Which battle would suit the silver-screen?

[Krusader]

Hope this is in the right board now.

Which battle or campaign or time period would you like to see be made into a movie, with perhaps same budget as Troy or Gladiator or etc?

My favourites would be:

Siege of Malta 1567 (and maybe add battle of Lepanto 1571 too?)
Toyotomi Hideyoshis invasion of Korea in 1598
Agincourt
First Crusade

[ShadesPanther]

Maybe Persian wars now that theve done ancient times and involved greece?

Agincourt or maybe Hastings would be good

[Gregorius0202]

There are lots of wars that I'm interested in, and I wouldn't want Hollywood to butcher many of them... But, if they could do things realistically and accurately, then I'd probably want to see a good movie based on... Gosh... Too many things to put down! I'd probably like to see a film made about the Egyptian Wars against the Hittites, and the battle of Kadesh, in particular.

-Gregory-

[lonewolf371]

The battle of Thermopylae and the Persian wars.

[Gregoshi]

Gregorius, with many of these battles, I don't think you have to worry about Hollywood butchery. For Hollywood to make the movie there has to be an American connection and the battles listed lack that trait. Troy was made thanks to Homer's stories being read in American schools. The movie Alexander was made because most people know who Alexander the Great was (even we Americans). Alexander was also a Winner and Americans like winners.

[el_slapper]

Azincourt... Bah, an army suiciding itself. British didn't win, French did lose alone. Badly. Not a good stuff for a movie(unless you lie stronger than usually in cinema). Like Nagashino 1575, same problem.

First crusade would be cool, but not yet. News swarming from the area makes me think too much people would make a link between the ancient times & the modern ones. Maybe when middle-east will be at peace.

Hastings would be good, but froggies invading England? Nah, not now .

I don't know anything about Hidetoshi on Korea. Could be excellent, but there remains to get the attention of the standard American spectator.

Conquistador battles are far too much one-sided .



Me says : the 1868 war between Prussia & Austria. The birth of industrial war(though it was prepared in the US civil war). First time ever officers have dived to the ground without being hit. Zounds of skirmishes in the Czech forests. Kind of clash of the titans, with Prussia preparing German reunification(achieved after victory over France in 1871, but with less epic battles).

[Ash]

Hope this is in the right board now.
Siege of Malta 1567 (and maybe add battle of Lepanto 1571 too?)

First Crusade

Actually I heard someone was developing a movie about the siege of Malta of 1565, but I think it has been delayed or cancelled.
Lepanto isn't half as spectaculair as the siege of Malta.

First Crusade, many people want to make a movie about that (including Arnold Schwarzenegger!) but I guess the topic is too controvercial as no one yet has attempted it.

[Ash]

Gregorius, with many of these battles, I don't think you have to worry about Hollywood butchery. For Hollywood to make the movie there has to be an American connection and the battles listed lack that trait. Troy was made thanks to Homer's stories being read in American schools. The movie Alexander was made because most people know who Alexander the Great was (even we Americans). Alexander was also a Winner and Americans like winners.

There's a second Alexander movie in developement (from the guy who directed Austin Powers!), although the project has been postponed indefinitely.

[Spino]

There's a second Alexander movie in developement (from the guy who directed Austin Powers!), although the project has been postponed indefinitely.

Where did you get this news? Jay Roach directing an Alexander the Great biopic? IMDB has no such information on Jay's page.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005366/

The last I heard Baz Luhrman (director of the modernized Romeo & Juliet and Moulin Rouge) had an Alexander the Great project in the works with Leonardo DiCaprio as the lead. It was in production hell for years but late last year Baz either shelved it indefinitely or cancelled it altogether. Good thing too, apparently Luhrman's ATG script was racier and more sensationalistic than Stone's Alexander biopic! Blech!

[ShadesPanther]

You wont really see many decent ancient -medieval age movies made by Hollywood because, simply There were no Americans.

I think soon they will do an American Civil war movie first

[Spino]

You wont really see many decent ancient -medieval age movies made by Hollywood because, simply There were no Americans.

I think soon they will do an American Civil war movie first

Uh, care to explain Braveheart, Gladiator, Alexander and Kingdom of Heaven? Technically all those pics, despite their wildly varying degrees of quality, did not feature aspects of American history and/or culture. However I do agree with your use of the term 'decent'.

[DemonArchangel]

Hmm... I know.
Battle of the Somme.
Me likes horrific and pointless gore.

