The Longest Day (1962) ♡ MOVIE REACTION - FIRST TIME WATCHING! 

Richard Todd, the man that played the British para commander on Pegasus Bridge, was the radio man for the real commander and fought in the actual battle! Can you imagine fighting in one of the most famous battles of WWII, then 20 years later playing your commanding officer in a movie?

I'm so glad I'm not a "more modern viewer" and that classic films hold up quite well for me.

Keep in mind this was only like 25 years after. Guys who went through it did NOT want to relive the horrors but the comedy was ok.

All of those little vignettes that are comedic or poignant, are events which actually occurred and were included to add authenticity and to reflect the bizarre nature of combat where the horrific is often accompanied by the absurd

The US Paratrooper who landed on the church steeple in Sainte Mere-Eglise was named John Steele, he spent about 3 hours hanging there and could not free himself as the battle raged on below him. When Steele was able to break free, he was captured by the Germans, but escaped and rejoined his unit. He took part in Operation Market Garden, was at the Battle of the Bulge, and with the 82nd Airborne until the end of the war. To this day, that Church in Sainte Mere-Eglise has a monument honoring the American Paratroopers who helped free the city from German occupation. It has a US Paratrooper dummy hanging on the side of the church by his parachute.

One of the few movies that acknowledges that the British, Canadians, free French and others even took part in the war!

As a total history geek and former 20 year Infantry veteran I totally love this movie. The accuracy is incredible, everyone had the right uniforms, rifles, machine guns all because it was made close enough to the war that all that stuff was still available. The book is absolutely awesome

I guess from your comments that you don't know. The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan, the book on which this movie is based, contained the personal reminiscences of many dozens of actual participants in the D-Day Invasion -- the British, Canadians, Germans, Americans, French, everybody he could find several years after the war was over willing to talk. The book is real history and quite worth reading, as I have several times. In it, you will find greater attention to detail as you might expect from a book. Also, this movie is the first WW2 movie in which everyone spoke in their natural language with subtitles in English.

Only 15 years later, another epic WW2 movie was made called "A Bridge Too Far", about Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands (Band of Brothers episode 4). That movie holds up much better from a movie making standpoint while still covering a complex operation and starring quite a number of big name stars. Trivia - Sean Connery appears in both movies, in the Longest Day he is mainly comic relief while in A Bridge Too Far he portrays a British general.

The Stellar cast of this film is impressive. At the time this was of the most star-packed movies ever made. Incredibly well done. Enjoy the ride

The movie's use of black and white made it more authentic to audiences at the time who lived through WWII, since most or all of the actual footage and pictures they'd ever seen of it were black and white photos and newsreels. This movie wasn't made for pampered modern viewers who demand the comforting gloss of CGi special effects and flashier filmmaking techniques, and viewers back then didn't need extra blood and guts to remind them of the horrors they and their loved ones had just experienced. It's a shame when audiences today can't watch an older movie like this in its own context.

That man playing the bagpipes for the troops during the war, his name was Piper Millen and I had the honour of meeting him once in the 90’s when I visiting Bletchley Park with my family. He had released a book documenting his experiences during the war and I got a signed copy of it. I only spoke to him for a few minutes but I could hear was a good man. He also then played the bagpipes for the crowd and he didn’t miss a note.

A good choice for memorial day. When this was made, most of the audience probably remembered D-Day (my parents certainly did), and some of the performers had participated in it. If you compare this to the more recent war films you've covered, you might notice that this has no profanity and very little gore, reflecting the standards of the time when the film was made.

You've picked one of the most iconic war movies of all time. ❤ It's Memorial Day today. A fitting choice, well done.

The RAF chap hiding with the French, with the big moustache is a fine British Actor called Leslie Phillips. He played the voice of the Sorting Hat in the Harry Potter films.

"The Longest Day": The movie that saved the 20th Century Fox studio in the wake of epic overspending for "Cleopatra" (1963). Unlike other World War II movies, we see Operation Overlord from the German, French, and foot soldier's view. This movie has an almost "more stars than there are in the sky" feel to it. Personal note: My father and I went to a theater in Waikiki. What stood out was the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" just before the movie played; yes, we stood up and marveled at this reverence to the participants. I find it Criminal that "Pearl Harbor" (2001) plays all the time, while not even Turner Classic Movies screens "Tora! Tora! Tora!' (1970) any more. (Damn you, Roger Ebert!;)

The director wanted to do something like Saving Private Ryan. But wasn't allowed to. Censors wouldn't allow it. Instead, he had to settle for the soldier crying on the beach.

