the subject, I've formatted my reply, henceforth, in a mockish way merely due to the commonness of this occurrence, which I do now regret). I appreciate your knowledge on the subject, your wisdom in your approach, and respect, you have mine! My best to you and yours, and thank you, you stay safe as well! People like you make me momentarily think that the internet perhaps may not be a detriment to our species, but then the masses seem to prove me wrong, nonetheless, have a lovely rest of your day! (My mind is a mess having been in this non-existent planemeld so long, so pardon my messiness 😅)

[@lyndoncmp5751]

GarioTheRock Completely different operations. Normandy was a sea invasion. Barbarossa didn't involve 7,000 sea vessels. Normandy was unique.

[@hanno21664]

i know i said it an other post but i was totally impressed with Tom Sellecks' performance as Eisenhower. i saw this back in 2004, and i loved it from the get go. powerful film. a real look into what the leaders had to go through and talk about plus fighting with eachother to get it all ready and set for the historic day. Blessed Be to all those who fought in this this great campaign in this great war. thank you for up loading this! Kudos to you my friend who ever you are.

[@flatoutt1]

great comment . it's a remarkable performance from tom ,the best i've seen him do. tom must have also been under a great deal of pressure just to play such a monumental character and do him justice , in this historical momentous time .i find it incredibly sobering just to get a glimpse of the time that tom brings to us .i wonder if he found the presidency a walk in the park after this . i hope the weather man got a gong after the war ,he bloody deserved it .

[@hanno21664]

@@flatoutt1 Thank you friend. I only think that being the commander of SHAEF, Ike barely got any sleep at all for days. IF he did get any sleep was for a few hours at a time. The movie, clearly shows always woken up with the slightest report. No matter what it is just unreal to think, he and all of them went through. take care friend

[@mikerobinson9504]

Since I first encountered this movie on the Internet, I have now watched it a number of times in its entirety. It is simply excellent. Well-paced, historically very accurate (and, very broad and thorough), yet "not over-played." The ENTIRE cast played together very closely to make it work - often with considerable subtlety and finesse, whether their role was small or large or incidental. The sets, the direction, the music, the cinematography, and especially the screenplay itself, were all very-simply "top notch." Throughout the entire performance, every single character both large and small was ... very human. Very real. A superb accomplishment.

[@thevillaaston7811]

Its a pile of rubbish.

[@derrickstorm6976]

​@@thevillaaston7811powerful and in-depth counter, well done

[@thevillaaston7811]

