IMDb >
Churchill and the Generals (1979) (TV)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsChurchill and the Generals (1979) (TV) More at IMDbPro »
Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Ian Curteis (writer)
Release Date:
5 March 1981 (USA)
more
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
1 win
&
5 nominations
more
User Comments:
A Tempestuous Leader Changed Generals Like Socks
more (5 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Timothy West | ... | Winston Churchill | |
| Eric Porter | ... | Gen. Sir Alan Brooke | |
| Arthur Hill | ... | President Franklin D. Roosevelt | |
| Joseph Cotten | ... | Gen. George C. Marshall | |
| Richard Dysart | ... | Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower | |
| Ian Richardson | ... | Gen. Bernard L. Montgomery | |
| Patrick Allen | ... | Gen. Sir Claude Auchinleck | |
| Alexander Knox | ... | Secretary of War Henry Stimson | |
| Robert Arden | ... | Harry Hopkins | |
| Paul Hardwick | ... | Gen. Sir Hastings Ismay | |
| Peter Copley | ... | Gen. Sir John Dill | |
| Patrick Magee | ... | Gen. Sir Archibald Wavell | |
| Terence Alexander | ... | Gen. Sir Harold Alexander | |
| Lyndon Brook | ... | King George VI | |
| Amanda Walker | ... | Queen Elizabeth |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
USA:180 min
Country:
Color:
Sound Mix:
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (5 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Churchill and the Generals (1979) (TV)Recommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| The Longest Day | The Two-Headed Spy | Battle of Britain | Salvatore Giuliano | Haven |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | IMDb Drama section |
| IMDb UK section | Add this title to MyMovies |

Winston Churchill who rallied his nation and may very well have saved civilization by keeping the UK fighting against Nazism until the Soviet Union and the USA entered the war, had some serious flaws as a military strategist. There was only one way of beating Hitler, go right through the front door of Western Europe. Churchill however wanted to nibble at the sides, hence the Mediterranean campaign, the attempt to take Norway back.
The fear was understandable. Everyone on both sides in Europe feared the four year stalemate that was World War I with the trench warfare in France. Anything to avoid that again, so the British shied away from a cross channel invasion and a campaign in France.
Timothy West captures the mercurial part of Churchill's nature as well as the inspiring one. In his long career, Churchill was both First Lord of the Admiralty and Secretary of State for War, the former post he held twice. He was educated at Sandhurst though he left the army for politics, he fancied himself a military strategist.
This made for TV docudrama shows a Churchill who hired and fired generals in much the same manner that Abraham Lincoln did in the Civil War. But Lincoln was more result oriented, the Churchill we see here is someone who got rid of people basically because they didn't kiss up to him.
He got rid of generals like Wavell who defeated the Italians at Addis Ababa and Auchinleck who slowed the Nazi advance at the first battle of El Alamein for pretty much that reason. The man who replaced Auchinleck in North Africa, Bernard Montgomery took Auchinleck's battle plan and turned the Nazis at the second El Alamein.
After that, the direction of war planning came more and more from the American military. In fact one of the reasons I like Churchill and the Generals is it shows just how much different things were with FDR and his generals and Churchill and his. Roosevelt was smart enough to know when he was not in his element and he left strategic planning to George C. Marshall and Ernest J. King in the Navy. Next to West as Churchill, I liked Joseph Cotten as Marshall.
A great inspirational leader, but one who his generals wished had just confined himself to making speeches in Parliament.