This was very historical, so if you are not into the history then it would be a difficult watch. Personally I like older movies, they usually have better stories even if the dialogue can be more theatrical and they lack the modern effects. Each to their own.

There were not only a lot of A-list actors from each country represented in the movie, but many veterans as well, to include some who were there on D-Day. Other veteran officers who were there worked behind the camera as advisors. The effects were actually pretty good. You don't often see the concussion from the shells depicted as well.

During WWII, Eddie Albert served in the Pacific (and was decorated), Douglas Fairbanks Jr. served with Naval commandos, Tyrone Power served in the Pacific (USMC pilot), Jimmy (James) Stewart served as bomber pilot, flying many missions over France and Germany, Clark Gable served for awhile as a gunner on a bomber and as an instructor, the beautiful Audrey Hepburn helped the Dutch resistance, and John Wayne made 'war' movies in Hollywood...(go figure)...

Many men came here as soldiers Many men will pass this way Many men will count the hours As they live the longest day Many men are tired and weary Many men are here to stay Many men won't see the sunset When it ends the longest day The longest day the longest day This will be the longest day Filled with hopes and filled with fears Filled with blood and sweat and tears Many men the mighty thousands Many men to victory Marching on right into battle In the longest day in history

The actor playing Eisenhower was in fact a set designer who looks absolutely, totally like Eisenhower. So much so that other reactors watching the film thought it was, in fact, Eisenhower himself (who was still very much alive in 1962)

Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt lll died 1 month 6 days after the landings. He fought in WW1 and suffered wounds at the Battle of Cantigny. These wounds led to his arthritis later in life. Teddylll was a great commander always leading his men. During WW2 he fought in North Africa and Sicily before going to England to prepare for D-Day. Teddy lll not only suffered from arthritis but also had a heart condition that he kept secret. He died of a heart attack on July 12, 1944.

Here are some others I looked up. Donald Houston (played the RAF Pilot) was a tail gunner in the real RAF, Ray Danton was too young for WW2 but he did serve in the Korean War, Jeffrey Hunter served in the US Navy but saw no action due to an injury, Tom Tryon saw action in the Pacific while in the Navy, Arletty was in France during the Nazi occupation.....she was charged with treason for having an affair with a German pilot, this one is interesting Gert Frobe joined the Nazi Party at age 16 but left it before the war started.....he hid Jews in his basement until he was drafted...he served in the Green Army until the end of the war, another actor that served on the Russian Front was Hand Christian Blech (he played the German on Omaha's bunker than first saw the armada, Leopold John Genn was in a Royal Artillery Unit and later was a prosecutor in the trials of Nazi war criminals. Finally, there is Curd Jurgen (played General Gunther Blumentritt) was Austrian with Anti-Nazi opinions....in 1944 he was sent to a concentration camp. So there you have it. So many actors with WW2 experiences, no wonder THE LONGEST DAY is so authentic.

"What am I watching?" - The British army at its best, lol 🙂

Try City Lights (1931), Grand Hotel (1932), Dinner at Eight (1933), The Thin Man (1934), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), The Maltese Falcon (1941), Casablanca (1942), Mildred Pierce (1945) or All About Eve (1950). Just a few of the hundreds of great b&w films.

Hi Camilla, A little trivia for you - Richard Todd who played British Major John Howard in this film - actually was a paratrooper who landed in Normandy on D-Day. He met the actual Major John Howard on Pegasus bridge and was involved in helping to repulse German counter-attacks in that area.

At least you gave it try *Centane* I appreciate that. If you love film then obviously it's great to watch movies from every decade, even going back to the silent films.

This is a terrific movie. Thank you for showing it to a wider audience

In Band of Brothers there is only one time the cricket was used and it was by Winters in episode two. This movie is based on the book by Cornelius Ryan, based on verbatim interviews.

IMVHO, see I'm using modern anagrams, "The Longest Day" is a very well made war movie, real effects and all. NO CGI, no computers at all of course, the film was made in 1962, and I think the realism holds up, even today. And some of the biggest stars in Hollywood, and even a few musical idols of the day. John Wayne, Richard Burton, Robert Ryan, Jeffrey Hunter, Eddie Albert, Fabian, Paul Anka, Sal Mineo, Red Buttons, Peter Lawford, Rod Steiger, Henry Fonda, Edmund O'Brien, Sean Connery, Gert Frobe and Kurt Jurgens. I'm glad I have it in my Blu-ray DVD collection.

