Not making any political point just saying he was a Welshman and because he mistreated a black girl in the West Indies his statue in Cardiff Town Hall has been covered up and may be removed. To be fair overall he seems to have been a bit of a ****.
This exchange is brilliant as the two officers are using humor to lighten the mood. It seems a little counter-intuitive, but it made a good way to get the group to refocus on the task at hand.
This movie did more to illustrate the character of Napoleon and Wellington than the new Napoleon movie even came close to... hard to believe a movie made over 50 years ago could be so much better than a modern day ridley Scott blockbuster.
@@TankUni Christopher Lee probably could have done a good job if he had been cast as Wellington. He was 47 in 1969, (Plummer was 41 and Wellington was 46 at Waterloo) and he has done similar characters well in many other productions. He was very busy at the time, appearing in 12 films in 1969-1970, many of them Hammer films, so he may have been unavailable.
The "scum of the earth" comment by Wellington is so commonly reduced to just "a sneer at the common man" but the reality was he understood who his men were, he had no illusions over where he soldiers came from, he knew that no one would be in the Army if they could find any other work, but I don't think he looked down on them for where they came from.
The Duke of Wellington always did his utmost to give his troops the best chance of victory and survival. He noted the merits of Waterloo as a strong position, positioned his troops to conserve them and ended Bonaparte's reign of chaos. ❤ The Duke of Wellington
Ofcourse he looked down upon them, every officer did. Soldiers (not from countries with universal conscription or a meritocratic officer core) were mostly poor men, coerced into service. sometimes it was truly voluntary, other times it was in lieu of a prison sentence, or to run away from some consequence. One could argue the only country that had officers of high rank that did not see their men as truly different from themselves was France, for several marshals and generals rose from the NCO core after the revolution. In Britian, every officer was a noble, or at the very least arich man. In large part, your title determined your rank, for it would be improper for an officer to sell his commission to a man of lesser blood, in most cases.
@@garymoore2535Bonaparte was no worse than any of the other despots that ruled Europe. Really the only “chaos” came from France’s neighbors constantly attacking it since the vast majority of the Coalition Wars were declared ON France, not the other way around.
I think he said it more out of exasperation and anger than anything else. Their behaviour did let him down on occasion (Badajoz , aftermath of Vitoria). We forget too that the only occasion he’s recorded as having wept was upon the sight of seeing the British dead at Badajoz. That doesn’t sound like a man who regarded his men as scum. Sure he looked down upon them (all aristocrats did) but the quote itself is taken out of context. He even went on to add ‘and what fine fellows we have made of them’. He was proud of his men, just disappointed on occasion at their behaviour.
@@robertfawcett332 His men would have been disappointed had he not looked down on them. It was a part of their world, even if it sounds crazy, but the world is very different now.
@@JCaroleClarke just a shame the French weren't able to capitalize on Quatre Bras, Ney had Wellingtons army smashed and retreating confused through the fields but Napoleon held up the advance to strike his own death blow (gross oversimplification I know)
@@samkolysko1406 That's not how Quatre bras happened at all... by the end of the day the Allies held the field not the French, Ney came close to breaking the Allied army in the morning when he heavily outnumbered it but didn't take advantage of that, Wellington wasn't even present until very late in the day.
@@Peoples_Republic_of_Devonshire Yes and no, it's still Wellingtons army and he was still present but in principal I don't object to de Constant Rebecque having a great deal of the credit given the unbelievably brave decision he made in disobeying orders to hold the crossroads, Wellington was not keen on people disobeying his orders but I don't think de Constant Rebecque suffered as Wellington understood the decision and supported it after the event.
I first saw him in The Sound of Music when I was six. I'm now 62. I thought he was English until I read this comment. But then again, Wellington himself was Irish .......
@@guywilloughby3383 Absolutely. Plummer's character in "Battle of Britain" was the only one he ever insisted on playing as a Canadian. Some real national pride there! Good for him!
To Napoleon Bonaparte, His Majesty the Emperor of the French, King of Italy, Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine, Mediator of the Swiss Confederation and Co-Prince of Andorra, Napoleon I. The winner & Hero of the Battle of the Pyramids, Battle of Marengo, Battle of Austerlitz, Battle of Jena-Auerstädt, Battle of Friedland, etc.
@@thethirdfrenchempire1556 To General Bounaparte: prisoner of His Royal Highness the Prince Regent & permanent resident of His Majesty's territory St Helena. 😘🇬🇧☕
@@thethirdfrenchempire1556 The Duke of Wellington died of happy old age in the 1850's. Napoleon, the Corsican-Italian, died a miserable, painful and lonely death in the early 1820's having seen his adopted country occupied TWICE and having abandoned THREE armies. It's not about winning the HEATS, it's about winning the CHAMPIONSHIP.
