Fighting On Film - The War Movie Podcast!

Join us for our full length interviews with thehHistorical and military advisors from Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon'. Featuring on set stories and insight from Paul and Lorris. Ever wondered how much effort it takes to train actors to form square or how much sugar Napoleon limited his troops too? Its all here in this feature long bonus episode... Remember to follow us on Twitter  @FightingOnF...

Following the release of Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon', we share out thoughts on the film and are thrilled to be joined by the film's military advisor Paul Biddiss and historical advisor Dr Lorris Chevalier. Starring Joaquin Phoenix as Napoleon and Vanessa Kirby as Josephine the film charts Napoleon's rise and fall touching on some major historical events along the way. We talk about the film's contro...

Roger Moore and Lee Marvin team up in this boys own adventure epic adapted from the Wilbur Smith novel of the same name. It's 1913, Flynn (Marvin) a notorious ivory poacher convinces Sebastian Oldsmith (Moore) to join him on a hunt. From there the movie becomes a sprawling epic which then twists into a revenge picture and even manages to find the time to see the start of the Great War. It's all go...

John Wayne stars in 1949's Marine Corps classic ' Sands of Iwo Jima '. The film seamlessly blends stock footage into its scenes to build some of the most accomplished battle sequences of the immediate post-war film era. Directed by Allan Dwan the film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Wayne's first Best Actor nomination. Join us as we charge ashore and talk Wayne, Sherman Tanks and...

Two Napoleonic officers endure a 15 year duel in Ridley Scott's directorial debut. Starring Keith Carradine and Harvey Keitel and shot on a small budget, Scott's film delivers a brooding and tense tale of honour and masculinity against a backdrop of Europe at war. Swords and sabres a plenty in this one! Remember to follow us on Twitter  @FightingOnFilm  and on  Facebook . Check...

During the Vietnam War in 1972 Lt Col Hambleton was shot down during the Easter Offensive. One of the largest American rescue operations was sprung to get him back to friendly lines. Gene Hackman stars as Hambleton in this Hollywood retelling of the story, and Danny Glover of 'Lethal Weapon' fame co-stars as a Skymaster pilot tasked with getting him home. Where does Bat*21 rank in the Vietnam War...

This week we look back at George Clooney's ' The Monuments Men ' which tells the story of a group of art experts and historians as they try to save priceless and important pieces of art from being destroyed or lost in the latter stages of the Second World War. The film boasts an impressive all-star cast including Cate Blanchet, Matt Damon, John Goodman, Hugh Bonneville, Bill Murray and Jean J...

This week we are joined by Emmy nominee Paul Epstein, a director and producer, who has worked on ' Navy SEALs Brothers in Arms ', ' Gunslingers ' and " The Men Who Built America '. We talk to Paul about his career in documentary film making and get into what it takes to get factual series onto tv screens. Check out our site - www.fightingonfilm.com Check out our website for more - www.fightingonfi...

This week the boys take a trip to Castle Keep, Sydney Pollack's late 60s new Hollywood war movie, which is surreal to say the least! Burt Lancaster and Peter Falk star in a film that attempts to do something new with the genre in the late stage of the War movies golden era. The boys also find time to fit in Simpsons metaphors and more! Get the latest news and check out our back catalogue of episod...

This week sees the release of 'The Great Escaper' the latest Micheal Caine film. The 90-year-old 2 time Oscar winner is back, playing Bernie Jordan. The film tells the fictionalised true story of a veteran of the Normandy landings who under took a solo trip to the 70th D-day anniversary commemorations. His trip became worldwide news and saw Jordan dubbed 'The Great Escaper'. The film co-stars the...

We are thrilled to celebrate our 150th episode with a classic from the genre - 1961's ' The Guns of Navarone '. The epic adventure, based upon Alistair MacLean's best selling novel, was directed by J. Lee Thompson and boasts a fantastic ensemble cast including Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn, Anthony Quayle, James Darren, Irene Papas and, Gia Scala. The boys also talk about...

Gary Cooper and David Niven face off against a Moro Rebellion in the Philippines in 1906 in this week's review. Cholera, orchids and Niven on a Gatling Gun - what more could we want? Matt and Robbie also talk about the upcoming 150th episode and announce some new podcast merch! Be sure to check out our site - www.fightingonfilm.com Check out our website for more - www.fightingonfilm.com We are thr...

