The Longest Day (1962) User Reviews

Spectacular recounting about the D-Day landings at Normandy on June 6, 1944, based on Cornelius Ryan novel

[ma-cortes · 8/10 · 21 December 2007]

This an important, interesting movie depicting the Overlord operation with monumental logistic and means of effecting the Normandy landing , the most difficult campaign of war . The picture brings to life the famous images of WWII and splendidly the most sensational military operation of the history in an Allied hard-fought effort . The film develops the previous days to the D-Day invasion , such as the landings and the advance over France . The film is magnificently produced in big budget by the great 20th Century Fox producer Darryl F. Zanuck . Evocative cinematography by Jean Bourgoun and catching song by Paul Anka with musical score by Maurice Jarre . Excellent casting by a great plethora of stars . Special mention for John Wayne as Lt. Colonel Benjamin Vandervoort , he's top-notch as a tough , valiant officer in this believable war film and terrific acting by Richard Todd as Major commanding Us paratroopers dropped to protect the flanks of the invasion and taking strategic bridge . Furthermore , known Generals and officers played by prestigious players , as Germans : General Gunther (Curt Jurgens) , Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (Hinz) , Field Marshal Von Rundstedt (Paul Hartmann), and Allied : Brig. General Theodore Roosevelt Jr (Henry Fonda) , Brig. General Norman Cota (Robert Mitchum) , General Haines (Mel Ferrer) , Brig. General James Gavin (Robert Ryan) , General Raymond Barton (Edmond O'Brien), Lt General OMar N Bradley (Stuart) , General Bernard L Montgomery (T. Reid) and General Dwight D. Eisenhower played by Henry Grace . Grace was a famed set designer , while he worked extensively for many films , his only appearance was an uncredited performance as Eisenhower ; despite not being an actor , he was cast for his uncanny resemblance to the General . This famous event from how was orchestrated the dangerous , risky landing maneuvers was professionally directed by a magnificent trio of directors , Ken Annakin , Bernhard Wicki and Andrew Marton.

Adding more details along with the well developed on the movie , the events that happened on June 6, 1944 were the following ones : Shortly after midnight on June 6, about 23.500 US and British paratroopers landed along the edges of the landing beaches . Their mission was to seize vital bridges and communications centers. They also had to hold off any Germans counterattacks until they were relieved by the amphibious forces. The Airbone landings were largely successful. Some US troops missed their target and end up scattered over the countryside. The main amphibious landings took place after an artillery bombardment from some 200 Allied warships at German positions also came under attack from Allied medium and heavy bombers. They were part of the 11,500 aircraft committed to D-Day. They bombed the Germans on and behind the five landing beaches. US troops landed on Utah beach. Strong currents and inaccurate navigation meant that they were a little away from their precise target. They landed about 1 mile (1,6 km) south. The beach there was relatively undefended. The troops soon knocked out the only concrete gun position guarding the beach.Demolitions teams cleared paths through the obstacles the beach and the first tanks crossed the Atlantic Wall. They fanned out into the countryside to link up with the paratroopers. By nightfall of D-Day some 23,000 men and 1,700 vehicles had gone ashore. The beach had been highly congested for much of the day. Utah was a triumph ,however Omaha beach was nearly a disaster, the fight was the most difficult. The Us troops were unable to get off the beach to make room for later waves of invaders. There were better defenses there than on the other beaches, and the German defenders were positioned on high ground, from where they could pour fire down on the attackers.The allies also made mistakes. The naval bombardment ended too soon, and the bombers missed their targets and launched landing crafts and amphibious tanks too far out from the beach, may were sunk. When the first assault wave landed ,it faced a bar-rage of fire , some men were thinking of evacuation. However small groups began to make it off the beach to the high ground beyond. By dusk, some men were ashore, most were still crowed on the beach. The high ground beyond was only thinly held by exhausted survivors waves. Some 2300 US troops had been killed in the landings. The operation had come close to disaster. The three Anglo-Canadian beaches-Gold, Sword and Juno stretched fore some 25 miles. They were wide and open and ideal for amphibious landings. The British on Gold and Sword quickly crashed though the Atlantic wall. Their success was due partly to a range of specially developed armored vehicles known as Funnies. The Canadians at Juno had a tougher time. They faced rough seas and alert defenders .By late morning ,they were also pushing inland. Despite the horror of beaches , overall Allied losses were far lower than expected. Some 6000 US personnel were killed, wounded, or missing, along with 4300 British and Canadian troops. German losses totaled between 4000 and 8000. By the day's end ,some 128000 Allied soldiers were ashore and many more were on their way.

Still a classic after 42 years!

[phantomsteve_ · 8/10 · 2 May 2004]

Invariably compared with "Saving Private Ryan" (SPR), this scores over the more modern work because of the focus on all the major sides of the action (British, American, French and German).

All languages are used (with subtitles as appropriate - eg the Germans speak in German, etc).

While true that the battle scenes are not gory as SPR's, and that the sounds of battle are muted during the dialog (unlike SPR's), it should be borne in mind that in '62, the audience rating of the time *was* a General Release ("G" in the US, "A" in the UK (I'm guessing for the UK, but it is now PG)) - which more detail would not have allowed.

I think part of the purpose of this film is to allow *everyone* to see what happened 18 years before!

Shaving Ryan's Privates

[giorgiosurbani · 9/10 · 26 November 2007]

True, the first half an hour of Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" is truly mesmerizing but then it degenerates into a soap opera of sorts and all the angst and horror of war evaporates until the truly sentimental finale. "The Longest Day" doesn't depend on special effects but on the minute by minute horror of its moment. It's also, if I'm permitted to say it, a lot of fun to watch. Strangely enough the all star cast is not distracting at all. It was much more in "Saving Private Ryan" with a cast of up and comings headed by Tom Hanks himself. In "The Longest Day" there are real moments, film, cinematic moments that are intimately connected with the profoundest sense of drama: The clicking of the rifle. Richard Burton, Richard Beymer and the boots of the dead German. Red Buttons hanging from the Cathedral. Paul Anka, Fabian, Robert Wagner, the landing in Normandy. This film remains one of the best, from every angle, films of its kind.