@@derrickstorm6976 Its a pile of US chauvinistic rubbish. The idea that Eisenhower was some sort of decisive military leader seems to have little evidence to support it. He had zero personal combat experience to set his decisions against. He had not even seen a dead body until April 1943. He seems to have a conciliator, a politician in a soldier's uniform sent in to chair meetings. As soon as he took over as land forces commander in September 1944, the whole thing all but fell apart. Montgomery was never a contender for Supreme Commander, and why show Churchill and Eisenhower discussing possible candidates for the job? The decision was already made, in the latter part of 1943. The portrayal of Montgomery is the usual Hollywood cliché stuff. Montgomery was easily the scruffiest of the allied leaders. Opinion of those that were there has it that Montgomery took little notice in the appearance of his men, his only interest being in the state of their weapons. The idea that Montgomery did not care about what his troops thought of him is absurd. MONTY MASTER OF THE BATTLEFIELD 1942-44 NIGEL HAMILTON HAMISH HAMILTON LONDON 1983 P70 Perhaps no one at Eighth Army HQ was as aware of the importance of morale as the editor of Eighth Army's two newspapers-the daily Eighth Army News and the weekly Crusader-Captain Warwick Charlton. Charlton had served in this capacity since the formation of Eighth Army in 1941. I'm aware of the faults he [Monty] had, but the army he took over had no morale-there was very little left. It didn't trust its generals-the most popular general in the Eighth Army was probably Rommel! There had been occasions before Monty came of guns failing to fire-that happened. The British soldiers respected the Germans-and Rommel played up to that: you know, when he said: 'You fought like lions and were led by goats' -all that sort of stuff. The British soldiers admired the Russians and they admired Rommel. Until Monty came. There was this extraordinary little man whom nobody knew anything about, really. And what he did was a sort of Wesleyan thing-in my view. It was a revival thing-to revive their spirits, revive their minds. . . . What he did-he did something that doesn't appear in the military books. You know, when you think about it, war isn't about battles, it is to do with men's minds-more than ever. Monty inherited some highly intelligent people-but intellectually, if they were honest, they could see no future: it was up and down the desert. Until this man came and got through to their minds. The first thing he did was to preach a sermon, about victory and success. And with this trick of repetition-he had quite a small vocabulary really. But nevertheless he knew where he was going and what he wanted to do. And he preached at us; and people felt impelled to go out and carry this message, you know. All the great revolutionary leaders of history had understood the importance of the word, the gospel, Charlton felt: and it was in this sense that Monty was a 'revolutionary' general. This was what was new. It's all very well people talking afterwards about the guns and the ammunition-but what Monty created was a revolutionary army.¹ ¹ Warwick Charlton, interview of 31.3.83. WINSTON S CHURCHILL. THE SECOND WORLD WAR. CASSELL & CO LTD REVISED EDITION 1951. VOLUME IV THE HINGE OF FATE. P464 ‘I saw a great many soldiers that day, who greeted me with grins and cheers. I inspected my own regiment, the 4th Hussars, or as many of them as they dared to bring together - perhaps fifty or sixty - near the field cemetery, in which a number of their comrades had been buried. All this was moving, but with it all there grew a sense of the reviving ardour of the Army. Everybody said what a change there was since Montgomery had taken command. I could feel the truth of this with joy and comfort.’ ‘Even Eisenhower with all his engaging ease could never stir American troops to the rapture with which Monty was welcomed by his’ US General Omar Bradley.

[@LeathanL]

"There are two kinds of problem drinker...those that drink too much and those that drink too little". Classic. Hope that's a genuine quote.

[@seandoyle2983]

I doubt he wrote it.

[@vtiger81]

Selleck should have won an Emmy for this performance.

[@MarkSteele-bh3hb]

Agree 1,000 percent!

[@RocketKirchner]

The more I study Ike in the war and Ike as president the more I think that he is very hard to top .

[@geo_ashburn]

Ike was perfect for that job. His administrative skills and ability to deal with egos was perfect.

[@lorrainechandler7864]

Eisenhower was a Libra(Oct 14) .Libras love harmony which gave him the ability to balance the egos of allied leaders and military.He was also as you stated an excellent administrator.

[@michelmendoza1769]

The dagger thrust Monty keeps referring to became the clustefuck known to history as operation Market Garden

[@JustinCase420]

Vlogging through history led me here! I hated History as a young boy, but now it's mighty interesting to discover new content (at least for me) about world history!

[@theresabowers5291]

Tom Selleck's best work ever. Totally believable in the roll.

[@nicholasiadevaio3854]

1000 percent agree

[@goteamdefense]

Definitely. Hard to portray someone who was not “exciting” and yet still bring emotion and personality to the role. I totally believed him as General Eisenhower .

[@raoulbataller5454]

impressive acting with Patton, both moved invoking "soldier to soldier" with Selleck stressing

[@NobodyQuiteLikeMe]

Yes I too believe he is in that chair acting

[@Mark-pp7jy]

A production like this is why I have always preferred nonfiction. The sacrifice by so many for such a cause, cannot be overstated. For this reason, I believe, the actors are emotionally compelled to deliver their best!

[@wewhodreamofbetter]

Agreed. Always liked Selleck. My gauge of his performance was this: When I saw this for the first time, watching his performance, I never thought of "Magnum PI" once.

[@l3uIletpoints]

Ive watched this movie a few times now. I cannot write my appreciation of the product as a whole - however, of note is Tom Sellecks portrayal of Eisenhower meeting with his jump boys shortly before their departure... one just cannot help but sense (as we cannot imagine) the enormity of the yoke on his shoulders. Literally brings tears to my eyes every time. Again, a terrific production - portrait-ing a terrific man.