It snubs the canadian contribution. Canad had its own beach. But the Movie completely omits that.

9:44 -- RE: Just noticed, it's in B&W; A: Funny you say this, but yes, sometimes black and white films have an almost magical quality of being able to suggest what the colors *should* be, if you've got enough imagination. I like Kurosawa's "Rashomon" the best as an example for exactly that reason, too, but this one is pretty darned good.

How about watching A Bridge Too Far, starring everyone!, next?

28:23 the point of the movie was to go though the historical elements of D-Day, most of the character development was thrown in the backseat. But still a good movie none the less

"Hello England" 🇳🇴 Hello Norway! 🇬🇧 ♥️

want a good black and white WW2 movie? "Casablanca."

Heaven knows Mr Alison 1957

Very important for the younger viewers to know that this movie is a monument, where many actual combattants were appointed 20 years later either to take part or to serve as advisors. You also hardly can see that many stars gathered in the same movie

The thing that made this movie huge in its time was that it featured over 50 major, major stars. I'm talking Brad Pitt, Leonardo Di Caprio, Tom Cruise level stars of that era. Over 50 of them. Young people today, though, wouldn't recognize those old stars - any more than people 50 years from now will recognize the 3 names I just mentioned.

Saw this in theater in 1976. I was 16 years old. I taught myself how to draw comic books of movies I’ve seen. The Longest Day was one of them. I watched many of the actors here while they were in their ‘prime’. That guy with the glasses sitting on the jeep is Roddy McDowall, the original Caesar in the Planet of the Apes films and TV series. That out of shape German soldier delivering coffee on the beach is Gert Frobe, the classic James Bond villain Goldfinger! And James Bond himself Sean Connery is one of the two British soldiers on the beach who hated the sound of bagpipes. That American engineer who was killed on the beach trying to lay down wires for explosives was Jeffrey Hunter, who was the original captain of the USS Enterprise in the pilot episode of Star Trek. I am also a modeller and an aviation artist. That German pilot who attacked the British on the beaches was Josef ‘Pips’ Priller. He survived the war with over 300 combat missions and credited with shooting down 101 enemy planes (the good guys). He was one of the main opponents in Masters of the Air! That attack by the French on the city of Ouistreham was one long continuous shot from a helicopter. It had to be well planned as they had to do it in one take. It requires many viewings as there were things taking place everywhere. You will miss a lot with just one viewing! You said you could not feel invested in the film. You reacted to Saving Private Ryan, it opened at Omaha Beach. You reacted to Band of Brothers, the second episode took place during The Longest Day. For modern audiences, imagine The Longest Day had Keanu Reeves, Russell Crowe, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Hugh Jackman, Bruce Willis, Josh Brolin…. And on, and on, and on. Let this sink in, this film did the impossible at that time as there are still hundreds of untold stories from The Longest Day in history. As a Canadian our part was left out of this epic. We had our own beach, Juno. Because of this film I illustrate military history for a living.

Decades ago, I bought a book that told the story of "The Longest day" with still frames from the movie arrnged like panels in a comic book with explanatory captions. Toward the end, it contained a scene where the French resistance woman who helped blow up the bridge excitedly running into a barn to tell the others about the success of her mission. Inside, she find the dead body of one of the other resistance fighters, and as she cradles his corpse, someone in a black uniform with the double lightning bolt "SS" insignia on the sleeve grabs her roughly and demands to know here the other of the resistance fighters are. It doesn't show what happens to her after being captured. I've never seen this scene in any American release of "The Longest Day." I wonder whether there is any version out there that includes it. It's kind of an important scene showing that the danger that persisted for the French despite the success of the Allied invasion.

I love that long tracking shot in the Ouistreham sequence.