The last good WW2 film made by people "who were there"

[Buck_Thruster · 12 April 2004]

This is perhaps one of the most ambitious, epic WW2 films to have been made; certainly it is the last of the classic B&W films made about the subject. Featuring an all-star cast (John Wayne, Richard Burton, Kurt Jurgens... even a cameo by Sean Connery!), it comprehensively details the build-up and execution of the Normandy landings in 1944, taking care to show how the event was perceived by Allied and Axis soldiers and commanders, as well as the Free French resistance. This is a film that takes great care in documenting the events of the day, without lapsing into sickly sentimentalism or getting distracted with fictional characters' personal lives (a failing of many WW2 movies since about 1970), or over-emphasising any one nation's importance in the operation (although, admittedly, Canadians may feel a little short-changed).

Classic moments abound, notably the landing at St.Mere-Eglise and the soldier who gets caught in the church steeple, the frustrations of the front-line German commanders and fighters, and the numerous cameos for film nerds to keep track of.

If you want a wartime romance, or an appearance by Matt Damon or Ben Affleck, or long, loving shots of the Stars & Stripes in slo-mo, or a gritty blood'n'guts fest, you'll be disappointed. This film has broader concerns, and was made with much more thoroughness. There is no agenda at work here, pro-war or anti-. It is solely concerned with documenting Operation "Overlord" for the film-going public, and succeeds brilliantly; a shame then, that it has not made the top 50 war films list.

A must-see for any fan of war films.

An absolutely remarkable film...

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 10/10 · 1 October 2002]

'The Longest Day' is June 6, 1944, the day the Allied assault on Hitler's Fortress Europe... And when it came everything went much according to plan... But fighting through the tough country of Normandy took much longer than had been expected...

Dwight D. Eisenhower, the four-star Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces, made up the force of some two million men massed in England for the strike at Europe...

Combined American, British, Irish and Canadian forces assault the beaches of Normandy in an effort to gain a foothold on the continent... From the viewpoint of the Americans and Germans involved, the story unfolds through numerous episodes highlighting the 'Longest Day.' We see the commands posts occupied by the Germans; Caen, the starting point; the French underground network; Omaha Beach; Utah Beach; Ste-Mère-Église; as well as sites and camps in England...

The film is a clear examination of D-Day looked at from almost every viewpoint, particularly from that of the Germans who are overwhelmed by the forces brought against them... It is in fact Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (profiled against the French beach thoroughly planted with mined obstacles) who looks out to where the invasion fleet will appear later-or sooner, and gives the film its title: "The first 24 hours of the invasion will be decisive... For the Allies as well as the Germans, it will be the longest day."

In the first half, much attention is focused on the weather, as the troops... American, British, Irish, Canadian and French are poised on board their boats and ships, waiting for the rain to stop... In the key scene when Gen. Eisenhower (David Grace), makes the decision to go ahead with the invasion on June 6, more than 5,000 ships moved to assigned positions... The importance of time is emphasized by increasing the ticking of a clock... On the other side of the channel, the German generals, who know the invasion is imminent, see the same nasty weather and decide to take some time off for war games...

French Resistance fighters receive their coded instructions from BBC radio and increase their sabotage activities... Much of the early going is also devoted to some of the Allies' more unorthodox ideas, the kinds of things that make more sense cinematic ally than militarily: the use of metal clickers by paratroopers for identification, and parachuting mechanical dummies loaded with firecrackers behind German lines to create confusion...

The film reaches its peak when the two sides in the battle are finally engaged...

The first assault wave hit the Normandy beaches at 6:30 A.M. on June 6... The soil of France looked sordid and uninviting... Planning has been as complete as possible, but in the vast confusion of invasion under enemy fire, so many men fell uselessly when they left their landing craft, and stepped into water... Others fell into underwater shell craters and drowned...

The Allied air bombing that was to have knocked out German beach defense guns had not been accurate, especially on Omaha Beach where the bombs had been laid down too far inland to do much good... As a result, the gunfire that met American troops there was more murderous than anything they had been prepared for..

Today it is difficult to watch the invasion scenes and not compare them to the opening of Steven Spielberg's 'Saving Private Ryan,' but that really is unfair... Zanuck manages to display the image of thousands of young soldiers who were killed fighting to liberate France...

A long aerial shot from the point of view of a German pilot Josef 'Pips' Priller (Heinz Reincke) strafing Normandy Beach reveals a shore-line of successive waves of men running for their lives trying to secure Omaha Beach... This awful waste and destruction of war: scores of trucks and boats hit by shells, or sunk by mines with their crew lost... Trucks overturned and swamped, partly sunken barges, and many jeeps half submerged...

Field Marshal Rommel set to work to do everything possible to make the beaches if not impregnable, very uninviting indeed... 'The war will be won or lost on the beaches,' he states... The German command was slow to react to the invasion... They had been misled by the weather and the Allied deception plan that Normandy was a diversion and the main landing would be at Pas-de-Calais...

Shot in CinemaScope and in black-and-white, 'The Longest Day' captures the history of the moment... The film tracks the book very closely, shifting the viewpoints from German to French to American to British throughout... In three hours Zanuck and his staff expand on the scope of one day, to tell mostly everything, with an exceptionally strong cast playing cameo roles... The cast could not be better, in spite of the brevity of their roles:

• Bourvil is the French Mayor of Colleville who welcomes the British soldiers with a bottle of champagne...

• Irina Demick is Janine Boitard, the sexy good-looking Resistance member...