[@KnightOwl2006]

I agree. The actor playing Monty is perfect.

[@muddhammer7834]

As is the actor who plays Churchill. Great job.

[@lyndoncmp5751]

Montgomery had far more charisma than shown here. He was a far better orator.

[@LBF522]

Wonderfully done. I enjoyed this. Tom Selleck did a fine job as Eisenhower. That was an amazing accomplishment to not only built up for that invasion but to deal with personality problems, the weather, etc.

[@geo_ashburn]

Sellick said the hardest part was getting used to Camel Regulars especially since he's a non-smoker.

[@joemckim1183]

@@geo_ashburn I would say the hardest thing for him was shaving off his mustache. He probably would shave in the morning and by lunch time it would be already half way grown back. 😋

[@michelmendoza1769]

Allenby said Monty was fond of taking credit for the achievements of others. the general originally chosen to command the 8th Army was killed when the plane he was in was shot down. Allenby had reservations about Monty for good reason. He was a weasel

[@marknan5352]

Have a copy of this and watch it from time to time. Good show.

[@greathornedowl3644]

Eisenhauer should have said "Fine, you don't need us, our equipment/supplies are out of here." "We'll be fighting in the Pacific if you need us."

[@hannahdyson7129]

Yeah . I can tell you are American

[@tomhanna8508]

Eisenhower might have said it but since he was just a soldier and not a politician it would have been so much hot air.

[@ronniebishop2496]

A great player just is interested in his own performance, where a great coach is interested in the entire team and their performance. That’s the reason a supreme leader is the only logical intelligent choice.

[@anastasiosgkotzamanis5277]

Presiden Roosevelt and general Marshal had explained all that to prime minister Winston Churchill before allied forces set one foot on Italy.

[@keitht24]

​@@hannahdyson7129 What does that mean? Without America you can't win.

[@michelmendoza1769]

I would agree the Robert Duvall film focuses on a romance that may or probably may not have occurred between IKE and Kaye Sommersby. And NOT the Herculean efforts that IKE made to get Overlord from paper to an actual operation.

[@scruffscruffeton986]

Churchill contentedly puffing away on a Cuban, inviting Montgomery to share a brandy. LOL.

[@ronniebishop2496]

The egos were so many, but no matter what happened at the top it was the grunts that got it done, and they did.

[@whattowatchrightnow]

loved this. Pacing was awesome.

[@cat-lw6kq]

IKE's job was an administrative one keeping all allied soldiers working together.

[@JimSmithInChiapas]

The 3rd volume of Forrest C. Pogue's biography of George C. Marshall helps one understand just how important and difficult that job was. So do some of the videos on the KZbin of the George C. Marshall Foundation.

[@michelmendoza1769]

De Gauls was a TOOL of the first order. Though he had a pretty impressive resume, he was a POW in WW1 and he did pull off a gutsy escape from a high security prison facility. Of course, the existence of Vichy was something he simply refused to acknowledge. C

[@johnparry5742]

Could watch this over and over again

[@tonygee6418]

moving drama

[@davidmason7765]

Tom Selleck very good in this. A pity a couple more lines were not found in the script to make clear that the initial choice of supreme commander was between Marshall and Sir Alan Brooke who unlike Eisenhower did have ww2 battlefield command experience in France ( the battles behind the deliverance at Dunkirk) . But with the majority of troops being american the commander needed to be american and with FDR unwilling to be without Marshall in Washington the choice needed to be Eisenhower.

[@avikazak655]

Are you on FB.? I uploaded the Whole movie there

[@avikazak655]

Are you on FB.? I uploaded the Whole movie there

[@thomascollinsjr1942]

Very powerful stuff..... very touching actually. ... when everything hung in the balance

[@michelmendoza1769]

I found the way the actor who played Montgomery said “untried American with such contempt and disdain though I could easily imagine the real “Monty” saying it exactly in that Manner

[@ronniebishop2496]

Churchill always thought a monarchy was the perfect form of government. So a supreme commander was no problem for him!

