Battle of the Bulge (1965)

Director:

Ken Annakin

Writers:

Philip Yordan (written by) &
Milton Sperling (written by) ...
(more)

Release Date:

16 December 1965 (USA)

Genre:

War | Action | Drama

Tagline:

Unlike anything you've ever seen before

Plot:

In the winter of 1944, the Allied Armies stand ready to invade Germany at the coming of a New Year. To prevent this occurrence...

Plot Keywords:

Attack | Tank | Panzer | Fuel Depot | Battle Of The Bulge

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes.

Cast

Henry Fonda	...	Lt. Col. Dan Kiley
Robert Shaw	...	Col. Hessler
Robert Ryan	...	Gen. Grey
Dana Andrews	...	Col. Pritchard
George Montgomery	...	Sgt. Duquesne
Ty Hardin	...	Schumacher
Pier Angeli	...	Louise
Barbara Werle	...	Elena
Charles Bronson	...	Wolenski
Hans Christian Blech	...	Conrad
Werner Peters	...	Gen. Kohler
James MacArthur	...	Lt. Weaver
Karl-Otto Alberty	...	Von Diepel (as Karl Otto Alberty)
Telly Savalas	...	Sgt. Guffy
Steve Rowland	...	Eddy
Robert Woods	...	Joe (Kiley's pilot)
Charles Stalmaker	...	Maj. Burke (as Charles Stalnaker)
David Thomson
Sebastian Cavalieri
Raoul Perez
Jack Gaskins
Janet Brandt	...	Mother Superior
Max Slaten
Carl Rapp	...	American MP Lieutenant
Axel Anderson
Bud Strait
Donald Pickering
Ben Tatar
Peter Herendeen
Richard Ziedman		(as Richard Zeidman)
Paul Eslheman		(as Paul Eshelman)
John Schereschewsky
Victor Brandt
Richard Baxter
William Boone
John Clark
Ward Maule
Paul Polansky
Freddie Toehl
Leland Wyler
Quinn Donoghue	...	Nun #2
John Friess
Reginald Gillam
Peter Grzcegorczyk
Richard Laver
Harry Van Der Linden
Derek Robertson
Martin Rolin
Robert Royal
Russ Stoddard
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
William Conrad	...	Narrator (uncredited)

Directed by
Ken Annakin

Writing credits
Philip Yordan		(written by) &
Milton Sperling		(written by) &
John Melson		(written by)

Produced by
Milton Sperling	....	producer
Philip Yordan	....	producer
Dino De Laurentiis	....	executive producer (uncredited)
Sidney Harmon	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Benjamin Frankel

Cinematography by
Jack Hildyard		(director of photography)

Art Direction by
Eugène Lourié		(as Eugene Lourie)

Costume Design by
Laure Lourié		(as Laure DeZarate)

Makeup Department
Trevor Crole-Rees	....	makeup artist
José María Sánchez	....	makeup artist (as Jose Maria Sanchez)

Production Management
Leon Chooluck	....	unit manager
Juan Estelrich	....	unit manager
Bernard Glasser	....	production supervisor
Miguel Pérez Marián	....	unit manager (as Miguel Perez)
Tíbor Reves	....	production manager (as Tibor Reves)
Gregorio Sacristán	....	production manager (as Gregorio Sacristan)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Luis García	....	assistant director (as Luis Garcia)
José López Rodero	....	assistant director (as Jose Lopez Rodero)
Martín Sacristán	....	assistant director (as Martin Sacristan)

Sound Department
Kurt Hernfeld	....	sound editor (as Kurt Herrnfeld)
David Hildyard	....	sound recordist
Gordon K. McCallum	....	sound recordist (as Gordon McCallum)
Otto Snel	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)
Alban Streeter	....	sound (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Charles-Henri Assola	....	miniature construction (as Henri Assola)
Basilio Cortijo	....	special effectsman
Richard Parker	....	special effectsman
Alex Weldon	....	chief of special effects
Kit West	....	special effectsman

Stunts
Ken Buckle	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Cooper	....	stunt double (uncredited)
Nosher Powell	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
John Cabrera	....	second unit photography
Dudley Lovell	....	camera operator
Jack Willoughby	....	aerial photography

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Charles Simminger	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Derek Parsons	....	supervising editor
Lester A. Sansom	....	post-production executive

Music Department
Benjamin Frankel	....	conductor
The Philharmonia Orchestra	....	orchestra (as The New Philharmonia Orchestra)

Other crew
Janet Brandt	....	dialogue coach
Louis Brandt	....	production coordinator (as Lou Brandt)
Sherman Joffe	....	military advisor (as Lt. Col. Sherman Joffe)
Joy Mercer	....	script supervisor
Luis Martín Pozuelo	....	military advisor (as Lt. Col. Luis Martin DePozuelo)
Meinrad von Lauchert	....	military advisor (as Maj. Gen. {a.D.} Meinrad Von Lauchert)
Marie Wachsman	....	script supervisor
Wayne Fitzgerald	....	title designer (uncredited)
Edward King	....	technical advisor (uncredited)

Thanks
Sherman Joffe	....	we also wish to acknowledge the invaluable assistance rendered by the following military advisors (as Lt.Col. Sherman Joffe)
Luis Martín Pozuelo	....	we also wish to acknowledge the invaluable assistance rendered by the following military advisors (as Lt.Col. Luis Martin DePozuelo)
Meinrad von Lauchert	....	we also wish to acknowledge the invaluable assistance rendered by the following military advisors (as Maj.Gen. {a.D.} Meinrad Von Lauchert)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros.
• Cinerama Productions Corp. (as A Cinerama® Inc. Production)
• United States Pictures (as A Sidney Harmon in association with United States Pictures, Inc. Production)