We recently gave a talk at the fantastic 'We Have Ways of Making You Talk' podcast Festival, after doing 2 quizzes at previous events. This year we gave a talk on depictions of the British Army on Film during the Second World War. From Dunkirk to the Far East we talked Niven and Mills. Piats and Panthers. Join us and listen to our talk in full. Check out our website for more - www.fightingonfilm.c...

This week the boys finally cover a 'Chivalry and Swords' film as they tackle 2011's Ironclad, which attempts to recreate the 1215 siege of Rochester Castle. With an all-star cast including Sir Derek Jacobi, Brian Cox, James Purfoy and Paul Giamatti. The film features brutal hand-to-hand combat and gore, but does it hit the mark in terms of historical accuracy? Join us to find out. Check out our we...

This week Robbie shares his research on a lost TV pilot called Sam's Circus, a 2001 CBS pilot produced in the wake of the success of Band of Brothers. Which was never picked up for a full series. With insider information on the show from the production team and even sharing some of the music made for the show not heard for over 20 years. Matt is back from his trip to America and tells us all about...

Tropes, cliches and tangents aplenty this week! As the boys go over their own and the listeners' most loved and loathed war movie tropes. We talk Private Upham from Saving Private Ryan, w rong tanks and even fit in a few pop culture references along the way. Check out our website for more - www.fightingonfilm.com We are thrilled to partner with www.warfaremedia.net , who have an incredible range o...

This week the boys cover a new film from Asylum, Assault on Hill 400. The film details a squad of Rangers as they attempt to assault the titular hill in the Hurtgen Forest in late 1944. The film has all the hallmarks of an Asylum mockbuster. Aging D listers, cliches, and more! Plus Robbie talks about Robert Capa and Matt mansplains photography. Check out our website for more - www.fightingonfilm.c...

This week we dug into the archives and found a very rare British war film. 1987s ' Silent Heroes ' appears to be the first British attempt at creating a film about the Falklands War, filmed for just £90,000. Directed by Richard Driscoll and staring Martin Aylott, Robert Wilford and Bob Flag. The straight-to-VHS film is a strange beast that seems to have both pro and anti-war themes and tries to co...

In 2000, Joel Schumacher moved away from Hollywood Blockbusters and produced an American Vietnam drama with a cast full of unknowns and character actors. Tigerland explores the effect of military training on young men from all walks of life. The film stars Colin Farrell as a reluctant and conflicted GI and the film follows in the vein of such anti-war classics as ATTACK! and The Hill but for all i...

U-571 directed by Johnathan Mostow was surrounded by controversy when it was released in the summer of 2000. The film tells the fictional story of an American submarine crew who are tasked with capturing an Enigma machine from a damaged German U-boat. The story was seen as an affront to the real-life story of HMS Bulldog that captured an intact Enigma machine in May 1941. The controversy even made...

This week saw the Screen Actors Guild strike, along with the Writers Guild of America who have already been on strike since May 2023. We wanted to address our thoughts on the strike and how AI is being poised to potentially take work away from the creative industry. We also show how easy it is to use AI to create film lists and see what Chat GPT ranks as its own top 10 war films! Follow us on...

Killin' Generals by Dwayne Epstein covers the making of possibly the best World War Two movie of all time The Dirty Dozen . We are joined by the author to talk about his new book, the film, Marvel vs DC, and much more! Check out our website for more - www.fightingonfilm.com We are thrilled to partner with www.warfaremedia.net , who have an incredible range of Cold War posters! Use the code 'FoF20'...

This week's film was chosen by our fantastic supporters on Patreon. 1968's Anzio stars Robert Mitchum and Peter Falk who find themselves trapped behind enemy lines after the landing at Anzio in 1944. Adapted from British war correspondent Wynford Vaughan-Thomas's book Anzio , and directed by Edward Dmytryk and Duilio Coletti. We also find the time to fit in a mention of Sheffield Wednesd...

At the end of World War Two, a German soldier is looking for his daughter while an SS unit is looking for a cache of Jewish treasure. Netflix's newest war film leans into Spaghetti Western and Tarantino beats but does this film bring home the Gold? It joins SISU in the latest glut of war movie genre hybrids, join us as we delve into this latest feature from the streaming giant. Follow us on T...

The Covenant (also known as Guy Ritchie's The Covenant internationally) stars Jake Gyllenhaal as a Special Forces sergeant who is saved by his interpreter, Ahmed played by Dar Salim, after a mission in Afghanistan goes awry. The Covenant appears to be one of a wave of films that attempt to tackle the Western withdrawal and the subsequent Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021. Its themes include...