[@michelmendoza1769]

I must confess that Selleck delivered a compelling portrayal of a great American. I honestly didn’t think he had it in him although his portrayal of Quigley down under he played the perfect Baadass!

[@peterbellini6102]

It's a testament to Selleck's acting chops that he couldn't be more different physically, but he captured the essence of Eisenhower perfectly. BTW, anyone notice a "preview" of his interpretation of Commissioner Frank Regan? 😊

[@davecrupel2817]

"No human in history has ever held the power, for which you now ask. Not Ceaser, not Alexander, no-one. Ever." Imagine being told this.... How would _you_ react?

[@kashgar108]

If one considers power to be a numbers game, Churchill has a limited point, but Ike could not be Alexander, and use his power as he pleased. His job was Berlin, and even there politics was a constraint, as Washington decided to allow the Red Army to do that. 9:46

[@signoresantinoburnett1169]

Hookers and blow😂

[@ronniebishop2496]

I would have to seek council from many sources.

[@Mark-pp7jy]

My favorite line in the movie. "Ever"!

[@Hawaiian80882]

Regarding Eisenhower the man: His character, values, and personal convictions, is rarely observed or experienced from our elected leadership today.

[@verborgenewahrheit1594]

Hawaiian80882 And for good reason

[@baerhomburg6447]

@@verborgenewahrheit1594 his comment was posted in 2014. must be talking about the globalist president during that period, not the one that is trying to preserve what the great generation afforded us in spilled gallons of blood. folks that werent afraid to get off the boat. now days were soo afraid, we wear mask, to afraid to work etc etc

[@davidepley4279]

@@baerhomburg6447 So true. Everyone hiding behind a mask at home. Freedom lost through ignorance and fear.

[@rangergxi]

To be fair, his presidency was utterly corrupt.

[@Cuffski]

@@baerhomburg6447 cognitive dissonance at it's finest regarding an utterly corrupt administration of the 45th POTUS because I don't speak in code. You wouldn't know a "globalist" from the Boston Globe just another silly catchphrase to hide your bigotry. You get these cute ctatchy terms and run with them as if the idiots teaching you that nonsense were experts in anything other than being grifters. No discernible evidence of critical thinking but you demonstrate plenty of hubris.

[@serafiniiiramento2306]

Tom did a fantastic job in this role. When I first saw this after flipping channels, I was surprised it was him playing the role of Ike only aftter the credits started rolling in the end. .

[@emilecoetzee2186]

Churchill was a war reporter with the British infantry and then he was captured by my people at Chieveley.

[@timheavrin2253]

Brilliant performances all around not to mention one of Tom Selleck's best.

[@pizzaman147]

i think ian mune did wonderful as winston churchill ty again for the upload

[@KnightOwl2006]

Monty was perfectly cast in this. The actor looks just like him.

[@kencf0618]

There are far too few depictions of Monty in film, who admittedly was a difficult character to portray, but this production, and this actor, did a good job of it.

[@thevillaaston7811]

But the dialogue is rubbish.

[@michelmendoza1769]

Selleck’s greatest achievement. He channeled IKE though I suspect that the real IKE was not as glib and urbane as Selleck’s portrayal would lead you to believe. Though a general officer who never commanded as much as Squad or platoon became the face of the Allies in the European theater. While he didn’t have the Military aplomb and ingenuity that some of of the commanders under him. Specifically Patton for example

[@michelmendoza1769]

While I disagreed with his Politics his command abilities and his skill keeping All those swelled heads going in the same direction was a master stroke in administration and organization. A great American! And yes he never even commanded a regiment in combat.

[@EasyCompanyAirborne]

Yes. That's correct. I had a relative who fought in the 18th. You are about the only one who has heard of them. Men of the 18th are often forgotten.

[@thomascollinsjr1942]

He was great... But I truly loved his portrayal in the Paradise series.

[@jimbopumbapigsticks]

One of relatively few American productions which gets the Prime Minister detail right; it's an office, not a title - so it's either 'Mr Churchill' or 'the Prime Minister', not 'Prime Minister Churchill'.

