Fighting On Film - The War Movie Podcast!

This week Dirty Dozen December continues and the stakes ramp as we discus 1987's ' The Dirty Dozen: The Deadly Mission ' where we join Telly Savalas and his new Dozen as they attack a German chemical weapons plant! Filmed in Yugoslavia and directed by Lee H. Katzin the film stars Savalas as Major Wright, the new commander of the Dozen and Ernest Borgnine, Vince Edwards, Bo Svenson, Randall "Tex" C...

We continue Dirty Dozen December with the 1985 TV-movie sequel ' The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission ', Lee Marvin, Richard Jaeckel & Ernest Borgnine return with a brand new dozen of hardened criminals (including Wolf Kahler, Wilcox, Ricco Ross & Gavan O'Herlihy) with a mission to save… Hitler. Directed by veteran director Andrew V. McLaglen the film has its ups and downs but Lee Marvin puts in an enjoy...

This week we embark on Dirty Dozen December with a special guest, Lee Marvin's biographer Dwayne Epstein . Naturally we start this month long exploration of the four Dirty Dozen films with the first and best of them - 1967's The Dirty Dozen, directed by Robert Aldrich. With Dwayne's help we look at the making of what has become an iconic war film of the era with defining performances from a strong...

In 1940 Britain was overrun and became just another country occupied by Nazi Germany. At least that's what happened in Kevin Brownlow and Andrew Mollo's 1964 film 'It Happened Here' . The film follows Pauline, a nurse as she is forced to choose between resistance and collaboration. Made over 8 years by two exceptionally young filmmakers 'It Happened Here' is an impressive and thought provoking fil...

This week we examine a Polish film 303 Squadron ( Dywizjon 303 ) with Jennifer Grant , a postgraduate researcher focusing on the Polish Armed Forces in the West during the Second World War. With Jenny as our wingman we discussed the nuances and missed opportunities of this film which follows the exploits of the RAF's first operation fighter squadron made up of Polish pilots. Immortalised first in...

Grab your SLR and LAW 80 and jump in the back of the FV432, the Soviet 3rd Shock Army is on the advance! This week we dive into a pair of British Army training films Fighting In Woods (1982) and Soviet Encounter (1983) with Dr. Kenton White - an expert on the Cold War British Army. These well-made films show a potential (and somewhat optimistic) scenario of how the British Army would have fought t...

Join us for the fifth edition of our Show & Tell series were we discus ' Valley of Tears ' (2020) which takes place during the Yom Kippur War and ' A Breed of Heroes ' (1994) following a British officer during Operations in Northern Ireland. Follow us on Twitter  @FightingOnFilm  and on  Facebook . For more check out our website  www.fightingonfilm.com Thanks for listening!  Check out our website...

We asked our amazing listeners to 'Ask Us Anything' for this very special 1st anniversary show to celebrate 12 months of Fighting On Film ! The boys answer questions on everything from their favourite weapons in film to the accuracy of biscuits within war films! We hope you enjoy listening and thank you for the last 12 months and here's to the next 12! Robbie, Matt & Katie Check out our website fo...

We are zipping up our Denisons, checking our Rifle No.4s and climbing aboard our Horsa Glider for this week's look at the brand new Dutch war film ' The Forgotten Battle ', directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. it boasts the second largest budget ever for for a Dutch film at around €14 million. With a cast of British and Dutch actors 'The Forgotten Battle' is sett during the the Battle of the Sc...

In this week's episode we join Richard Todd and crew besieged on China's Yangtse River as we examine 1957's Yangtse Incident: The Story of H.M.S. Amethyst. Based on real events during the Chinese Civil War the film, directed by Michael Anderson, calls on a strong cast including William Hartnell, Donald Houston, Ian Bannen and a young Bernard Cribbins. Follow us on Twitter  @FightingOnFilm  and on ...

We are joined this week by Andy Moody , who is currently undertaking his Masters degree exploring popular cinema depictions of the Great War to talk about Great War films made between the wars. We enjoyed an in-depth discussion of a range of early films made during the interwar period, including: Ypres (1925), Mons (1926), Big Parade (1925) and Journey's End (1930). Follow us on Twitter  @Fighting...

Prime your limpet mines, pull on your windproofs and climb into your canoes and join us as we paddle furiously into enemy territory to discuss 1955's Cockleshell Heroes with none other than historian Saul David. Saul has a new history of the Special Boat Service out so what better film to tackle than Cockleshell Heroes. Starring Trevor Howard, Jose Ferrer, Victor Maddern, Christopher Lee and Percy...

