Prelude To War

Rating:
Summary: Frank Capra explains to Americans how World War II started
Review: As you probably know, the "Why We Fight" series was produced by Frank Capra when he was a major in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. The series was commissioned by Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, as a way of indoctrinating all the troops who signed up in the wake of Pearl Harbor and the declaration of war. The idea was to make it clear we were doing more than just remembering Pearl Harbor. Eventually the series was shown to the public in theaters across the country. This introductory film in the "Why We Fight" series covers the events leading up to the Second World War, focusing on the rise of Fascism in Italy and Germany, the Japanese attacks on Manchuria, and the United States' lack of military preparedness. The last is particularly interesting because it implicitly explains Pearl Harbor not as a Japanese victory, but rather as an American defeat (we lost rather than they won). "Prelude to War" defines World War II in black and white terms as the totalitarian worldwide conspiracy threatens to turn the free world into a slave world. Admittedly a propaganda film, this 1942 documentary is quite informative, explaining about Hitler's book "Mein Kampf," Lebensraum, the Tanaka Plan, the London Naval Treaty, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Nuremberg Laws, and even such details as the Roman fasces.

This 54-minute black & white film won the Academy Award for best documentary in 1942 and the series as a whole is credited with redefining the documentary as an art form. Of great historical value, it must be underscored that "Prelude to War" is not exactly propaganda in the most pejorative sense of the term. The film's great "sin" along those lines is that it makes the case that public opinion was moving in the direction of joining the war. Instead of dismissing this film and Capra's efforts as the American counterpart to what Goebbels was doing in Nazi Germany, it is more accurate to think of it as being the film equivalent of a prosecutor's speech in a trial. "Prelude to War" makes much better use of evidence without the radical distortion you usually find in classic examples of propaganda.

Rating:
Summary: "Prelude to War," the first volume of Capra's "Why We Fight"
Review: As you probably know, the "Why We Fight" series was produced by Frank Capra when he was a major in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. The series was commissioned by Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, as a way of indoctrinating all the troops who signed up in the wake of Pearl Harbor and the declaration of war. The idea was to make it clear we were doing more than just remembering Pearl Harbor. Eventually the series was shown to the public in theaters across the country. "Prelude to War," the introductory film in the "Why We Fight" series covers the events leading up to the Second World War, focusing on the rise of Fascism in Italy and Germany, the Japanese attacks on Manchuria, and the United States' lack of military preparedness. The last is particularly interesting because it implicitly explains Pearl Harbor not as a Japanese victory, but rather as an American defeat (we lost rather than they won).

"Prelude to War" defines World War II in black and white terms as the totalitarian worldwide conspiracy threatens to turn the free world into a slave world. Admittedly a propaganda film, this 1942 documentary is quite informative, explaining about Hitler's book "Mein Kampf," Lebensraum, the Tanaka Plan, the London Naval Treaty, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Nuremberg Laws, and even such details as the Roman fasces.

This 54-minute black & white film won the Academy Award for best documentary in 1942 and the series as a whole is credited with redefining the documentary as an art form. Of great historical value, it must be underscored that "Prelude to War" is not exactly propaganda in the most pejorative sense of the term. The film's great "sin" along those lines is that it makes the case that public opinion was moving in the direction of joining the war. Instead of dismissing this film and Capra's efforts as the American counterpart to what Goebbels was doing in Nazi Germany, it is more accurate to think of it as being the film equivalent of a prosecutor's speech in a trial. "Prelude to War" makes much better use of evidence without the radical distortion you usually find in classic examples of propaganda.

Rating:
Summary: The opening volume in Frank Capra's "Why We Fight" series
Review: The famous "Why We Fight" documentary series was produced by Frank Capra when he was a major in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. The series was commissioned by Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, as a way of indoctrinating all the troops who signed up in the wake of Pearl Harbor and the declaration of war. The idea was to make it clear we were doing more than just remembering Pearl Harbor as we mobilized for a war to be fought across two oceans . Eventually the series was shown to the public in theaters across the country.

"Prelude to War," the introductory film in the "Why We Fight" series covers the events leading up to the Second World War, focusing on the rise of Fascism in Italy and Germany, the Japanese attacks on Manchuria, and the United States' lack of military preparedness. The last is particularly interesting because it implicitly explains Pearl Harbor not as a Japanese victory, but rather as an American defeat (we lost rather than they won).

This first chapter in the "Why We Fight" series defines World War II in black and white terms as the totalitarian worldwide conspiracy threatens to turn the free world into a slave world. Admittedly a propaganda film, this 1942 documentary is quite informative, explaining about Hitler's book "Mein Kampf," Lebensraum, the Tanaka Plan, the London Naval Treaty, the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Nuremberg Laws, and even such details as the Roman fasces.

This 54-minute black & white film won the Academy Award for best documentary in 1942 and the series as a whole is credited with redefining the documentary as an art form. Of great historical value, it must be underscored that "Prelude to War" is not exactly propaganda in the most pejorative sense of the term. The film's great "sin" along those lines is that it makes the case that public opinion was moving in the direction of joining the war. Instead of dismissing this film and Capra's efforts as the American counterpart to what Goebbels was doing in Nazi Germany, it is more accurate to think of it as being the film equivalent of a prosecutor's speech in a trial. "Prelude to War" makes much better use of evidence without the radical distortion you usually find in classic examples of propaganda.

Rating:
Summary: American Propoganda
Review: These movies were perfect for the US troops in World War II. They caused anger in the troops. It made them want to fight.

As for being of historical value - well... they aren't. Take anything you watch with a grain of salt. Some of it may be true, some is not correct at all. The Americans use basic propoganda techniques like constantly repeating what Hitler said, and then showing what he did. The movies don't bother to tell how the political climate had changed and Hitler had been forced to act against what he had originally promised.

I'm a history professor at a well-established university (sorry, can't tell you which one... anonymity is key to survival). I would not use this to teach my classes. The real facts are very different from what the movies portray.

As I said... They served their purpose to boost morale in the troops back in 1944-45... but to the general public it is just hogwash.

Rating:
Summary: Good video on the start of World War II.
Review: This is the worst DVD transfer I have ever seen. You may have to fiddle with the settings on your DVD player or you'll be cursed with a major amount of buzzing and crackling no matter what the volume on your TV or sound system.

Mine was also defective, showing about three minutes of Triumph of the Will before returning to the main menu. I tried it both on my home theater DVD player and my DVD ROM (just in case one might have been having problems like the sound issue). It failed to play in both.

No wonder these DVD's are so cheap. They're cheaply made. Quality is an afterthought. I can't even believe that anyone at the company that made them watched them because anyone with a shred of integrity wouldn't have let them out the door.

I am SORELY disappointed. Sadly I opened the volumes I bought, so I'm stuck with them. I'll probably get rid of them in a garage sale someday.

Do yourself a favor, buy one of the more recommended VHS versions, or wait until a company that actually cares about quality puts out a new edition. These are AMAZINGLY bad.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but not good value.
Review: While the content of these videos is very interesting and informative. The quality of the footage needs a little bit to be desired. Remember, this is not a documentary!!!! These films were made as propaganda films and should be viewed as such. While many of the facts contained in the films are accurate, they are a little biased, but that's what to expect from propaganda films.

As a part of history, I think these films are valuable. They are certainly worth watching (but as I said before, not as a documentary). I think they are a little overpriced for what you get.