The 'clicker' signal device was also shown in Band of Brothers, though they mostly used the "flash/thunder" password and reply. This movie is based on the book by Cornelius Ryan, which was meticulously researched, showing all the real people, from civilians to privates to generals, and the parts they played and interweaves them with the bigger military strategies as the battle unfolds. The movie is very faithful to the book, and the characters are based on the real people and even uses their real names. The paratrooper hanging from the church steeple during the fire, the German and American troops passing by each other, the German officer with his boots on backwards and even Dutch Schultz trying to lose his gambling winnings are all things that really happened. The only character I know that is not in the book is the RAF pilot, who was based on a French RAF pilot who had been executed by the Germans earlier in the war, who was added to the movie. The movie isn't trying to suck audiences in with realistic combat scenes and characters who are dramatized to get you emotionally involved with them, it's trying to show the true stories of what actually happened so that you learn the history, so it is different than today's movies. Ryan also wrote the book "A Bridge Too Far" which was also made into a blockbuster film, based on the invasion of Holland (shown in "Band of Brothers".) It was made in the 70s, in color, and is in a more fast-paced style, so it holds up better today. I highly recommend the books to anyone interested in the actual history of World War 2.

My dad commanded an LCT (Landing Craft, Tank) on Utah Beach. He had an Army engineer company with bulldozers and TNT. Like most from that time, he was pretty stoic about the war, never really talked about it. Once, I saw him and my mom watching this movie, and he was crying his eyeballs out.

I suggest ' 12 O'clock high ' ( 1949 I think ). uses real combat film and has that intensity >. and / or a submarine flick that'll give ya claustrophobia. ' run silent run deep ' - could be your start of Clark Gable flicks

Taking Chance… would be an excellent historical movie to watch for Memorial Day / Remembrance Day. It provides US military protocol for burial details and memorial services.

Kudos on sticking with this long movie to the very end, Kamilaa. Even though its cast has a lot of famous actors from the 1960s, the director wanted to produce an accurate film of D-Day rather than tell a story that focused on just a few characters that you could bond with. I gather from your outro that he succeeded.

I'm watching the movie right now on RU-vid! This day marks a sad day for me my grandfather died on June 6,2019 the75 anniversary of D-Day at the age of 97 3 days before my Birthday June 9,he was stationed in Normandy in World War 2! I don't know if he were part of the invasion. I missed my grandfather, his name is Benny Herron! Blessings and HUGS! Happy 80th Anniversary! 👑💜

Reminder......this screenplay was based on the story, "The Longest Day" written by Cornelius Ryan who was there at Normandy. First hand experience. No modern day flamboyance in writing. Factual. Some comedy tossed in to lighten an intense film. "Corny" was on set during filming to keep with the story. The other views- French, German were from those living officers who were there on D-Day to give their personal accounts of the events. Hollywood today can make extravagant scenarios but it's all to elicit more reaction. "Corny" and directors had to tone it down due to the censorship at the time this was filmed. There were many veterans still living that saw this. Two from my hometown had been on the beaches at Normandy so it was difficult to relive it during watching this. (Side note: I was fortunate meet and to know Cornelius Ryan and his lovely wife, Katherine. Katherine was from my hometown.) It's still an iconic film. Never before did you have an all-star cast of so many actors. And several in the film had served in WWII as well.

Gert Frobe, who portrayed the German soldier on horseback delivering coffee to the beachgunners, would go on to star opposite fellow castmate Sean Connery in the classic 007 Bond film "Goldfinger" as the villain Auric Goldfinger.

A great classic with a great ensemble cast. It seams pretty tame by today’s standards and I think a modern remake with the feel of Band of Brothers would be good to see. Another really good WW2 movie with another great ensemble cast that I actually rank above this movie is “A Bridge Too Far”. The events in that movie take place a few months after D-Day with the Allies’ failed invasion of The Netherlands, Operation Market Garden. I highly recommend it and then think you would like it.

After watching "Saving Private Ryan", "Band of Brothers", and so many other movies and series, with modern effects, it IS a little bit unfair to compare with old movies and outdated special effects. Maybe modern viewers should stay on the "story telling", the time references, the places, and what was going on, because that was what they tried to keep on. Imagine having to deal with such a stellar cast (some "divas" included), some of them wanting "the focus". As about the actors, this was the first appearance of Sean Connery. There are some other movies that tried hard to re-enact the real happening, like "Tora! Tora! Tora!" that's about the Pearl Harbor attack. It filmed it by the two sides (not only the american perspective, but also from the japanese). But as you said: watching this with a 22 years old eyes, it may be hard to get the references, to understand the outdated special effects and so on. Keep doing your good work, Beauty.