I sus pect Naval battles don't lend themselves to visual portrayals easily, the ships are hard to distinguish, the action is slow. Master And Commander did a good job but it only had 2 ships fighting and had to use MAturain as an audience surrogate a LOT, so that Aubrey or whomever else could explain the tactics ad the situation.
No, but there has been a marvelous four-part series with the only actor ever who has played both Nelson and Napoleon: Kenneth Coley, in I Remember Nelson! Check it out.
The first time he met Christopher Plummer, the Canadian actor was in makeup for his role as the Duke of Wellington. They were in Rome at the time and master makeup artist Alberto di Rossi was just informing Plummer his nose was more than big enough for the task of emulating “Old Nosey’s” famous beak, when the intimidating form of Bondarchuk strode in tailed by a stern group of what Plummer took to be KGB agents. He was a very Russian looking Russian. A large compact bear with frowning eyes and a pugnacious chin, after observing di Rossi’s work he voiced concern about the upper lip not being right. The Italian makeup artist had a sharp wit and asked if it wasn’t “stiff enough.” To his and Plummer’s surprise he responded in the affirmative and had to be informed that “Stiff upper lip” was an expression, not an ailment. After he had been made to understand, the taciturn Bondsrchuk turned on his heel and left without another word.
Plummer was the perfect cast as Wellington as he plays the role to stunning perfection and alongside his roles Captain Von Trap and General Chang was one of his most memorable performances as an actor.
Him and Rod Steiger play off each other so well in this movie and they never even meet. Shoutout to Dan O’Herlihy too, who’s heavily underrated as Marshal Michel Ney
The very, very best film of Waterloo. I admire his coolness at the Ball when news comes through of Napoleon's movements. He instructs the Ladies should finish their dance and then calmly turns to Uxbridge and instructs him to start moving his cavalry.
At that point Wellington was waiting for Napoleon to cross the border into Walloon Belgium. When he hears that Napoleon is at Charleroi, he is hoping that Napoleon will move directly towards him. Then Wellington will retreat his army to Waterloo to fight Napoleon on the ground that he has previously chosen for the engagement, the most strategic position in the area south of Brussels which he must protect.
The number of views and comments under the cuts and videos about the 1970 film "Waterloo" has increased. It seems that many people really decided to review this international masterpiece, after the failure of the film "Napoleon 2023".
I always marveled at Mr. Plummer's underrated ability to draw the eye immediately to him in every scene. I saw "Waterloo" again recently and realized I was always unconsciously looking at him. His subtle gestures, telling silences and musical cadences turns his performance as "The Lad with the Hooky Nose" into an acting symphony. He was not only a consummate actor but always a highly intelligent one.
The Orignal First choice of director Bondarchuk for the role of Wellington was actor Peter O'Tool, but it did not work out, so it was offered to Chris Plummer.
@@Filscout You can enjoy Peter O’Tool’s work without putting down other actors. Just a reminder that Plummer won more of the major awards than O’Tool. O’Tool didn’t win a competitive Oscar, and only won 1 Emmy. Plummer won an Oscar, 2 Emmy, and 2 Tony awards! This makes him a Triple Crown of Acting winner, an honor only 9 male actors got to this day! Dobt put him down. He deserves much respect. IMO he is the best! But I also respect O’Tule , and his fans.
@@Filscout Christopher Plummer’s specialty was variety! He could play any role, and such different roles! To quote critics: “Christopher Plummer, is one of the greatest actors in the English-speaking world”. That does not take anything away from O’Tool. In fact Plummer really adored O’Tool! they were friends. In Plummer’s memoir he writes: “Peter O’Toole is truly one of the great personalities of our time… Fiercely intelligent, with a Shavian wit, he is also the most incurable of romantics-far more than I could ever hope to be.”
One tiny thing that just elevates this performance that little much more is just the physical look of Plummer. Specifically, his nose. Now, it's hardly meant as an insult at all, but Plummer had a rather prominent nose, just as the Duke of Wellington did. In fact, his men affectionately referred to him as "Old Nosey!" Just those tiny, unmentioned things are what I love about movies like this.
The Duke of Wellington looks like a handsome fellow in his paintings, but not like he does here, where he is the literal 'model' of a modern major general haha
@@yxx_chris_xxy It's a jokey reference to a song called "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General" by Gilbert and Sullivan from their opera "The Pirates of Penzance".