• Henry Fonda is Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the Brigadier General who limps ashore with the first of the assault boats landing on Utah Beach...

• Christian Marquand is Philippe Kieffer, the French Commander in desperate situation in Ouistreham...

• Robert Mitchum is Norman Cota, the Brigadier general who chops on his cold cigar, and walks along the beach and rallies his men... Mitchum gets some great lines and delivers them with the right amount of idealism and cynicism...

• Richard Todd is John Howard, the major who lands by glider at Bénouville to capture the canal bridge over the Orne River...

All the characters speak in their own languages... The motion picture is Winner of two Academy Awards for Cinematography and Special Effects, Zanuck's 'The Longest Day' is one without doubt an absolutely remarkable film, one of the most impressive and most authentic documentation of war ever put on film...

"Gentlemen, We Start the War from Right Here."

[bkoganbing · 10/10 · 7 August 2006]

Simply put if things had gone differently on June 6, 1944 we would be living in a very different and very much uglier world than we have now. The Longest Day is Darryl F. Zanuck's tribute to all who were involved in Allied invasion at Normandy.

Even viewing it now as opposed to the theaters back then back then I am staggered at Zanuck's incredible eye and grasp for the detail of the Normandy invasion. He did the smart thing and not only bought Cornelius Ryan's standard account of D-Day, but got Ryan to write a very coherent screenplay. Even one who has absolutely no grasp of military history will be able to follow exactly what was going on.

Several of the people who are portrayed in the film also served as technical advisers of it. When you Peter Lawford as Lord Lovat or Robert Ryan as General James Gavin and many others these people aided in recreating the project.

Zanuck may have had the largest movie set in history to work with, at least up to that time. You are seeing the film photographed in the places it actually happened. The beaches, the towns of St. Mere Eglise and Ouisterham, even the embarkation areas in the UK. I doubt you could do The Longest Day today because of the changes in all these places now. Lots of cooperation from the British and French governments was necessary.

You also couldn't do it because the budget would be the size of the U.S. national debt today. This was the last days of the all powerful studio system and even with a lot of the stars free-lancing at that point, Darryl F. Zanuck was still a most powerful man in Hollywood with a lot of favors owed. One example was Richard Burton who was shooting Cleopatra at the time The Longest Day was also shooting. For his two brief, but memorable scenes as an RAF pilot, they shot around him on Cleopatra also a 20th Century Fox production while he filmed his part for Zanuck.

Even the Germans came in for a portrait of them as human beings. Curt Jurgens as General Blumentritt, who was also a technical adviser, put it philosophically best about how after he can't convince Chief of Staff Alfred Jodl to wake up Hitler to move the Panzer Divisions, breaks open a bottle of cognac and decides to drink it before the Allies arrive.

I have several favorites in The Longest Day. Richard Todd who actually was at D-Day and was a decorated hero himself, plays commando leader, Major John Howard who is asked to paratroop into France and capture and hold a key bridge intact. Todd is channeling his own as well as Howard's war experience into the film and gives a performance of unusual depth.

Norman Rossington and a pre-James Bond Sean Connery who was just making his debut as Bond in Dr. No, give some good comic relief as a cockney and Irish soldier landing on Sword Beach. So does Kenneth More as a British beachmaster with his bulldog Winston.

The French are well represented by Arletty, Bourvil, Christian Marquand and by Irina Demich. Being that three of these play civilian roles they get the only two women's parts of any substance in The Longest Day. I do like the scene where some Germans checking Irina out in a low cut dress, fail to properly search her. Irina also demonstrates how much the women were equal partners in the Resistance. Marquand as a captain of a Free French company is involved in a particularly bloody battle for a coastal town.

Of course the American cinema is well represented. Charlton Heston was to originally play the part that John Wayne does, but he couldn't get free of some commitments of his own and when Wayne became available, Zanuck grabbed him. Heston was later quoted as saying Wayne did a better job than he would have in any event. Wayne's best scene was when he saw some American bodies dangling from roofs in St. Mere Eglise. As I've said many times, John Wayne had one of the best faces for movie closeups ever. One look at the horror expressed in his face tells you all you need to know.

Henry Fonda plays General Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. who would within a month after the invasion die on Normandy Beach. Had he lived, Roosevelt might have picked up the pieces of a stalled political career. But that was not to be the case. Roosevelt was found dead of a heart attack in his tent after the invasion when the Allies were trying to break out of the beach.

The heaviest casualties on D-Day were on Omaha Beach where Robert Mitchum plays General Norman Cota a division commander. Mitchum is involved at the climax of the film where American GIS after being hung up for hours, break through and insure the invasion's success.

The Longest Day is not only great drama and a great war film, but it is as accurate a film as you will ever get depicting the Normandy invasion, good history as well.

A splendid film by all counts.........

[d_john2 · 10/10 · 30 July 2004]

I'm old enough to have seen this epic when it was first released and, even as a nine year old, I was impressed. It was the great Daryl Zanuck's last hurrah and a fitting one (not his last film - just his last worthwhile film).

This is a great film. It's not perfect but its faults are few and minor. For me the most glaring fault is the amateurish delivery by the actor (a near ringer) portraying Ike. Also, the very beautiful actress portraying the French resistance fighter is wearing a very 1960s hairdo (a common problem with Hollywood films).

I see this film every memorial day. It helps me to remember my father, a Navy gunner's mate in the Pacific theater and my maternal grandfather, an island-hopping Sgt. in the Marine Corps. Personally, as a veteran, I find this movie as realistic as I think it was possible to be in 1961.