Compare this movie to Saving Private Ryan. Both have flaws, but if they help people remember what happened then every American should see them.

23:10 that scene has always pissed me off. For two reasons what type of soldier when you know an invasion is coming would be out on patrol and not have his gun ready to fire/loaded? That’s absurd! And secondly, there’s two shots. It’s a bolt action rifle that’s not possible!

Like Band of Brothers this is based off of a book also called "The Longest Day". Although not as dramatic as modern war movies this one is very historically accurate. As for the clickers used by the US Airborne you do see Winters use one in episode 2 of Band of Brothers.

Great review, glad you chose to watch it. Yes, the effects are dated when compared to Saving Private Ryan. Although, until Spielberg made Ryan, The Longest Day was in many ways the cinematic masterpiece of D-Day. This one is better at explaining the whole battle not just small parts of the battle as told by Ryan and Band of Brothers. For example, Winters and Lipton when they parachuted into France the landed just on the outskirts of St. Mare Eglise. Easy company did have the toy clickers one of the guys breaks his as they are flying across the channel in episode 1 or 2. Also, the one issue with Ryan is that it shortens the length of the battle on Omaha Beach, as is shown in this movie, it took until about 1 or 2 in the afternoon before the troops made it up the hills overlooking the beach. The other interesting part is most of the comedy parts of the film actually happened. It's been 30 years since I read the book, but the British beach commander on Sword did bring his dog with him. That where The Longest Day is better than Ryan it is showing the overall situation and that the battle was chaotic. It also shows that the entire battle front was about 40 miles of beaches plus all of the landing zones, so where Ryan shows the horrors of Omaha, this one shows that was happening all over the battle front at the same time. Looking forward to more!!

The allies had the Atlantic - both sides- and could better monitor the weather as it moved in across. Rommel saw the weather reports and saw a huge storm front and figured that the beaches were safe and his wife's birthday was coming up so he took leave right when the invasion happened - the Allies went in based on Stagg's assessment of the weather front. Also the Nazis didn't know about "Mulberry" - two concrete floating docks that they towed across the channel and then set in at Normandy - the Nazis not knowing this didn't think that a beach landing was a feasable prospect because they couldn't see how the allies could bring enough supplies over with them Hitler was so convinced the attack would come at Calais that even as the first reports came through of the Normandy landings he thought that it was a feint to draw his forces away from Calais

The actor (Richard Todd) playing the British officer in the glider assault was actually a soldier on that very attack! He was playing the role of his actual commanding officer...

Kamila, I really love your reactions to movies and series. The Longest Day is a classic. It is about as accurate as you can get when it comes to the Normandy Landings. The only problem is you don't get the blood and gore that you get with real combat or as you saw in SAVING PRIVATE RYAN. Some of the actors you see here were actually in Combat during WW2. Eddie Albert risked his life on Tarawa to save the lives of 40+ Marines.You already know about Richard Todd. Others in the movie that served were Steve Forrest, who fought in the Battle of the Bulge, Kenneth More served in the Royal Navy aboard an aircraft carrier, and Rod Steiger, a torpedo man aboard a destroyer during the Battle of Iwo Jima. These are the only ones I know of.

I was born in 1960, so I've seen this film many times. I've seen hundreds of black & white films from the classic era of Hollywood cinema. I'm not triggered by B&W movies. I prefer them and appreciate the art of B&W film making. But this isn't an example of great B&W film making. It's more of a docudrama, that relied on a legendary cast to carry the interest of the moviegoer of that time. You would have been better off watching an older war movie that dealt with a smaller subject matter. Such as 12 o'clock high, They Were Expendable, Attack! being just a few examples.

I think it's funny in a way... the original singer of Kamilla's outro song is one of the stars of this movie!! Paul Anka played an Army Ranger. By the way, the First (modern) Rangers trained with British paratroopers in Northern Ireland to prepare for this invasion. Most Rangers were deployed at Juno Beach with a few landing at Gold and Utah beach. The Ranger motto was born when Gen. Cota tells men of 5th Rangers to lead the way. The other Rangers at Juno Beach were sent there with the orders to destroy guns that were surrounded by concrete and would heavily damage ships as they approached. When they landed they were faced with the 90 foot cliffs lining the beach. They also found evidence that there were never guns installed in the concrete bunkers. + Part of their training was to lay on barbed wire so that soldiers can quickly step over them, since it would take too long for a solder to cut the barbed wires and put everyone else at risk. This move was referenced in The Avengers when Steve accused Tony of not being "the guy that lays on the wire so that others can cross." Tony replied "I would just cut the wires, which implies both ignorance of military strategy and implies naiveté on Tony's part, since he's never actually been in a combat situation like that before.. And, by the way, that cliff landing was the same one depicted in Saving Private Ryan.