[@ronniebishop2496]

I served in the company of heroes. But only one supreme commander would ever work, if not big generals would argue and volley for top positions, until they were stalemate. A good commander concentrates on his own strength all the time, a supreme commander concentrates on all details of the battle.

[@michelmendoza1769]

Ironically despite the rather unpleasant dialogue with Payton when it was clear that Fredendall wasn’t up to the task of commanding the second corps IKE knew exactly who to call after the beating they took at Kasserine

[@SapphireCrusader1988]

Winston Churchill wasn't an infantry officer, he was calvary. He fought with the 21st Lancers at Omdurman

[@johnmcmanus2447]

Wasn't he the main force behind Gallipoli?

[@davidmason7765]

@@johnmcmanus2447 Churchill didnt fight there though. He did however on the failure of the operation go to serve as a colonel with the Royal Scots Fusiliers on the Western front.

[@johnmcmanus2447]

@@davidmason7765 i meant the driving force behind it taking place. Could've worded it better

[@andyoncam1]

This was a very watchable piece of work, and well worth catching. It is so much better than the film based on the wartime experiences of Kay Summersby, Ike's driver. Her importance in the overall scheme of things is shown by her not appearing in this film at all. But my god, there's an awful lot of smoking in it. There's hardly a scene in which every character doesnt have a ciggie or cigar in their hand. Cast and crew must have suffered no end of coughing by the end of production.

[@EasyCompanyAirborne]

Ike. The man. Direct communication with Dick Winters, Easy Company. He knew that Easy Company would win, and make Winters and Eisenhower famous.

[@ciroalb3]

"needlessly timid" from the man who stalled at every point in Normandy!

[@judyhopps9380]

So did the Americans and the Canadians. Everyone underestimated the bocage. It's easy to disrespect Montgomery for Caen, but keep in mind he was the one dealing with the Germans' most elite armor and infantry. He was the one who had to face the Jagdpanthers and Tigers and Panthers. If you want a better criticism of Monty there's always Market Garden, but keep in mind this movie needs an antagonist, so it's eyerollingly picking Monty as the foe you root against.

[@judyhopps9380]

@Nomad Vagabond no he's still working on capturing Messina ¬.¬

[@michelmendoza1769]

Honestly, when I heard that Selleck had taken on a role of this magnitude I was skeptical. Not even Robert Duvall was able to pull it off when he tried it. Selleck did an admirable job the best acting he did since Quigley down under

[@Oldag75]

"Unity of command" is one of the principles of war. (The others are Mass, Objective, Security, Simplicity, Maneuver, Offensive, (Unity of command), Surprise, and Economy of force. A good way to remember them is MOSSMOUSE.)

[@shelbynamels973]

Contrast this movie with the docu on Operation Bagration, the Soviet offensive launched at about the same time in the summer of 1944. That and other Soviet perspectives on the war in a series of episodes avail on YT. Worth looking up.

[@lyndoncmp5751]

Probably over exaggerated, as usual. Roughly the same number of German casualties in Normandy as Bagration, and twice as many German tanks lost in Normandy. No doubt the Soviets claimed they won the war alone.

[@andrewvelonis5940]

It was said that Eisenhower was more of an administrator than a warrior. But, he had to juggle the personalities of Churchill, Montgomery, Roosevelt, Patton and DeGaulle, so actually his skills were put where they were most needed. Also, I noted in that opening scene discussion when different names were being considered, Patton was not among them (unless I missed it?)

[@baerhomburg6447]

no patton was not mentioned. in this movie , the way Ike had to deal with that pain in the but degaulle is an example i use or try to follow when i have to deal with difficult people at work

[@schoolssection]

I doubt Ike 'juggled' FDR much, except in his mind.

[@lyndoncmp5751]

Patton was too childish to be considered and hadn't achieved much by then. He was fired for hitting sick soldiers in Sicily and that kind of personality would never have been in the running.

[@michelmendoza1769]

Montgomery was never venerated the way that the Duke of Wellington was or even Haig While his victories in North Africa were brilliant his failures in Normandy and later Market Garden blemished his legacy

[@jamesvanstone-i4m]

I Like IKE

[@cat-lw6kq]

Need liked Monty he was behind Market Garden a disaster that cost some 40,000 lives.