Distributors

• Warner Bros. (1965) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1965) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1966) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1966) (France) (theatrical)
• Warner-Pathé Distributors (1965) (UK) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1971) (USA) (TV) (pan/scan)
• Audio Visual Enterprises (1985) (Greece) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1986) (UK) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (1992) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (USA) (DVD) (blu-ray)
• Warner Home Video (????) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Turner Classic Movies (TCM) (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Videolog (????) (UK) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Perseverance Records  soundtrack (re-release)
• Philharmonia Orchestra, The  music played by (as The New Philharmonia Orchestra)
• Warner Bros. Records  soundtrack (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

167 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1986) (1993) (1996) | Australia:PG | West Germany:16 (f) | USA:Approved (Certificate #20947) | USA:Not Rated (DVD) | New Zealand:PG | Canada:PG (video rating) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | UK:PG (video rating: extended version: 162 min) (2006) | UK:PG (tv rating)

Filming Locations:

Sierra de Guadarrama mountain range, Madrid, Spain

Company:

Warner Bros.

Trivia:

Robert Shaw is the only English-speaking member of the cast to portray a German. The rest are all played by real Germans.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: There are no mountains in the Ardennes as seen in the movie.

Quotes:

Col. Martin Hessler:Germans are still the best toy makers in the World!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Tarzan: Basil of the Bulge (#1.22)" (1967)

Soundtrack:

Panzerlied

My Favorite WWII Epic is Admittedly a Mixed Bag

VIEWED ON REGION 1 DVD FROM WARNER BROTHERS

This big, bloated epic re-creation of the battle which turned the tide of World War II manages to be on the most historically inaccurate and over-blown adventure pieces ever produced. It's also one of the most entertaining war movies to grace the big screen. The combination of heroics and history shouldn't work as well as it does.

Writers John Melson, Philip Yordan and Milton Sperling remain faithful to the broad outlines of the real battle, and then fill their story with several important fictional characters, and director Ken Annakin uses a combination of Hollywood heroics and historical accuracy to deliver an entertaining tale. The film relies solely on the excellently-shot action sequences and superb acting by the leads to hold it together.

Veteran director Ken Annakin knows how to make this film work. In the lead, Henry Fonda ("Midway") seems to be having plenty of fun as Colonel Kiley. He gets to argue with people, shoot at Germans, fly in a plane, and even help fend off a Panzer attack – not bad for a civilian-turned-soldier, eh? On the flip-side, Robert Shaw ("Force 10 from Navarone") is fantastic as the fanatical Colonel Hessler, a devoted Panzer officer who will stop at nothing to accomplish his mission. Hessler brings new meaning the Hollywood-Nazi-type: he's brutal, nasty and dedicated despite the fact that he knows Germany cannot win the war.

The supporting cast is filled with the familiar faces of Charles Bronson, Ty Hardin, James MacArthur and Telly Savalas – but the real star is Hans Christian Blech ("The Longest Day"). As Conrad, the war-weary, aging German Corporal, it's his best work in a war film. Conrad wants to go home and is devoted to Hessler, until he realizes that his commander's dedication sits precariously on the edge of madness. His facial expressions – bug-eyed outbursts, sad frowns, frightened glances at strafing airplanes – have never been more convincing.

This epic was shot for the big screen using Cinerama, and the only way to appreciate the action sequences is to see this movie in widescreen. Pan-and-scan prints cut it down from a 2.7:1 ratio to 1.33:1 - that's losing more than half of the image! It was shot on the vast plains of Spain, and although it looks nothing like the brutal winter in the Ardennes forest, this scenery makes from some very impressive landscapes for which to shoot colossal battle scenes. Annakin shows tanks facing off with each other on the plains and in the snow-encrusted woods and shows hand-to-hand fighting in the streets of a French city. These scenes are set to an excellent, rousing Ben Frankel score, which only adds to the excitement. There are hundreds of extras running about, as well as several dozen loud, clanking tanks. Annakin often places his camera on the front end of a tank, train or moving car to give the viewer a "you-are-there" perspective, a technique which is ruined with the pan-and-scan process.

The dramatic effect of the serious scenes is severely hampered by preposterous Hollywood heroics and some incredibly poor special effects. Quite often, the combat and destruction look incredibly real, but there are some truly laughable shots of exploding model tanks and roaring model trains, too. The battle scenes, notably a huge tank vs. tank battle and a conclusion involving an attempted German capture of an Allied fuel dump are incredibly corny and false-looking - first for their false-looking special effects, which looked bad even in 1965, and secondly for their placement in a desert rather than a snowy forest - which really destroyed the credibility Annakin had been working up to. A strong subplot involving an American tanker, Guffy (Telly Savalas, "The Dirty Dozen") and another, centering on the Malmedy Massacre, help to offset this cheesiness.

"Battle of the Bulge" is a true Hollywood epic in every sense of the word. It may not be historically accurate, but it's probably the most entertaining and engaging war film I've had the pleasure to watch. The characters are main fleshed out enough to keep the viewers interested, the scope is amazing and the direction often borders on brilliance as often as it fails miserably.