Oh shit! This is going to be an interesting movie for her to watch.

The ensemble cast in this movie is amazing. Nearly every great actor of this period made an appearance.

Kamila, if you want some old classic movies may I suggest a couple from the 60s that are timeless like GONE WITH THE WIND. The 2 that come to mind are HOW THE WEST WAS WON and LITTLE BIG MAN starring Dustin Hoffman as Jack Crabb the 115 year old Indian fighter. Jack Cabb just tells his story growing up with the Souix after his family is wiped out by the Pawnee. This movie will make you laugh and cry. Consider putting it up for a vote. In the musical department there are 2 great oldies, THE SOUND OF MUSIC and MARY POPPINS. Both star Julie Andrews. Your right about special effects in the modern era versus those "in the old days." While the original KING KONG 1933 wowed everyone in the 30s all you'd get today is a big yawn.

Being an older viewer I would have to say that The Longest Day is one of the most enjoyable war movies ever made. The movie tells the D Day story from all sides and does so without extreme violence, making it suitable for all ages. While it was made in black and white, which was the norm in 1962, it is possible to get a colourised version on DVD. The movie is based on the best selling book of the same name by Irish writer Cornelius Ryan and it boasts a cast that is absurdly enormous. The makers of this movie basically cleaned out Hollywood and Europe for this production, bringing in virtually anyone and everyone who was a huge star in 1962, and many who would still be stars for several decades more. Sean Connery, a Scotsman playing an Irish soldier, would go on to be a major star in several James Bond movies. Quite a few of the actors featured were themselves war heroes, and some also saw action on the actual D Day, While the movie is highly regarded for its historic accuracy there have been some quibbles about casting, particularly that of John Wayne who was in his mid 50s but playing Benjamin H. Vandervoort, who was only 27 years old in 1944. Despite the age mismatch, Wayne played the role quite well. I would also recommend you react to another movie, A Bridge Too Far (1977) a war epic similar to The Longest Day, filmed in colour with an enormous cast of stars from the late 1970s. This second movie is based on the assault on Arnheim (Operation Market Garden) which, had it succeeded, might have shortened the war by a few months.

This was one of my favorite movies as a kid! The nostalgia...

Please don't give up on the older movies. They're black and white films I know you would like.

Congratulations on not only watching a black and white film but an old movie at that. I know younger people are loathe to watch older films, but many times they are wonderful. Try "12 Angry Men" to see what I mean. These movies do a great job of showing the activities of the French Resistance during World War Two. What they fasil to mention however is that these were mostly French Communists. A great film also of this period showing the activities of the French Resistance is "The Train" with Burt Lancaster. I'm not sure why this movie was recommended to you. Its main appeal is that it was a cavalcade of stars. It's a bunch of cameos of famous people from the past. The audience is supposed to react; "Oh look it's John Wayner! There's Sean Connery! Look, they've got Richard Burton!" But these people aren't famous for you. This movie does not age well as it is dependent on fan service. That's why you didn't connect with the film.

Several of the actors were WW2 veterans, for example Eddie Albert [the colonel who gets killed on the beach at the end of the movie] was in the Navy in the Pacific/ his ship picked up the dead who'd floated out to sea from the Marine invasion of Tarawa. Second, the effects were different. Many of today's movies are like watching a video game, so if one isn't a gamer, the effects seem 'fake'. Try watching the movie "The Best Years of Our Lives" to see how a real vet who'd lost both arms had to adapt to coming home, or watch 'Twelve O'Clock High' to see real footage of B-17 missions over Germany & watch real planes go down. Black & white movies were able to squeeze real footage in, something modern movies can't quite get right. In the end it's all about perspective; did the actors engage you, did the director's choices carry the story along. I'd also recommend 'The Great Escape' or even 'PT 109'///

Cornelius Ryan, author of The Longest Day, wrote military histories. This book was based on interviews with Normandy landing soldiers and it’s hard to put down. If you had read it before seeing the movie, the experience would have been a lot more poignant. It was not so much about thrilling the audience as showing them the realities of war.