[@Delogros]

huh? Market Garden cost 17,000 casualties Of which the majority where Captured or Wounded. It also wasn't a disaster, with the British and Canadians threatening the northern flank it took vast areas of territory to the south and North of the advance without even having to fight in those areas, it pushed the Germans almost to the Rhine in a single operation and advanced 100 miles in 3 days, something Pattern for example would never manage, the only real issue with Market Garden was it didn't achieve it's ultimate objective and it's a failure on those grounds but it certainly wasn't a disaster especially for a plan which involved perhaps as many as 90,000 men planned in a week.

[@berlinmitte10117]

King George VI (1936-1952). The second son of George V, who became king when his his elder brother Edward VIII abdicated to marry the American Wallis Simpson.

[@Hawaiian80882]

Ike was not a politician, he was a general. He had nothing to do with how or when the U.S. entered the war, that's a political decision made by the elected leadership. Once the U.S. committed he did the best he could with the resources he had available. it may be helpful to note that the U.S. government provided the UK and Russia with vast quantities of war material prior to entering WW2, allowing them to effectively battle the Nazi's until we were 100% committed.

[@edwardpate6128]

A great movie!

[@JohnKSedor]

Eisenhower, or Ike, was the son of a Jehovah's Witness. In dealing with all these different people, Generals, from all different cultures and educational backgrounds, I'm sure he relied on the training and experiences he received at the Kingdom Hall, where his Mother was a faithful Sister. It's also ironic that Ike, with his background as a Jehovah's Witness, was used to defeat the madman Hitler when Hitler tried to stop Bible Prophecy from playing out, when Hitler attacked BOTH the King of the North (Communist Russia) AND the King of the South (US/Great Britain) AT THE SAME TIME, hoping to defeat at least one of them. Fortunately, Hitler was defeated.

[@tbr225]

This is a great movie !

[@michelmendoza1769]

It’s eluded to in Darkest Hour with Brian Cox playing Churchill though I think the cowardly portrayal of him was over exaggerated Anxiety(maybe) but naked yellow cowardice( I don’t think so)

[@Onlymusical]

Tom Selleck was Lucas and Spielberg's first choice to play Indiana Jones in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" but he wound up being held to his "Magnum" contract instead. How he survived a disappointment like that is beyond me.

[@p47thunderbolt68]

Lee Majors was set to have the Jon Voight role in "Midnight Cowboy" . Damn if the ABC Television Network decided to give " The Big Valley" TV series another season and not let him out of his contract . Majors thought the series had been cancelled .He's beyond disappointed till' this day over that .

[@EasyCompanyAirborne]

Desert. I spoke recently to a real WW2 US vet. He said that the men of Easy Company were heroes. He said that scholars Hanks and Spielberg actually understated their achievements. He said that the Germans were adequate fighters, but were no match for their highly trained American adversaries. He said that the American was always braver and more resourceful than other allied troops too. The crack troops were from Easy Company. They were the legends even then.

[@redcoltken]

@zen4men one of the first things you learn in film screenwriting is that you do not have the tools in a film to "be authentic"- all you can do is create scenes that explain who the person is and hope the audience can follow. It's hard to do.

[@dthdc4]

Unlike FDR, who was C-in-C of the US Armed Forces, Churchill was not automatically that as Prime Minister. That role was held by King George VI of the UKGB. Churchill held the post of Minister of Defense which gave him control of the UK forces in the King's name.

[@patriciaevins6267]

great upload, thanx ! But the subtitles could use a wee bit o' work ;) I don't know if Churchill's "Hydrogen will find it unwise", though? LOL...once again, thanx for the film.

[@ranaldrasmussen3900]

Tom Sellick ‘s best roll. I love this movie

[@Hawaiian80882]

Interesting to note: The Axis powers did not only consist of Germany, Italy & Japan. contributing minor military forces supporting the Axis was Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Thailand, Iraq, and the Vichy French Governments. Other countries such as Croatia, India, Mongolia, China, and Albania had governments within their governments that also supported the Axis powers.