Is it the best American war film? No. I would place it in the top 10 alongside the following:

1. All Quiet On the Western Front (1930) 2. Platoon (1986) 3. Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) 4. In Which We Serve (British - 1943) 5. Patton (1970) 6. They Were Expendable (1945) 7. Twelve O'Clock High (1949) 8. Paths of Glory (1957) 9. Grand Illusion (1940?) 10.The Longest Day (1962)

The Cast & The Actual Event: Overwhelming Numbers

[ccthemovieman-1 · 8/10 · 17 June 2006]

This was an another one of these all-star casts that you don't see in more modern times, in which about everyone who was actor made an appearance....or it just seems that way. For those unfamiliar with this film, take a look back on the main page here and check out the famous names in this movie. Click the "more" under the cast overview and you'll see all the names. It's unbelievable. Some of them, to be fair, had very short roles in here, such as Henry Fonda, Rod Steiger and Roddy McDowell, but this is a real "Who's Who" of the acting profession in 1962. There are also a lot of German actors in here speaking German (with subtitles provided), perhaps numbering even more than the English-speaking stars. That's because the famous day of June 6, 1944, is seen from both sides of the conflict.

At three hours, it gives you plenty of D-Day World War II action. Almost two-thirds of the movie involves action from that famous invasion. In some spots, it just gets to be too much. Frankly, the whole film is too much and almost bogs down in too many areas....and it shouldn't, but it is a very technical film. And, for a film 45 years old, the action is pretty realistic. I thought the best shots were the overheads during one particular scenes when the Alies were going through a town.

I am anything but a WWII expert so how much detail of the infamous 'D-Day" here is correct, Since they went into such detail, I'll assume they were fairly accurate. I can't say but this movie educated me on the size of the task. I had no idea "D-Day" was this huge in scope: three million men and 5,000 ships??!!! Amazing.

Allow Yourself A Long Day To See This All-Star War Pic...

[Don-102 · 7/10 · 12 April 1999]

Darryl F. Zanuck's THE LONGEST DAY is indeed long, has over 48 international stars, 3 directors, and took about 2 years to make. 1962 was the year of the epic as far as the 1960's were concerned and this exceptional film is no exception. No cost was spared. Some good war sequences mixed with stock footage of WWII effectively present a version of D-Day, June of 1944. We see it from the German perspective (in sub-titles), the American plight, and the rest of the Allied forces. One problem: If you are seeing the film for the first time AFTER watching SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, you may come out disappointed. The war scenes are well-crafted, however, the piercing reality is missing. I tried to watch it as objectively as I could, but it is hard, considering the impression Spielberg's version of D-Day left on me.

The soldiers are led by a variety of huge name actors. John Wayne is a no-holds-barred Captain who will fight, broken foot or not. Henry Fonda plays Teddy Roosevelt, Jr. looking not to be treated as the son of an ex-president. Bob Mitchum is great as a cigar-smoking officer of the U.S. raid on Omaha Beach. The only problem is authenticity. The actors look good and realisticly war-like, however, they are kept in frame to showcase their talents and they never seem to be near death. This is by no means an anti-war film like RYAN. It can be harrowing at times, but watching Richard Burton, Sean Connery, and Rod Steiger deliver cameo-like performances (meaning they know they are only on-screen for a short time) was a bit contrived and distracting.

Overall, I did like the movie. It is greatly detailed and it lets you know exactly who each actor is playing. This is pure American propaganda, but it is still exciting. Too many fearful war experiences are handled with kid gloves. The grand spectacle of the top-notch production values as well as non-stop action make the picture watchable, if only once.

RATING: 7 of 10

Almost Like Being There

[loufalce · 10/10 · 13 December 2007]

Quite simply the best film ever attempted on this subject. The events leading up to the D Day invasion in France are meticiously viewed from the French, British, German and American sides. The dialogue is spoken in the national languages of the countries taking part in the invasion and this aspect alone elevates it high above most other films. The superb black and white photography adds yet another layer or realism . Cast features many international stars, but never stoops to a "spot the stars" formula like too many of these films tend to do.Clichés are avoided and the people portrayed are realistically drawn. Even the Germans are presented as actual military leaders and not the stereotypical Nazi villains . There are massive invasion scenes, quieter scenes at the villages before the raid, and a commando raid on a German howitzer emplacement in the basement of a casino, a scene that follows the attacking Allied group from an ariel perspective while they move through town past the docked fishing boats and destroyed buildings. The overhead shots of the beaches with hundreds of troops, tanks and landing craft gives the viewer a very accurate picture of the massive scale of the invasion, something that Spielberg just could not pull off in "Pvt Ryan".A three hour film that is up for repeat viewings. You will discover something new each time you view it. The screenplay was by the author Cornelius Ryan from his own book.No silly romantic subplots, just the facts. I remember seeing this film after it opened with my father and uncle. It was impressive then, and it holds up beautifully today. In my humble opinion, this is the best WW11 film ever made. One of the greats.

An editing masterpiece, an epic day, lots of great filming, but also diffused and imperfect

[secondtake · 7/10 · 12 November 2012]

The Longest Day (1962)

This is an ambitious movie, extremely well photographed, filled with stars and secondary actors of fame and talent. And it covers roughly at 24 hour period leading up to and into the epic and dramatic June 6, 1944 invasion of German-held France known as D-Day.

On all these levels, the movie almost has to succeed. And it does. It's a popularizing account of an important event. It's history made simple, for sure, but it compresses the complexity with good intentions, and with some fair handling of both the German and non-German sides of the battles, inside and war rooms and on the beach.

The movie is filled, however, with so many characters (maybe fifty who are given enough camera time to take on some small meaning, though the poster advertises "42 International Stars") and shot in so many locations (Germany, France, London, on boats, on beaches, in villas, by the bridge, in the bunker, in the strategic commands, along the roads, flying overhead, on and on) it is truly impossible to engage in any one part of it fully. Many scenes are superb, even short ones, sometimes with great actors like Robert Ryan playing with a light on his face (in a comic scary way) and sometimes with unknowns who for a moment shine in their terror. But it's necessarily fragmented and dispersed.

