"The Winds of War" (1983) TV mini-series

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

6 February 1983 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | War

Plot:

In the late 1930s, world politics begin to head in a dangerous direction. In Europe, Germany expands...

Plot Keywords:

Mussolini | Italy | Germany | Japan | Pearl Harbor

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Golden Globes. Another 5 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Robert Mitchum	...	Victor 'Pug' Henry (7 episodes, 1983)
Ali MacGraw	...	Natalie Jastrow (7 episodes, 1983)
Jan-Michael Vincent	...	Byron Henry (7 episodes, 1983)
John Houseman	...	Aaron Jastrow (7 episodes, 1983)
Polly Bergen	...	Rhoda Henry (7 episodes, 1983)
Lisa Eilbacher	...	Madeline Henry (7 episodes, 1983)
David Dukes	...	Leslie Slote (7 episodes, 1983)
Topol	...	Berel Jastrow (7 episodes, 1983)
Ben Murphy	...	Warren Henry (7 episodes, 1983)
Peter Graves	...	Palmer 'Fred' Kirby (7 episodes, 1983)
Jeremy Kemp	...	Brigadier General Armin Von Roon (7 episodes, 1983)
Ralph Bellamy	...	President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (7 episodes, 1983)
Victoria Tennant	...	Pamela Tudsbury (7 episodes, 1983)
Wolfgang Preiss	...	Field Marshal Walter von Brauchitsch (7 episodes, 1983)
William Woodson	...	Narrator (7 episodes, 1983)
Günter Meisner	...	Adolf Hitler (6 episodes, 1983)
Reinhard Kolldehoff	...	Hermann Goering (6 episodes, 1983)
Werner Kreindl	...	Colonel General Franz Halder (6 episodes, 1983)
Rainer Penkert	...	Grand Admiral Erich Raeder (6 episodes, 1983)
Alexander Kerst	...	Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel (6 episodes, 1983)
Joachim Hansen	...	Field Marshal Alfred Jodl (6 episodes, 1983)
Anton Diffring	...	Joachim von Ribbentrop (4 episodes, 1983)
Howard Lang	...	Winston Churchill (4 episodes, 1983)
Timothy Stack	...	Yeoman Ryan (4 episodes, 1983)
John Carter	...	Colonel William Forrest (3 episodes, 1983)
Barry Morse	...	Wolf Stoller (3 episodes, 1983)
Tom McFadden	...	Hugh Cleveland (3 episodes, 1983)
Roy Poole	...	Harry Hopkins (3 episodes, 1983)
Michael Logan	...	Alistair Tudsbury (3 episodes, 1983)
Scott Brady	...	Captain Red Tully (3 episodes, 1983)
Enzo G. Castellari	...	Benito Mussolini (3 episodes, 1983)
Joseph Hacker	...	Lt. Carter 'Lady' Aster (3 episodes, 1983)
Deborah Winters	...	Janice Lacouture Henry (3 episodes, 1983)
Edmund Purdom	...	Luigi Gianelli (2 episodes, 1983)
Lin McCarthy	...	Blinker Vance (2 episodes, 1983)
Michael McGuire	...	Fred Fearing (2 episodes, 1983)
Ferdy Mayne	...	Ludwig Rosenthal (2 episodes, 1983)
Sky Dumont	...	Count Galeazzo Ciano (2 episodes, 1983)
Judith Atwell	...	Sally Forrest (2 episodes, 1983)
James Ray	...	Chargé Reese Claremont (2 episodes, 1983)
Eloise Hardt	...	Mrs. Lacouture (2 episodes, 1983)
Allan Cuthbertson	...	Major General Tillet (2 episodes, 1983)
Lawrence Pressman	...	Bunky Thurston (2 episodes, 1983)
Edmund Pegge	...	Air Commodore Burne-Wilke (2 episodes, 1983)
Leo Gordon	...	General 'Train' Anderson (2 episodes, 1983)
Elizabeth Hoffman	...	Eleanor Roosevelt (2 episodes, 1983)
Stelio Candelli	...	Scarfaced Gestapo Agent (2 episodes, 1983)
Karl-Otto Alberty	...	White-haired Gestapo Agent (2 episodes, 1983)
Felix Nelson	...	F.D.R. Valet (2 episodes, 1983)
Henryk Rajfer	...	Groom at Wedding / ... (2 episodes, 1983)
Ben Astar	...	Rear Admiral Gorshev (2 episodes, 1983)
William Berger	...	Phil Briggs (2 episodes, 1983)
Ray Blackburn	...	Cinpac Ensign (2 episodes, 1983)
Richard Brent	...	Landing Officer Enterprise (2 episodes, 1983)
Francesco Carnelutti	...	Avram Rabinowitz / ... (2 episodes, 1983)
Anatoly Chaguinian	...	Josef Stalin / ... (2 episodes, 1983)
Francesco Chianese	...	Father Enrico Spanelli / ... (2 episodes, 1983)
Matt Clark	...	Torpedo Man Hansen (2 episodes, 1983)
Andrew Duggan	...	Admiral Husband E. Kimmel / ... (2 episodes, 1983)
Jerry Fujikawa	...	Yoguchi (2 episodes, 1983)
Hugh Gillin	...	Captain Jocko Larkin (2 episodes, 1983)
Laurence Haddon	...	Captain of the Enterprise (2 episodes, 1983)
Tommy Lee Holland	...	Devilfish Sub Captain (2 episodes, 1983)
Maysie Hoy	...	Anna May (2 episodes, 1983)
Vjenceslav Kapural	...	Col. Gondin / ... (2 episodes, 1983)
John Karlen	...	Ed PBY Pilot (2 episodes, 1983)
Mickey Knox	...	Herb Rose (2 episodes, 1983)
Charles Lane	...	Admiral William Standley (2 episodes, 1983)
James McIntire	...	Coxswain Pearl Harbor (2 episodes, 1983)
Damir Mejovsek	...	Russian General in Farmhouse (2 episodes, 1983)
John Sanderford	...	Pierce (2 episodes, 1983)
Richard X. Slattery	...	Admiral Bull Halsey (2 episodes, 1983)
Jerry Velasco	...	Salas (2 episodes, 1983)
Heinz Weiss	...	Panzer General Guderian (2 episodes, 1983)