[@JimSmithInChiapas]

Romania declared war on the United States on December 12, 1941. I guess it seemed like a good idea at the time.

[@ThePretzelHead]

Wow. Thanks you tube for suggesting this.

[@michelmendoza1769]

It’s no secret that Churchill had a phobia about Amphibious Assault recalling the catastrophe at Gallipoli. He was disavowed and politically destroyed biit he had the guts to redeem himself by volunteering for the trenches on the Western Front

[@hannahdyson7129]

Not only that, but the Somme diaster was in every British mothers mind To lose your son after losing all of your brothers? Under a foreign commander as well ? Churchill may well have had a problem with that notion

[@hanno21664]

hi friend, i can see your point, it is true we were the first to get the ball rolling for D-Day, but i have read plently of books stating that Marshall, Eisenhower, Churchill, Bettle Smith, and even US politicans saying without the combined collective efforts of all the countries allied to us, the american forces would have not been able to win d-day on its own. edward Cray, Dennis E. Showalter, Stephen A. Ambrose, Carl D'Este, and others have written about this. what other books show i read?

[@ronniebishop2496]

Did y’all hear what he said those beaches are not sand, they’re pebbles and rocks. Yet that doesn’t seem to get through, throughout this series.

[@michelmendoza1769]

I have watched Tom Selleck for almost 30 years. In retrospect I am glad he did not land the role of Indiana Jones. But he absolutely nailed this one! He was perfect and I think more closely portrayed IKE. As well or better than Robert Duvall in 1979 glad they left out the alleged romance between him and Kay Somersby

[@kashgar108]

The version with Robert Duvall is like a cartoon or a comic book. This is not to be critical of him as he is a fine actor.

[@arielfornari6595]

Didn't Eisenhower serve with Macarthur earlier in his career? I wonder if perhaps this might've also played a role in Ike's selection? American cinematography at its best here.....most definitely.

[@michelmendoza1769]

Monty pushed his luck to the point where IKE basically said either he goes or I do

[@TheSmithDorian]

5. At the start of this video Ike says of his troops; “I’m asking them to die for freedom and they’re ready to do it, and that’s why they’re heroes” The soldiers were heroes. But whose freedom does Ike think they’re fighting for? If it was for the freedom of Europe the US would’ve declared war on Germany in 1939 or 1940 and perhaps a few million lives might have been saved. But for 27 months the US did nothing. “All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing” (E. Burke)

[@JimSmithInChiapas]

It was difficult to sell the war to the American public as a "fight for freedom" while Britain and France still maintained their colonial empires.

[@pizzaman147]

ovelord was really eisenhowers plan he concieved it but alot pll believed it was a major gamble but with everyones help it was a great sucess like churchill said no human in history has ever held the power for which he was asking for not caesar not alexander the great

[@richardjohnston7814]

"I could go on, but they're all much of a muchness." LMAO

[@LarS1963]

Maybe a little research into Monty would be in order? He was never considered as supreme commander. His superiour, Alanbrooke was. Also, since he was hardly ever in correct uniform himself, being a stickler about appearances was not amongst his faults. Finally, he did not dislike Eisenhower. Hardly anyone did, one of the reasons why he was chosen for the role. However, Monty didn't count him as a soldier, but that opinion he shared with many, not least Alanbrooke and George Patton.

[@CaptainAmerica322]

18th is a corps. 101st is part of the 18th airborne corps, as well as the 82nd. But good for your cousin. I had alot of relatives in the big war too. My great uncle was a B29 pilot, got 4 distinguished flying corsses.

[@Page-Hendryx]

Four DFC's, LOL. Go Army [Air Forces].

[@benholden003]

love this movie

[@nickdawn3985]

All I can see is Tom Selleck behind the generals voice! Even without the mustache.

[@EasyCompanyAirborne]

They were special. Have you seen Band of Brothers? Every single person in the unit is noted as a war hero. Ike was honored to have met a war hero like Dick Winters. Easy Company held up a number of German Divisions at Bastogne. That makes them special, and is the reason why they are the most famous unit of the war. The 18th Airborne was much larger. But who has heard of them?