May I suggest watching another black and white film? It's the first to win the top five Oscars for "Best Picture," "Best Director," "Best Actor," "Best Actress," and "Best Screenplay." It's considered to be the first romantic comedy too. 1934's "It Happened One Night." If you give it a chance, I think you would be pleasantly surprised. :)

So, someone got Kamilla to react to an older classic movie and they picked THIS movie? This movie is barely remembered anymore. So many great classic war movies (or any classic movie) that you could've chosen from and you chose this... wow. Just wow. As far as war movies are concerned: How about _Paths of Glory_ (1957), by Stanley Kubrick who directed _The Shining?_ _The Bridge of the River Kwai_ (1957)? I mean, if you're gonna have Kamilla watch a 3-hour classic war film, why not _River Kwai,_ one of the best and most thought-provoking war films ever? Also, it's in color! Or _The Best Years of Our Lives_ (1946)? She may have cried watching that one. _Lawrence of Arabia?_ (1962) - one of the top five films ever? _The Great Escape_ (1963) or _The Dirty Dozen_ (1967)? Two of the most popular and two of the most fun war movies. Or any of the Vietnam War classics, like _Apocalypse Now_ (theatrical cut), _The Deer Hunter, Platoon_ or _Full Metal Jacket?_ Those will at least keep her engaged and on the edge of her seat, and at least, those war films will actually make her feel something, unlike _The Longest Day._ Or what about other great non-war movie classics? Like _12 Angry Men, It's a Wonderful Life, Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Casablanca, The Godfather_ movies, anything! Whoever picked this movie did her dirty. Seriously.

A couple of cast members did this movie while waiting for production to continue for the movie "Cleopatra". That movie took forever to make, so cast and crew did other projects.

It did a good job of depicting both sides, and the leaders decisions that they made. A lot of planning went into the D-day landings, beyond what any modern movie has shown. There's still some historical content that was added, changed or misrepresented...but it's still a really good movie taking place less than 20 years from the real thing.

If you get the chance. Watch The Battle Of Britain.

My uncle Elmer was in the 17th Airborne Division and flew in one of the gliders but this one was smaller than the one in the movie.

Interesting fact: the actor who played the British commander in the film who led the capture of the bridge, in fact, as a soldier, took part in the invasion during the capture of this bridge.

One bridge too far is the best old war movie. Also there never existed a 2ndWWmovie which used so many original ww2 vehicles, tanks, planes. Its also one of the most expensive war movie ever made.

The author of the book interviewed people who participated in the invasion and asked them what happened to you on D Day and then wrote the book based on all of the stories that the participants told him. This is what the film is based on because those things happened.

Kamilla you still have a lot of war movies to do 😊 War Horse about a young British lad and his love for his horse in World Wars I, Oscar winner Platoon, We Were Soldiers, Apocalypse Now Code Talkers about how the native American Navajo were radio operators in WW II and Patton is another classic but it's in color 😊

In '62 most movies were shot in colour. For The Longest Day, however, they used old B/W stock. To save on expenses or to give it a more documentary feel or whatev. There is also a coloured version available that was made when they restored the old material in the '90s or somewhere around that time.

I don't know if you learned this at school but there were eleven Norwegian ships taking part in the invasion as well.

I was a kid when I first saw this and even though I appreciate the advances in SFX it still remains one of the best WW II movies. Richard Todd who played the leader of the Parachute regiment did actually fight on D- Day.

This was a different time in movie making! They just never dreamed of making movies like Saving Private Ryan or Hacksaw Ridge or Platoon back then 😊

The clicker used by American Airborne troops was referenced several times in Band of Brothers. This is more of a docu-drama focusing on the overall battle from all vantage points rather than a modern retelling of these events like Saving Private Ryan where you are focused on a small group of individuals. All the events occurring in the movie happened in real life. Some older war movies that you might find more engaging are Battleground and The Best Years of Our Lives.