Or a better, more bloody and gritty Stalingrad with all the joyously pointless room to room fighting.

[ShadesPanther]

Uh, care to explain Braveheart, Gladiator, Alexander and Kingdom of Heaven? Technically all those pics, despite their wildly varying degrees of quality, did not feature aspects of American history and/or culture. However I do agree with your use of the term 'decent'.

Braveheart was basically just kill the English.

Gladiator I don't know, But every so often some hollywood exec takes a chance with a new genre which is then susequently beaten to death. (Ie. The two hannibal films, Alexander (Although it was going to be made for quite a while), Troy and Gladiator 2 (Which is pointless because maximus died and te story ended happily)

[Krusader]

@DemonArchangel:

In case you haven't seen it, there is a german movie named Stalingrad, which I recall was very good.

IMDB: Stalingrad

The Japanese invasion of Korea in 1598 was when Toyotomi Hideyoshi died. There was a Korean Admiral, who's name I dont remember, who used many Turtle Ships against the Japanese warships. Would be cool ship-to-ship fighting scenes.

I think most historical movies could be made in Hollywood. Just have to find that angle which fascinates Americans, and relates to aspects they have in high regard like freedom, winning, struggle for freedom, wars etc. and will get them to the movies.

[Alexander the Pretty Good]

Stupid Americans!


Wait a second...



Yeah, I don't much like Hollywood anyways - anything remotely related to history gets butchered, nine times out of ten.

[discovery1]

There was a Korean Admiral, who's name I dont remember

Yi Sun Shi was his name

How bout the last stand of the Byzantines?

[Gregoshi]

How about Caesar and the Battle/Siege of Alesia? It has Caesar, who even we Americans know about, and it is an against-all-odds victory of a siege within a siege. They can market it to Hollywood execs as the Alamo x100 in which the Texans (Romans) win...

...and Julia Roberts can play the tragic Gallic woman torn between her husband Vercingetorix and Julius Caesar, the man who raised her as a child in Rome...

...eh, sorry about that. Got carried away.

[SwordsMaster]

...and Julia Roberts can play the tragic Gallic woman torn between her husband Vercingetorix and Julius Caesar, the man who raised her as a child in Rome...

Yeah! and Arnie could be Julius Caesar and have a big hand-ballistae that would shoot 200 rounds a minute, and a big sword, and surround, besiege and take Alesia all by himself...


Ok, sorry. Just watched the "End of the Days" (or something similar).

[lonewolf371]

Stalingrad has already been done by Americn movie companies, check out "Enemy at the Gates".

Also, they've done another recent Civil War movie (which I despised and almost died watching) called "Cold Mountain". Actually, there are tons of Americn Civil War movies, in addition to "Cold Mountain" there are "Gods and Generals" and "Gone with the Wind".

[PanzerJaeger]

Kursk.. biggest tank battle in history.

Although it would be somewhat difficult to do the good guy/ bad guy thing, it was done in Enemy at the Gates, so there's hope for more Eastern Front movies.

[Spino]

Stalingrad has already been done by Americn movie companies, check out "Enemy at the Gates".

Wrong. "Enemy at the Gates" was a European production and prior to Stone's "Alexander", it was the most expensive film ever produced and financed by Europeans. So it's not only Hollyweird that creates premium quality cinematic crap.

[SwordsMaster]

Wrong. "Enemy at the Gates" was a European production and prior to Stone's "Alexander", it was the most expensive film ever produced and financed by Europeans. So it's not only Hollyweird that creates premium quality cinematic crap.

It´s so easy to learn....
The europeans just thought: "hey, if they can create crap films with a huge money investment, we can too". Its all for the sake of self superation...

[Alexander the Pretty Good]

Also, they've done another recent Civil War movie (which I despised and almost died watching) called "Cold Mountain". Actually, there are tons of Americn Civil War movies, in addition to "Cold Mountain" there are "Gods and Generals" and "Gone with the Wind".

Hey, if your talking Civil War movies, I think it begins and ends with "Gettsyburg" - probably one of my all-time favorites.

Yeah! and Arnie could be Julius Caesar and have a big hand-ballistae that would shoot 200 rounds a minute, and a big sword, and surround, besiege and take Alesia all by himself...

"Veenee, Veedee, Veechee - I have just keeled all of your punee and ahistorically depicted Gauls." - projected Ahnold quote [adjusted for accent].