[@CaptainAmerica322]

and it was the 18th Ariborne CORPS, and it CONSISTED of numerous divisions....INCLUDING the 101st, 82nd, and 17th

[@jennifersman]

Agreed, his place in history would've been secured even if he never became President.

[@ronniebishop2496]

Now there’s two points that show how ridiculous the military can get at times. One is very important and one is silly, yet they spent more time arguing over the silly. The important is the beach’s, they are not sand but pebbles and rocks, the second is smoking and where and when is it allowed. They are planter most important invasion in history and yet they argue over smoking .

[@ZipSlipHollingbrook]

With all deference to Magnum, there has never been a worse casting choice. This is like if Fred, 'Rerun,' Berry played Mussolini in a biopic.

[@iainstevenson6658]

Selleck's finest hour

[@adamstrange7884]

You know my admiration for your soldering skills... 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@LordGeorgeRodney]

really I never knew the Americans came to the rescue of the RAF in Battle of Britain. I thought America was neutral at that point?

[@LordGeorgeRodney]

@Morgan W Rees not really since Spitfires & Hurricanes were made in Britain. Any supplies we got from overseas was protected by Royal Navy.

[@LordGeorgeRodney]

@Morgan W Rees US didnt so any protecting or fighting. It's all well sending supplies but fighting to protect it was done by Royal Navy.

[@angloaust1575]

9000 Americans crossed border into Canada to join Rcaf so how many of the canadians in the raf were actually american

[@CaptainAmerica322]

easy company wasnt anything special dude. They just happend to catch Ambrose' eye. They were just one company in an entire airborne force.

[@Kraken160th]

Ya just gonna ignore how they took some guns on d-day and created the textbook way to take a fixed position in the process?

[@michelmendoza1769]

In this scene IKE refers to “Faceless Aircraft” perhaps he should have taken a ride on a B-17 in 1943 where American airmen were sent to slaughter because of lack of fighter escort

[@RedcoatT]

A total of 7 US citizens fought with the RAF in the Battle Of Britain, the first Eagle Squadron didn't become operational until January 1941

[@tomcarl8021]

It's estimated over a thousand American merchant marines died from German U-boats transporting goods to Britain before America entered the war. They were civilians. Bet you didn't know that, you ungrateful f*cking scumbag.

[@zen4men]

Anyone who knows the British Army, would know that when Monty was saluted on the stairs by the British soldier, he would have saluted back. A small point, but if this movie cannot get that right, who knows what else is wrong?

[@shooter7a]

The opening scene with Chrurchill is inaccurate. It is a shame that that did not portray how the decision was really made, because it is much more meaningful and dramatic, but that drama and meaning shines on Marshal, not Ike and this was a movie about Ike. At Tehran in late 1943, Stalin put immense pressure on the Allies to pick the Commander for Overlord. Stalin sensed that unless a leader for the operation was chosen and known, the operation to open a western front would not actually happen. FDR so admired Marshall that Supreme Command of Overlord was his for the taking. And Marshall wanted the command more than anything. But he was a man of towering integrity, and he refused to let his own ambitions enter into the decision. Later, in Egypt on their way back from Tehran, when FDR pressed him, he said he would fill the role that FDR judged would be best for the nation and the overall war effort. FDR responded by saying that it was settled then, as he could not sleep without Marshall in Washington, and Ike would command Overlord. Later, FDR confided, I believe to Stimson, that in a generation or two school-children would not even know who George Marshall was, despite him being the man singly most responsible for victory in WWII. Sadly FDR was right. Someone really needs to make a movie about Marshall, who I consider to be among the 10 greatest Americans ever to live.

[@thevillaaston7811]

General Marshall might be important to an American view of the war, but to others, he showed poor judgement in matters of allied strategy.

[@emilecoetzee2186]

Oddly, in South Africa we commemorate Rooseveldt, Montgomery and our own Dan Pienaar. Yet we were not bothered to name anythinf or given some silly medal to Churchill or to Ike.