In this week's episode we talk about the We Have Ways of Making You Talk podcast's inaugural #WarFest! We had the honour of being asked to host the festivals first event - a War Movie Quiz. Then for the rest of the weekend we had the pleasure of enjoying the excellent talks from renowned historians and seeing some historic kit including tanks, jeeps and artillery in action. We enjoyed meeting some...

In the last of this months Market Garden specials we bring you a very special look at an amateur feature from the 1960s. 'Baskeyfield VC' tells the incredible story of the actions of the famous John Baskeyfield who was the only Stoke born recipient of the Victoria Cross during the Second World War. Produced, written and directed by Bill Townley over 3 years his film is a hidden gem within the war...

We were lucky enough to see an advanced screener of J.P Watt's 'The War Below' to bring you our exclusive review of his debut feature! The film tells the story of a small team of civilian sewer engineers who are plucked from their jobs and tasked with helping dig mines underneath German strongpoints on the western front in the First World War by the legendary 'Hellfire Jack'. This Anglo-American p...

In this very special episode we are joined by Sebastian Abineri, Jack McKenzie and Timothy Morand who were part of what became known Attenborough's Private Army or the APA while filming Richard Attenborough's seminal war film ' A Bridge Too Far '. The APA were a large group of actors who played a variety of roles in the film. Join us as Seb, Jack and Tim regale us with their memories from filming...

This week we embark on a series of episodes about Operation Market Garden on film which you'll tell you're grand children about... and mightily bored they'll be! We begin with 'Replacements', episode 4 of Band of Brothers which follows the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment's drop on Eindhoven and fighting at Nuenen. Be sure to follow us on Twitter  @FightingOnFilm  and on  Facebook . For more chec...

Ever wondered how sound in films works? Ever wondered what goes into making a machine gun sound fearsome? What goes into making a battle sound realistic? This week we are lucky enough to be joined by Charles Maynes , an Emmy-winning sound engineer, who has worked on a dozen prominent war films including Flags of Our Fathers/Letters from Iwo Jima, Starship Troopers, The Alamo, The Great Raid, The P...

This week we are joined by historian Olivia Smith , one half of the brilliant Khaki Malarkey podcast, to examine 2014's 'Testament of Youth' . We discuss the book the film is based on, World War One nursing and Vera Brittain - the protagonist and author of Testament of Youth . Released around the centennial of the beginning of the Great War the film stars Alicia Vikander, as Brittain, alongside a...

Join us this week as we discuss 1990's ' Memphis Belle ', the fictionalised story of an 8th Air Force B-17 Flying Fortress' last mission of her tour. Directed by Michael Caton-Jones and starring Matthew Modine, Sean Astin, Billy Zane, John Lithgow and Eric Stoltz the film is loosely based on the real 'Memphis Belle' which was the subject of the 1944 documentary film ' Memphis Belle: A Story of a F...

Lace up your jump boots, sharpen your machetes, load up your M1A1 Carbines and strap on your parachutes. This week we are joined by special guest historian James Holland as we discuss the 1945 Errol Flynn film 'Objective, Burma!' We discuss the the war in Burma, the controversy around the film's release in the UK and of course the film's star Errol Flynn. Be sure to follow us on Twitter  @Fighting...

Join us as we look at ' When Trumpets Fade ', John Irvin's HBO TV movie which follows a battle-weary squad leader torn between simply staying alive and leading his new recruits into action during the Battle of the Hürtgen Forest. Starring Ron Eldrad, Zak Orth, Frank Whaley, Timothy Olyphant and Bobby Cannavale the film shines a light on a largely forgotten battle and premiered just a few months be...

Join us for the fourth edition of our Show & Tell series were we discus ' Geronimo ' (1993) which tells the story of Geronimo's last battles and the 1962 Steve McQueen-led classic ' Hell Is For Heroes ' following a group of US soldiers as they battle to break through the Siegfried Line. Be sure to follow us on Twitter  @FightingOnFilm  and check out our new website  www.fightingonfilm.com Thanks f...

This week we take a look at 'The Outpost', a film that brings the story of Camp Keating and the desperate Battle of Kamdesh to the screen. With the decades long war in Afghanistan seemingly drawing to an end we thought now was as good a time as any to begin examining how the war has been portrayed on screen. Directed by Rod Lurie and staring Scott Eastwood, Orlando Bloom, Caleb Landry Jones 'The O...

Don your flight suits and climb into the cockpit with us this week as we discuss Strategic Air Command (1955). A film that blends beautiful aerial cinematography, awe inspiring aviation engineering and blatant Cold War propaganda. We're joined by David Schroeder the host of the Cold War Channel to discuss this early Cold War classic which gives us a window into the objectives and operations of the...