Stars: Laurence Olivier

Summary: Includes: 'A New Germany 1933-39', 'Distant War 1939-40', 'France Falls: May-June 1940', 'Alone - Britain: May 1940 - June 1941', 'Barbarossa: June - December 1941' and 'Banzai: Japan Strikes'.

The WORLD AT WAR series presents the sweeping story of World War II in five parts. Part One, narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier, features archival footage from 1933-1942, documenting the rise of the Nazis in Germany, the start of the war, and much more. The release also includes THE MAKING OF THE WORLD AT WAR.

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When this epic series was first broadcast in 1973 it redefined the gold standard for television documentary; it remains the benchmark by which all factual programming must judge itself. Originally shown as 26 one-hour programmes, The World at Warset out to tell the story of the Second World War through the testimony of key participants. The result is a unique and unrepeatable event, since many of the eyewitnesses captured on film did not have long left to live. Each hour-long programme is carefully structured to focus on a key theme or campaign, from the rise of Nazi Germany to Hitler's downfall and the onset of the Cold War. There are no academic "talking heads" here to spell out an official version of history; the narration, delivered with wonderful gravitas by Sir Laurence Olivier, is kept to a minimum. The show's great coup was to allow the participants to speak for themselves. Painstaking research in the archives of the Imperial War Museum also unearthed a vast quantity of newsreel footage, including on occasion the cameraman's original raw rushes which present an unvarnished and never-before-seen picture of important events. Carl Davis' portentous main title theme and score underlines the grand scale of the enterprise. The original 26 episodeswere supplemented three years later by six special programmes (narrated by Eric Porter), bringing the total running-time to a truly epic 32 hours.

Now digitally remastered The World at Warlooks even more of an impressive achievement on DVD. Available in five volumes, each handsomely packaged double-disc set comes with a detailed menu that places the individual programmes along a chronological timeline. Better yet, chapter access is laid out to allow you to select key speeches or maps or newsreel footage. The World at Warwas a landmark television event; its DVD incarnation underlines its importance as an historical document. --Mark Walker

Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 0
Special Features:	Animated Introductions, Photo Gallery, Character Biographies, History Of The World At War, Episode Summaries, Speeches, Songs, Newsreel, Maps
Year:	1973
Release Date:	September 11, 2000
Runtime:	417 minutes
Certification:	Exempt.
Catalogue Number:	P T D V D 8011
Keywords:	World, War, Two, General, Military, Discs, Documentaries, Biographies
Genre:	Documentaries & Biographies