Maybe a movie about the battle of Tannenburg (Teutonic Knights vs. Poles & Lithuanians, if I remember correctly) - put without the geopolitical spins.

Maybe something about the Dark Ages - and no, "King Arthur" doesn't count.

[IrishMike]

Hey, if your talking Civil War movies, I think it begins and ends with "Gettsyburg" - probably one of my all-time favorites.

Yup gotta agree there, Gettsyburg is an excellent movie. Just don't, and I repeat don't ever see gods and generals. EVER!

Umm... How about another D-Day movie. (ducks to avoid rotten fruit) Just pulling your leg guys.

What about Manzkert 1071 I think. Where the byz met their match and much, much more when they tried to challenge the turks. I believe its called the Disaster of Manzkert.

[discovery1]

Aye, they never recovered from that defeat, and I think they were actually winning that battle of a while and might have fought the turks to a draw if the emperor's tratorious marshal didn't march away from the battle with his powerful reserves leaving the emperor to be surrounded and captured. Big battle with a twist and treachery. Or maybe the first fall of constantinople to crusaders(it was contested for a while then it fell viaw trechery). Or maybe not. Oh well.

Oh, maybe the siege of vienna?

[Krusader]

From my head, I recall that the defeat at Manzikert wasn't so severe, but the civil wars that followed and disbandment of the eastern Themes allowed the Seljuk Turks to march unopposed into central Asia Minor.

Perhaps the battle at Las Navas de Tolosa? Where the Almohads were defeated, and the winds of Islamic Spain "went out"?

[Watchman]

Oh, maybe the siege of vienna?

Which one ? 16th or 17th century ? The main difference would really be that in the latter the Ottomans would be wearing almost no armor, save for the point-men in the "storm squads", and the Poles & Co. turn up and roll them up. Other than that it'd really just be a lot of men dying in the breaches ad nauseum, which would get a little tedious pretty quickly. Same for Malta and Rhodes, really.

I don't think castle sieges really make good movie material. The fact is, most of the famous Medieval ones took a long time with very little actually happening aside from the steadily rising death tolls.

Hastings would be good, though. Lots of drama, many strong characters, and exciting skin-of-the-teeth victories for about all of Harold's brief reign. Unless the Brits have a fit of the "Hastings syndrome", naturally.

I wonder if any of the majoe set-piece battles of the Thirty Years War would be any good ? 'Course, almost none of them were decisive in any sense (aside form at best notable leaders dying and entire armies being all but wiped out, but that didn't actually tend to affect the overall situation much...) and if any amount of realism is maintained, the visibility will be extremely low.

[Gregoshi]

Excuse me while I put in another plug for Alesia...

Watchman, your comments about siege battles not being good subjects is generally true but exactly why I think Alesia would be an excellent choice for a movie. It overcomes those shortfalls you listed. In Alesia, there is a dramatic build up as a typical siege for Caesar turns into anything but typical. There is the decision to be made by Caesar to not lift his siege but stay and then it becomes a race for the Romans to complete the outward facing fortifications before the huge relief force arrives. Once the relief force shows up, you have a situation similar to the movie and battle of Gettysburg - the actual battle unfolding over 2-3 days as the Gauls become more desperate and the Romans stretched almost to the breaking point. Then there is the final climactic battle on the last day where the Gauls almost break through a weak point only to be repelled by skillful troop management by Labinus(?) and a timely arrival of Caesar with reinforcements to "save the day". As far as decisiveness goes, didn't Alesia pretty much break the back of Gallic resistance?

The battle has everything you'd want in a movie - a famous general in Caesar, a great situation with the siege within a siege, a battle strung out over a few days to allow for character building interludes between battle scenes and a dramatic and decisive end. If you want to add even more drama, you could play up the contention between the major Gallic tribes, especially during the interludes.

When can we start filming?

[SwordsMaster]

I think Thermopilae would make for a decent film as well. In a "Last Samurai" kinda style. Althought they would have to pull out a survivor to make it all more heroic....

I agree with Gregoshi in that Alesia would have been perfect for a film. Now they only need Brad Pitt to agree to wear a skirt again....

[Kongamato]

I can't really think of a good idea for a movie right now. Can we think of perhaps the WORST battle to base a movie on? Maybe a Masada movie... nothing but 2 hours of digging and ramp-building with perhaps some dramatic subplots about a shovel thief or something. Better yet, the Battle of the Ironclads; nothing but cannonballs bouncing off of the ships' hulls for three hours(as any proper Civil War film must go for three).