There are, furthermore, attempts at humor that are a welcome break to the seriousness but are sometimes too silly and improbable to really make sense. It's like the humor that perks up little moments in a Chris Nolan Batman movie--except this is real life, this is the real D-Day and not an entertainment. You don't expect a documentary, exactly, but the levity--even if as cute as a young Sean Connery goofing on the beach as bullets fly around--is a bit off target.

The fact that this kind of movie works this well is probably amazing. It even got divided between different directors, and so the unifying qualities show a kind of logistical planning that paid off. (There are only two cinematographers and, crucially, one editor.) And of course there is history holding it together.

And this is a history that is getting lost. Fans of WWII movies (or of WWII history) will have no trouble feeling the grand, world-changing nature of D-Day. I grew up on American movies and around my parents and grandparents who had strong feelings about the war and about D-Day in particular. But young people, like the students in my classes at college, often born fifty years after the fact, have sometimes not even heard of D-Day. Many don't know a Nazi from RAF officer, even in concept. (I'm not kidding. I ask, routinely.) This is just life. Blame education if you want, but it's a natural movement forward to more recent and still living world events. We had D-Day, they have 9-11.

I watched the movie with my girlfriend who is not from the States, and who knew only the outline of the war. (Her country wasn't involved in it enough to make a dent on its own history.) And so she watched with a kind of dulled boredom. The cameos by famous people were fun for both of us, and filming was to be appreciated, but the drama I felt even with the opening credits I saw was dependent on knowing the larger scope.

And so this movie will have a shrinking audience and shrinking appreciation over time. It's a long watch--three hours--and it has a steady stream of great moments. But it's not a great movie in movie-making terms. Exciting and important and with a wikipedia page to make this all clear, but it's unlikely to fully integrate and take total form as a whole.

A Flawed Film But A Great Tribute To Courage

[Theo Robertson · 8/10 · 5 June 2004]

Despite being a classic war movie THE LONGEST DAY is very flawed as a production . Did someone say there's just too many stars in this movie ? If so I agree . Look at the way they're introduced , Mister big name movie star has back to camera , he turns round and wow we're looking at a big name movie star . All this is somewhat distracting .

It should also be pointed out that many of the cast are let down by Corneilus Ryan's script . Ryan wrote the definitive account of the last year of the war via his trilogy THE LONGEST DAY , A BRIDGE TOO FAR and THE LAST BATTLE , he was a truly great historian but it's obvious he couldn't master the technicalities of screen writing , his characters are more like caricatures with the Americans all being butch and macho while the Europeans are somewhat eccentric save for a few Englishmen who have stiff upper lips . Like HG Wells with THINGS TO COME Ryan writes dialogue that sounds suspiciously like thought processes , an example being where the rangers fight their way into a bunker only to find it's a decoy and someone says " You mean we came all the way up here for nothing ? " . You can almost imagine the passage in the book saying " it was obvious to the men who had survived the battle , so obvious that no one dare say it but they'd fought their way to the bunker for nothing "

Despite that I will congratulate Ryan and everyone else involved in the production for pointing out that the 6th of June was a multi national effort to free Western Europe from the Nazi jackboot , Brits , Yanks and the Free French are represented ( Not sure about the Canadians but ? ) unlike the rather overrated SAVING PRIVATE RYAN that seems to indicate that D Day was an American solo effort THE LONGEST DAY is far more accurate and subjective as to what happened on the day . The script also has the temerity to suggest that the allies didn't win the battle but the Nazis lost due to the military incompetence of Hitler . It should be remembered that despite the overwhelming fire power of the allies they could have easily have been massacred on the beaches and that the Normandy landings was probably the most complicated military endeavor in all of military history

A word of warning - If you ever watch this movie only see the widescreen version because the technical aspects are awesome . The outstanding scene is where a few Americans sit on a bunk playing cards and one of them stands up pleading " Hey guys , anyone got five bucks , ten bucks , anyone got twenty bucks " . At this point the camera quickly pans out and the sound crashes in making the audience realize that the scene is set in a billets with hundreds of soldiers . Needless to say this scene is totally ruined when it's watched on a scanned copy

THE LONGEST DAY is a flawed film but a great tribute to the men who fought in that campaign . As the veterans who fought there gather tomorrow for the 60th anniversary along with politicians who didn't have the guts to join the military but are very happy to use it for political gain I'd just like to say a big thank you to all the men who fought there . Thank you to one and all . If it weren't for you I wouldn't be here now

EXCELLENT FILM IF LACKING IN HISTORICAL FACTS

[alantentevier · 6/10 · 22 June 2019]

A great film but as an historical record, majorly flawed. It perpetuates the myth that the British and Canadian involvement in D-Day was minimal. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Strategic plans for the Normandy landings were conceived and developed by the British under the auspices of Lieut. General Frederick Morgan. His ingenious plans included the building of the floating Mulberry harbours and the construction of underwater oil pipelines between Britain and France.

The Supreme Allied Commander was indeed an American, General Eisenhower; but he had never fired a shot in anger, and all the allied forces on the ground (including the Americans) were under the overall command of the British General Montgomery who expanded General Morgan's initial plans. The Deputy Supreme Allied Commander, Arthur Tedder, was British. The Allied Air Commander in chief, Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory, was also British; as was the Allied Naval Commander in Chief, Bertram Ramsay.

On D-Day, British Empire forces (largely British and Canadian) put 75,215 troops ashore over three separate landings; the Americans, 57,500 over two. To these figures should be added 8.500 British and Canadian paratroopers (who achieved all their objectives); and 13,100 American.

Overall, there were nearly 7,000 vessels involved, and of the 1,213 warships taking an active part in the assault, 892 were British. The Royal and Merchant navies provided 137,824 personnel; the Americans, 52,889. Of the 4,126 landing craft involved 3,261 were British; 805 were American.