Also Known As:

Herman Wouk's The Winds of War (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

USA:883 min | West Germany:720 min (cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German | Italian | Polish | Portuguese | Russian | Hebrew

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Berchtesgaden, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Jadran Film

Trivia:

Barry Morse, Sky Dumont, and actress/producer Barbara Steele Heinz Weiss and Leo Gordon would all return for the sequel, 'War and Remembrance (1988)', but in different roles.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: When Pug speaks with Churchill, the shadow of a boom mic is visible below the picture on the wall behind Churchill. [Part 4, Scene 6, time index 49:06]

Quotes:

Wolf Stoller: There are certain conversations that have to be forgotten. And in Germany we have a phrase for such delicate matters. We say, "under four eyes."
Victor 'Pug' Henry: I believe I've heard that phrase.
Wolf Stoller: What transpires next is under four eyes. You and Armin had a conversation about this lend-lease bill. Did he make sense to you? You prefer not to say, eh? Of course. You are a diplomat.
Victor 'Pug' Henry: I'm a gunnery expert, misplaced in diplomacy, and hoping to get the hell out of it.
Wolf Stoller: A man of honor wants to serve on the field.
[offers him a cigar]
Wolf Stoller: Would you?
Victor 'Pug' Henry: No, thank you.
Wolf Stoller: That you sympathize with England is only natural. I do. I love England. After all, I spent two years at Oxford. But we know that in your Army and Navy, there is serious opposition to this lend-lease giveaway. Which will strip you of armaments, by the way. No, in war plans, you will be in a key position to foster this wise and patriotic opposition. Frankly, Germany needs friends in influential positions, to offset the Morgenthaus and the Lehmans.
Victor 'Pug' Henry: Herr Stoller...
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Dallas: Winds of War (#8.16)" (1985)

A great mini-series - despite Ali MacGraw

I've just revisited this mini-series on DVD for the first time since I saw it when it was first screened on TV back in 1983, so my memory of it had been very vague and I'd forgotten pretty much all of it.

I'd also forgotten just how singularly dreadful Ali MacGraw is in this.

I've not read the book, but I have the impression that the character of Natalie Jastrow is supposed to be strong-willed, spirited, feisty and sexy. If that's the case then MacGraw failed on all counts.

Instead of being strong-willed, spirited and feisty, MacGraw's Natalie comes across as spoilt, petulant and generally obnoxious - constantly complaining, throwing hissy-fits and looking down her nose at people (both literally and metaphorically). And when she's trying to be all coquettish for the benefit of Sloate and Byron, her performance is about as sexy as a bad case of athlete's foot.

All in all a horrible piece of miscasting by the producers, and I'm not in the least bit surprised that she wasn't rehired for the sequel "War And Remembrance" (in which Jane Seymour's Natalie was a quantum leap improvement over MacGraw's portrayal). At least Old Bleary Eyes himself, Robert Mitchum, brings gravitas, presence and start quality to his role, even though he looks all of his (at the time of filming) 66 years and was really about 15 years too old and several trouser sizes too large for the character he was playing.

Looking beyond the presence of Ali MacGraw though, this classic mini-series is a great way to while away a week's worth of evenings in front of the TV, and the way in which historical events and characters are interwoven with the more personal story lines of the main fictional characters is very nicely done.

The sequel is even better (and longer), and I'm looking forward to starting on that soon.