IMDb > Oh! What a Lovely War (1969)

Oh! What a Lovely War (1969) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.0/10   1,017 votes
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Writers:
Charles Chilton (play)
Len Deighton (screenplay)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Oh! What a Lovely War on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
3 October 1969 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
The ever popular war game with songs battles & a few jokes more
Plot:
A movie about the First World War based on a stage musical of the same name, portraying the "Game of... more | add synopsis
Awards:
Won Golden Globe. Another 7 wins & 5 nominations more
User Comments:
Should be subtitled: Don't Go Near the Poppies more (49 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Wendy Allnutt ... Flo Smith
Colin Farrell ... Harry Smith
Malcolm McFee ... Freddie Smith
John Rae ... Grandpa Smith
Corin Redgrave ... Bertie Smith

Maurice Roëves ... George Smith
Paul Shelley ... Jack Smith
Kim Smith ... Dickie Smith
Angela Thorne ... Betty Smith
Mary Wimbush ... Mary Smith
Vincent Ball ... Australian Soldier
Pia Colombo ... Estaminet Singer
Paul Daneman ... Czar Nicholas II
Isabel Dean ... Sir John French's Lady
Christian Doermer ... Fritz
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Additional Details

Runtime:
144 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Australia:G | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:11 | USA:G

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The last film of Cecil Parker more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: The bayonets of the band of the Irish Guards as they parade down the Brighton promenade appear to be for the L1A1 self loading rifle, first issued 1957 and still issued as standard by the time of the film, rather than the correct 1907 pattern bayonet for the Lee-Enfield No1 mkIII rifle (characterised by its longer blade length of 17" as opposed to the 8" of the L1A1's bayonet). more
Quotes:
Sir Edward Grey: [as war breaks out] The lamps are going out all over Europe, we will not see them lit again in our lifetime. more
Movie Connections:
Featured in The 100 Greatest War Films (2005) (TV) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
22 out of 23 people found the following comment useful.
Should be subtitled: Don't Go Near the Poppies, 10 July 2001
10/10
Author: Barbara Eberly (eberly1@gte.net) from Cullowhee, NC

I first saw this movie in the theater in 1969. In my opinion it was by far the most powerful anti-war movie I had ever seen. I came to IMDB looking for a place where I could order a copy so that my children could see it. I can not think of another movie which makes use of the media so effectively. For instance, the party atmosphere of the boardwalk where we see a toy merry-go-round with puppets which blends into a real merry-go-round with real soldiers and real women which blends into real soldiers in a real battle. And the scene where the "upper class" lady is enticing men to join the army morphs into a whore soliciting anybody she can drag onstage. Then the camera moves to the men gathered backstage and the backdrop of the curtains in the theatre becomes the canvas cover of the truck carrying the men to the battlefront. Death is symbolized by poppies. The surrealistic atmosphere allows the characters to pass by poppies, or be handed a poppy rather than being shot or dying from mustard gas. And I particularly liked the scoreboard where the result--regardless of the men lost or the ground lost was always VICTORY! The final scene with the women and children having a picnic in a beautiful field requires the scope of the "big screen." When the child comes running up to his mother and asks, "What did Daddy do in the war?" the answer comes not from the mother but from the camera pulling back very slowly from the picnic. We see a cross and some poppies and then we see more poppies and more crosses until all we can see are the crosses and poppies of Flanders Field and we are no longer able to distinguish the people having the picnic. This is a film for those who enjoy surrealism and satire. It is a must for anyone studying anti-war films. And as an added treat, it has in it practically everybody who was anybody in British theatre at the time it was made.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Oh! What a Lovely War (1969)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Please Please Help Me! driscolldoll
All the Smith men die (apparently)...so where's Dickie Smith? onedaymore_hmeyer
john lennon tim_harper42
The man freaks me out phosie
Where can I find the soundtrack? onedaymore_hmeyer
Joke in Play King-Leonidas
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