In addition to providing its own supplies, the British provided the Americans with nearly one-third of theirs. . On D-Day 11,590 allied aircraft took part in operations; almost half of these (5,656) were flown by the RAF. In addition, 1,800 RAF personnel were landed on D-Day (swelling to 3,500 by 9th June). They and over 800 vehicles were used for airfield construction and the servicing of allied aircraft.

Bletchley Park's input was also hugely significant; they had broken the latest German Enigma codes some six weeks before the invasion. MI 5 had not been idle either: all German agents working in the U.K. had been captured before D-Day and many of them turned, so the Germans were receiving false information about allied intentions. The entirely fictitious "First United States Army Group" was (apart from its name) the concept of British colonel David Strangeways, the head of Montgomery's R Force deception unit. This "Army" under the supposed command of General Patton was designed to mislead the Germans into believing the allies assault would take place around Calais.

The American contribution to D-Day was indisputably substantial; but it was certainly no greater than the British and Canadian. It's a pity the film does not accurately reflect this.

Visually Impressive but Suffers from Cliché Dialogue & Bad History

[classicalsteve · 4/10 · 31 December 2007]

During the couple of decades after World War II, Hollywood made movies about the war that were really fantasies disguised as histories. Many aspects about World War II are incorrectly portrayed in "The Longest Day". First, not all of the German high command were complete idiots. Second, not all the French were in favor of the allied invasion. And last but not least, it was not as easy for soldiers coming from the naval war carriers to hit the beach at Normandie. When it was released, "The Longest Day" was probably appropriate for its audiences who were only a stones throw away from the war and probably wanted to see escapist fair. However, 45 years later, the film does not uphold as well against far more realistic depictions of war such as "Platoon", "Saving Private Ryan", even "Patton". Except for a sequence in the latter part of the movie in which the allied forces move inland, much of the movie suffers from too many clichés, too many unrealistic situations, and dialog that has become almost laughable.

If someone who had never been taught anything about World War II were to see this movie, he or she might well believe that all the Americans were heroes, the English were constantly ingenious, the French loved Americans (and maybe the English too), and the Germans were a bunch of nincompoops. The problem may go deeper as this is the portrait that is often painted in US High School text books. The picture on this Hollywood canvas is over the top idealism in both directions.

It's hard to believe, based on this movie, that the Germans were smart enough to get their uniforms on correctly, let alone almost capture Europe. When the Germans learn of the shrewd moves made by the allies, their reactions remind me of the bad guys in the old Batman TV show. Or maybe Colonel Clink in Hogan's Heros. The Germans either blow their tops (I almost expected smoke to start coming out of their ears) or they dismiss what they're hearing. The movie shows a German lookout at the beach becoming frantic, dropping his binoculars at the sight of all the war ships. When he phones the high command, they at first insist that the allies don't even have that many ships before realizing the invasion is on and they go crazy. And the few references to Hitler make him seem more like a spoiled grammar school boy than one of the most feared men in the world. One officer says that the Führer is having another one of his tantrums.

The problem is the movie rarely breaks away from its own cliché rhetoric. The characters constantly talk about "making history" and heroism as if ground soldiers would say such things in the heat of battle. It just gets a little much. While the German high command are insulting each other, the American and British high command are portrayed as much more organized and deliberate in their actions. Robert Mitchum and John Wayne who play the high ranking officers at the ground level seemed like they were plucked out of a novel rather than portraying real people. Every line, every command, and every decision is prophetic. And the men obey their commands as if they came from Moses! And every time the allied forces were about to attack, a high ranking officer always prefaces it with a patriotic speech! Maybe that was a motivation to go and fight so you didn't have to hear another one!

The actual invasion at the beach is probably the weakest and least realistic aspect of the entire film. In reality scores of men were mowed down by gunfire long before they ever got to the beach. Here, about 1 in 50 seems to get hit by gunfire. I guess the Germans just weren't very good shots. Another rather insulting piece of Hollywood melodrama shows a Frenchman becoming overly ecstatic at the appearance of the allied forces at the Normandy beaches. (I guess he couldn't wait to get an autograph from a movie star, considering just about every major Hollywood talent was drafted into this movie, including Richard Burton and Roddy McDowell.) In reality, the attitude toward the invasion was more ambivalent. There were many French who were not thrilled with the allied invasion, but these diversities are never touched upon.

There are some good visuals in the film, and some great shots from above. Overall, a rather mixed movie that has a few moments of interest and a lot of cliché silly lines, and parts that are simply bad history. But as the old adage says, the heroes write the history. Or re-write it.

Candian Presence in The Longest Day

[tggilchrist · 3 September 2011]

The previous comments about Canadian participation in the Normandy invasion were significant - insofar as there weren't very many. One of the five Normandy beaches was Canadian (Juno), but there is almost no mention of this in The Longest Day, and I'm sure that one would be hard pressed to find many Americans (and not a whole lot more Canadians) who know this. Unfortunately, it is movies such as this and other popular media that shape the historic knowledge of people on both sides of the border. In the near absence of Canadian content, I find it ironic that a young Canadian (Paul Anka) not only played a part in the movie as an American soldier, but also wrote the theme music. I find it also ironic that the legendary rifle used by US soldiers during WW2 and shown in this movie was designed by a Canadian as well (Garand is a French Canadian name). The cruelest irony, of course, is the fact that thousands of Canadian soldiers were maimed or lost there lives on 6 June 1944 and the days thereafter, with virtually no acknowledgement in this movie. I have always enjoyed watching this movie, but it is unfortunate that I must use my imagination to see in it the heroic and selfless wartime effort of my father's generation, in similar fashion to viewers in the US and UK.