Кристофер Пламмер-настоящее чудо!!! Это образ истинного аристократа-воина!!! Его профиль, умение держаться в седле и выправка говорит о его происхождении. Он настолько грациозен и обладает замечательной выдержкой на поле боя, внушая спокойствие и самообладание своим подчинённым, которое так важно во время боя. Он столько сыграл царственных особ на сцене и в кино, что это у него уже в актёрской крови!!! Веллингтон это ещё один образ, который обессмертил великого артиста! Мы любим его за все его роли, потому что он был великолепным и супер талантливым артисом! Он умел прекрасно сыграть любого персонажа, от бомжа до короля! Он не был артистом одного амплуа или ещё хуже, одной роли как некоторые. Пламмер был многогранен в творчестве!!! Вечная ему память!!! Мы помним, скорбим и любим!!! 🌹🎼🎬🎹🌹
Thank you, even though I needed to Google Translate all your comments... but it was worth it! I fell in love with Christopher as Wellington in 1996. I was coming out of a mental breakdown due to depression. He reminded me there is still beauty and passion in this world.
Посмотрела этот грандиозный фильм и поразилась как могли снять всё это пятьдесят с лишним лет назад?! Это такая мощная баталия, задействованы огромные массы людей и лошадей!!! Надо учесть, что все спецэффекты делали технически без компьютерной технологии! Съёмки были очень тяжёлые, об этом и писал Кристофер Пламмер в своих мемуарах. Огромное поле и несколько людских армий пеших и конных. Там было очень много трудностей, поэтому приходится только удивляться как артисты, солдаты и кони выдержали всё это!? А ведь это были съёмки, а какого в реальной битве??? Пламмер красавец претерпел там много разных ситуаций. Все эти моменты он откровенно описывает. Благодаря ему нам тоже стало известно кое-что об этих съёмках. Все артисты и вся съёмочная команда просто герои!!! Такой колоссальный труд заслуживает нашей памяти об этом!!! Там много известных актёров из разных стран играли, большая часть из них покинули этот мир, оставив нам свой эпический труд!!! Огромное им спасибо🙏💕!!! Особая память о Веллингтоне - Пламмера!!! Помним и любим!!! 🌹🎬🎼🎹🌹
I saw this film with my parents when I was 10. Ranks alongside some of the other great fils of rhis time , like The Battle of Britain, and Patton. Cromwel was another great film of this era.
Сейчас дочитываю книгу- автобиографию Кристофера Пламмера, где он описывает как проходили съёмки и этого фильма! Это был многонациональный проект с актёрами из разных стран, которые говорили на разных языках, не понимая друг друга, какие бытовые сложности они переживали и на съёмочной площадке и в поле битвы!!! Он пишет откровенно, с самоиронией и критичностью к себе, руководству, отношениям между коллегами и общей ситуации!!! Кристофер обладал отличным юмором и это помогало выживать в сложных условиях экспедиций киносъёмок!!! Великий артист! Помню, грущу и очень ❤люблю Кристофера за его многие таланты!!! 🌹🎬🎼🎹🌹
I was born to a professional model painter for airfix and I am well read in military history. I am 44 now and have found i want to study this part of history more than any other. I also love ancient history. I draw and am close to another exhibition and im sure i know what i am going to do. My father loved this film and over the years I seriously can say I may of watched this movie over say 50 times. Plummer was perfect.
Can we do it, asked Hume. And a British soldier was gawking up at a statue. Wellesley said "that article there" he pointed at the soldier. "give me enough of it, and I am sure."
People often forget about Wellington.....but he was an awesome general. At Assaye he turned a 100,000 men into a rout, with just 5000. Probably the only general who could have defeated Napoleon.
Music - See the conquering hero comes - Duchess of Richmonds Ball, she did ask said if he said no she would not ask further no explanations necessary. He said You may have your Ball. "Class"
4:35 Fun fact: This was Uxbridge's first time serving under Wellington, because a few years before he ran away with the wife of Wellingtons brother. He might have commanded cavalry in Spain, but was rejected because of the history.
Command of the cavalry of the British army in Spain went instead to Sir Stapleton Cotton, but many officers in the cavalry still thought Uxbridge would have been superior. The other option, if he had lived past Salamanca, was John Le Marchant, the pioneer of the excellent 1796 Light Cavalry sword, many combat innovations for the cavalry, and founder of Britain's first officer academies, which later combined into RMC Sandhurst (which still exists today). Sir Cotton, later elevated to Lord Combermere, later went on to serve as CinC in India and led the army that successfully took the 'impregnable' fortress of Bharatpur.
Wellington is reading an accurate copy of The Times, with advertisements covering the front page. The Piddly Scott version has modern- looking headlines, which is all wrong
