War and Remembrance: Part Two

I was a teenager when this miniseries was originally broadcast on British TV. With regard to the characters and acting, I can't give an honest opinion - I really can't remember that well. What sticks in my mind mind so vividly is it's portrayal of the Holocaust. Even as I write this, I have tears in my eyes remembering what I saw. Nothing before or since has made it so real.

To see those people - men, women and children - being stripped, shaved, and led to the gas chambers, and to know that you are seeing an entirely accurate recreation of what actually happened, is agonising. The characters may be fictional, but they only serve to emphasise that there was a real life behind every one of those statistics. I think the author and screenwriters were quite purposeful in taking their time to create characters that the viewer relates to, only to watch them be murdered, man woman and child. It's chilling but compelling. I think it should be required viewing.

War and R. was a continuation, but many of the actors were changed and not for the better. While Ali may not have been available or too past her prime, Jane Seymour was not a good replacement. She showed none of the determination or fire that Ali did. Mitchum looked even older, fatter and more bored. Briny's substitute had no charisma, and I couldn't even connect with him as Briny, the screwy adorable character who captured Natalie's heart. Both Hitlers overacted, (or were poorly directed) and behaved like the maniacs they really were, but somehow I doubt he really acted that way with his inner circle. They would have shot him on the spot. The story line again, was great. The Nazis were hateful, the Allies the good guys. But my favorite actor in this whole set up was Barry Bostwick who played Lady and played 'him' very well. Sharon Stone was, well, Sharon Stone. The rest of the cast was OK, but the choice of Polly's 2nd boyfriend didn't make it. I think it was Mike Conners (Mannix), (real name: Ohanian Krecker; Armenian) a much older Mannix. He didn't look like the sort that upper-class Rhoda would get involved with. Much too dark and unpolished recalling Rhoda's remark about Irish Ali, "dark enough to pass for a Turk or an Arab", she commented to her waspy friends trying to hide Natalie's Jewish looks.

Bill Wallis was very good as the hateful Nazi and David Duke continued his very believable performance as Sloat. Ralph Bellamy played an excellent Roosevelt, Sammy Frey was very good as Rabinowitz (Natalie should have followed his advice more than once.) Topol was also good as Natalie's Polish uncle. The Russian cast (whoever they were, were also very good) Natalie's insistence on staying with her nutty, befuddled uncle over and over again, was simply an unbelievable part of the plot, as anyone with a lick of sense would have escaped the first chance they got. More than once, I wanted to throw something at the TV screen. True also of the romance between Pamela and Pug. I had hoped they wouldn't get together in the end, and that Pamela would find some dashing young Englishman to sweep her off her feet and stick out her tongue at Pug who would just sail off, into the sunset in his too tight uniform, sipping his martini.

The war stories were the best part, and despite poor casting in many important roles, there was enough good supporting acting to make up the difference. Worth owning.

Best telling of WWII on video today-it will never be done like this again due to costs-was $103 million for War And Rembrance, and that was back in the late 80's.

ABC could save itself TODAY if they would just rebroadcast both shows in their entirety again-and just THINK of the DVD sales it would generate! Most importantly, the story of the Holocaust NEEDS to be told, again and again, (...)P>Buy these DVD's-NOW-and you will treasure them for life.