Thank God for the atom bomb

[carsondlx · 8/10 · 23 November 2018]

Biggest takeaway from this mammoth all-star war movie about d-day is that the boys playing with their toys were just having so much fun. The absolute scale and seriousness of the game they were playing only emphasized the complete, male testosterone driven idiocy of the whole thing. I thought, when it was over, thank god for Einstein, thank god for Fermi and the Manhattan project, thank god for nuclear weapons which bring the masters of war directly into the line of fire. Hopefully no one is so crazy as to commit suicide (and racial suicide) by starting another world war. Because there can never be a WWIV -- WWIII will, if it happens, be the very last world war.

Actually 'The Longest Day' is a terrific flick. The Germans, other than hitler, are treated with respect. As honorable, worthy adversaries. No one is inherently evil or good. The multiple storylines flow smoothly. The action is intense and realistic without being unnecessarily drenched in blood and exploding body parts like a more modern movie would feel compelled to be.

Could have been unwieldy, instead it is comprehensive

[AlsExGal · 8/10 · 6 January 2019]

In 1962, almost post studio system 20th Century Fox was in trouble. Almost broke because of the cost of making then in-progress Cleopatra, they were in a similar fix with filming "The Longest Day". They had been churning out a series of small films with small stars that were losers at the box office. Turn on Fox Movie Channel Retro if you want an object lesson in their sorry output during the late 50s/early 60s. Enter stage left Darryl F. Zanuck, former head of Fox studio, who had left the states in 1956 to make a series of loser films in Europe with his girlfriends who were loser actresses. He argued how he could rescue The Longest Day to the board of directors, and the job became his.

The result is a great film in the tradition of old Hollywood - Zanuck's kind of Hollywood - that entertains on a grand scale, telling the story of the Allied invasion of France with a star studded cast. The big stars of the day were all there, with special billing for John Wayne. The cast includes Eddie Albert, Robert Mitchum, Henry Fonda, Sean Connery, Red Buttons, Steve Forrest and Leo Genn. Unbelievably Sal Mineo and Roddy McDowell get into the act too. And there are many others.

There are many stories being told in many places from the viewpoints of the Allied soldiers, the Germans, and the French resistance prior to the actual invasion. We don't get to follow the stories of all of these people to the end, but each story gives us a slice of life and produces a great and compelling story of the overall invasion. You don't know who is going to get cut down suddenly, who is going to make it, and who is just going to be the victim of just plain bad luck. It is all part of the horror of war. Highly recommended. It is a long film, but it is also an engrossing one.

Bonjour, mademoiselle. Je suis américain.

[lastliberal · 8/10 · 28 August 2007]

One of the best films of 1962 and one of the best war films ever, The Longest Day features outstanding cinematography, special effects and art work. You really felt that you were present in the time leading up to June 6, 1944, when Allied forces made the incredible landing on the beaches of Normandy.

Like me, I am sure many people reading this had family members that were involved (me - a Candian brother-in-law) in this massive undertaking. To see the story from the standpoint of the men involved was a tremendous experience.

Yes, I've seen Saving Private Ryan, and the incredible carnage in the first 20 minutes, but I was just as moved by the same footage in this film without the blood. You felt the frustration of the men and the determination to succeed. Their pent-up emotions after an interminable wait to begin were unleashed on the unprepared Germans. The jubilation of the French citizens displayed gave us a real example of a country waiting to be liberated. (Maybe Bush should watch this to see how it really is when people welcome your invasion.) Robert Mitchum led an all-star cast that must have included every major actor in Hollywood at the time. If you can't find a favorite, then you are just not looking hard enough.

A superb war film.

"Wounds my heart with a monotonous languor"

[KEVMC · 8/10 · 12 February 2003]

June 6th,1944. The Allied invasion of northern Europe begins along the Normandy coastline. In the early hours of the morning thousands of British and American paratroopers are dropped inland to secure strategic objectives, to be followed at dawn by the main assault force consisting of Americans (Utah and Omaha beaches), British (Gold and Sword beaches), Canadians (Juno beach) and French (attached to the British at Sword). By nightfall it is hoped that the troops will be moving off the beaches and linking up with the Airborne forces inland.

This multi-faceted account of the D-Day landings was a mammoth undertaking in its day. Adapted for the screen by Cornelius Ryan from his book of the same name, it is a very detailed look at the events of that momentous day in history. Every angle is covered, from the commanders, planners and soldiers to the French underground, civilians and the German defenders. The cast list reads like a who's who of international cinema at the time, to the point where this can detract from the drama of the events at times. Nevertheless, the sheer scale of the production is staggering in its scope, most of it filmed on the actual battle sites where possible. In terms of cost, this would surely be impossible to film these days.

There are a couple of drawbacks, however. Some of the dialogue leans toward the corny at times, especially by todays standards. Also, since the release of 'Saving Private Ryan' and 'Band Of Brothers' the landings on Omaha beach and the parachute drop sequences look tame and rather antiseptic. This isn't a criticism of the production, so much as a comment on how the film is starting to show its age.

On the plus side there are some very well executed sequences. The scaling of the cliffs at Point du Hoc by the US Rangers is one, and the storming of the town of Ouistreham by French commandos is another. This is probably the most breathtaking scene in the entire film, as an airborne camera tracks the commandos through the streets and ends up circling a German machine gun nest on top of the casino building.

The film needs to be viewed in its original widescreen aspect ratio to fully appreciate its epic scale. The DVD print is a beautifully clean transfer in the original black & white. I, and I suspect many others, got quite a shock a couple of years back when I tuned in to watch it on TV, to find it has been digitally colourised. In truth this version looks quite good, but it's not available on DVD.

Despite showing its age a little, 'The Longest Day' remains one of the great World War Two films, and is still the definitive cinematic account of D-Day.