Kelly’s Hero’s 1970 Patton 1970 The Challenge 1970 A Bridge Too Far 1977

Well done, Kam. This movie was made for WWII veterans to watch. It was only 18 years after the events portrayed. Hollywood sensors kept the action subdued. The point was to get the information to the masses. Thanks for letting us know that you hadn't noticed it was in black and white. It was in black and white, so actual footage could be spliced in. A number of the scenes were based on photos taken at the locations. The ensemble cast in this thing helped to show the importance of the event. I only met one of the participants. Omar Bradley went to my high school. If you ever visit New Orleans, you need to see the D-Day Museum. It isn't the name now, but it is what it is.

As a history major it's encouraging to see a young person interested in history. Btw this was maybe one of the last major motion pictures released in black and white. I was grown before they started selling only color televisions (of course b&w plays on either) when I was a kid people specified when someone had money enough for a color TV and a 19-21 inch screen were the biggest models

the cat on screen left at 4:15 min is roddy mcdowall. he's one of my favorite actors. he has a credit list a mile long. 4 years after this, in 1966, he starred with tuesday weld, harvey korman and ruth gordon in "lord love a duck." where, at 35 years old, he CONVINCINGLY plays a high school student. its one of the craziest movies your ever likely to see. 2 years after that he plays the ape "cornelius" in "the planet of the apes." he also appeared in "the poseidon adventure" (1972) "the legend of hell house" (1973) and "fight night" (1985). he was a child actor starring in john ford's 1941 oscar winner "how green was my valley." then he starred in 2 kid's classics "my friend flicka" and "lassie come home" both in 1943. thanks for the video.

So glad you watched the multi language version, I think it's the best x Respect for watching this, it was part of my childhood

When this movie was made it was a mere 18 years after the actual events. The audience was full of veterans and everyone already knew the story. Most people would have recognized the names of the generals in the film. There really wasn't any need to make a big action film loaded with special effects. The people watching the movie had lived through the real thing. - Besides that, this is an all star cast extravaganza. Even today I recognize a good 25 of the actors in the film, many of them top stars in their prime. That was a big draw for people in 1962 but it is sadly lost on you because you haven't seen enough films yet. There are quite a lot of films with large all star casts and my advice is to avoid them and save them for some time in your future after you have watched a few thousand more movies. - There is an endless supply of old good movies for you to watch. Once upon a time people knew how to tell really good stories without the need for action and special effects. I clicked the like button for you.

This is one of my top 5 WWII movies. It did a second run in theaters in the late 60's, so I got to see it at about 10 in the drive-in for the first time. It's somewhat fictionalized, but hits all of the right notes. I watch it every year on Memorial Day, so I'll watch it again tomorrow. Another great mostly historically accurate WWII movie to watch with a similar all-star cast is A Bridge Too Far.

I consider this the best WWII movie before Saving Private Ryan changed the way war movies are made.

We watched this in my Texas high school history class in the 80s. 3 hour movie=3 days of no schoolwork😀😀😀. Congrats on 80k! Keep up the good work!

The fact that you were able to sit through it , in the first place , is impressive . I could never get past the 20 min mark , before I started watching something better......................which is never hard to find .

For 1962, this was about as close to _Saving Private Ryan_ as Hollywood was allowed to get by the censors. There are inaccuracies, but none that really ticked people off...and Eisenhower did not walk out of this movie - he actually gave this movie high praise. What he _did_ walk our of, was _The Battle of the Bulge,_ from 1965.

Maybe one reason that you didn't 'connect' with this movie is that you're a little too young to recognize how star studded this movie was. You would NEVER, EVER see a movie made today with this many huge stars in it. Even just a couple of them. In this movie you had John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Robert Mitchum and Richard Burton along with stars that became huge like Sean Connery and I think even Clint Eastwood was in it. Really big names. If you did notice them and know who they were, I didn't notice any hint of recognition. As for it being in black and white... I've never quite understood why they did it that way. In 1962 they definitely could have made it in color, so it was a purposeful choice to make it b&w.

Forgot to mention, i think one of the actors is Sal Mineo. A young member / victim of the odd Hollywood mystey death club, yeah , ( if thats him ), he was found in a back ally, around a Hollywood neighborhood somewhere, i believe, under or connected to mysterious cicumstances. And of course it is always great to see the legendary ( star of so many westerns and a super icon in his own Time )John Wayne himself. The movie just could not have been made without him and his biggar than life swagger.

This was not long after the actual event and many people did not want see graphic depictions of death for the allied soldiers like in Saving Private Ryan, It was too soon. However it was okay to show us killing many Germans. It was a memorial to those who fought on that day