Canadians were there as well

[shempcurlylarrymoe-68110 · 7/10 · 10 August 2018]

I'm a huge John Wayne fan and war movie buff. This movie was well done but again places the Canadian accomplishment of the day not only on the back burner but still in the fridge. My father was in the Canadian Air Force and served in England during the war. As typical Hollywood so often portrays Canada in WW2, the movie devoted about 1 minute to the Canadian participation on D-Day. Canada landed over 15,000 men on Juno Beach and achieved most of their 1st day objectives, they actually pushed the furthest inland of any of the 5 beaches. Still love the movie just wish once and awhile we would get our due.

"For the Allies as well as the Germans, it will be the longest day..."

[classicsoncall · 8/10 · 31 March 2012]

Watching and analyzing the film today is surely a study in contrasts given the half century since the film was made. A ten million dollar budget back in the early Sixties was certainly a considerable sum, but even accounting for inflation, doesn't hold a candle to seventy million for "Saving Private Ryan" (1998) or the hundred twenty five million dollars spent to produce "Band of Brothers" (2001). Then there's the decision to film the picture in black and white, kind of surprising to me as I'd never seen it before until today. Not knowing the history of the picture, I don't know what went into that decision, but I thought about it throughout.

With an all star cast led by John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, and Henry Fonds (all on the CD cover), it's surprising to note that each of them had relatively little screen time given the scope of the movie. And it is a rather large scope when you come down to it, alternating it's scenes with Allied planning for the invasion, German preoccupation with downplaying the Allied resolve, and the parts played by American, British and French forces on that fateful day. One is regularly struck by the incredible confluence of planning, timing, good fortune and sheer luck that played a part in the events of Operation Overlord. Interestingly, that term was never used in the story unless it got by me somehow.

Another treat for videophiles is the inclusion of so many cameo appearances by celebrity headliners of the day, and not all of them actors as it were. I managed to pick out Paul Anka easily enough, but reading the names of others in the cast like Tommy Sands, Fabian, Sal Mineo and George Segal caught me completely by surprise. I suppose I could go back and hunt them down but the three hour run time prohibits that, though my initial viewing didn't really seem that it took that long.

For sheer size and epic sweep of the film, "The Longest Day" is certainly a must for anyone interested in World War II and the events of D-Day. As best as can be compressed into a feature film, the picture does an admirable job of relating the horrors of war and the stake Allied forces had in executing a successful operation with America's entry into the War effort. Technically there are better made war films like the ones mentioned earlier, though not many offer the sheer scope of the numbers involved in planning this greatest military maneuver in history. For those directly involved with D-Day at the time, it surely must have felt as a German General remarked in the picture - "We are living an historical moment".

Hard to sit through the whole thing at once, but informative

[richard-1787 · 7/10 · 12 November 2018]

I have spent years studying World War II, particularly in France. I have walked Omaha Beach and climbed the cliff - with no one shooting at me from the top. I have walked around the square in St. Mère Eglise. In other words, I know something about D-Day.

That allowed me to be impressed by Zanuck's effort to recreate a moment in history. But, with all due respect, this movie comes off, to me, as something of a dramatized documentary, a history lesson with cameos. It is great for learning about how we finally made it across Omaha Beach, for example, and up that cliff. But it pales next to the opening of *Saving Private Ryan* when it comes to making you feel as if you are there, one of those poor soldiers in the first waves trying to cross that beach.

The acting is all fine, the "staging" of the scenes, especially Omaha Beach, very impressive. I could have done without the brief cameos designed to make the French civilians look foolish, as in Bourvil's portrayal of the mayor of Courville.

You will learn a lot about D-Day from this movie - though not as much as if you read any good book on the subject. The movie, being a movie, leaves us with all sorts of questions. Like: why didn't the Allied air force destroy those pillboxes at the top of the Omaha Beach cliff before we landed on the beaches down below. Why didn't we have better info about German positions in the area? Etc.

Pours defecation all over Spielberg's bespectacled face

[pdobson-1 · 9/10 · 27 August 2006]

Of all war films this is perhaps one if not the best of its kind. The scale of the project, the actors, and the general depiction of the different countries and people involved make this a 'sure fire' winner. The film in comparison to say Saving Private Ryan is not a single layered narrative, unnecessarily emotional or utterly ignorant that other countries other than America actually participated, it even notes that Britain were in the war before America!!!! Perhaps this film does not have the special effects that Private Ryan does have (to its credit)but this aside it certainly makes up for it in every other area. The sheer fact that this was the most expensive black and white movie until Schindler's list is testament to that. The advisers on this film were actually there and helped draw the plans themselves, yes it is a drama, but when considering history please don't disregard fact for the want of a better plot (Spielberg) If you like war movies then this is the king of the genre, if you have never seen a war movies or dislike them, this may just about change your mind. All I will say is that "this is Rupert, and he is a diversion". God Save the King etc. Knocking on the door of 10 out of 10.

Richard Todd playing himself?

[timpaine1776 · 7/10 · 24 April 2005]

In this film, the very reliable British actor, Richard Todd, plays the part of Major John Howard who commanded the paratroopers charged with holding Pegasus Bridge and were the first troops, just about, to land. Richard Todd had actually been part of the real D-Day force in 1944, though not at Pegasus Bridge.

Darryl F.Zanuck had initially wanted him to play himself in the film, he thought it would be good publicity. Richard Todd declined. As a joke, Zanuck then had a line inserted into the film whereby Todd, as Howard, addressed a young officer by the name of - Todd! Incidentally, David Niven was also part of the Allied landing in 1944.

Hideously overrated exercise in tedium.

[mpjordan · 1/10 · 20 January 2019]

Hours of tedious exposition, wooden acting, cliché-ridden dialogue, poor cinematography. It has not aged well and it surprises me to see such positive reviews, although it is a kind of historical curio as it comes out of old Hollywood with passing nods to cinema vérité. It does serve to highlight what terrible actors some of the most popular American actors of the time were, John Wayne is particularly painful to watch, Robert Mitchum also appears similarly challenged in a role that is anything but challenging.

Avoid.