Post by William L. Rupp on Mar 10, 2014 20:57:58 GMT -5
There once was a movie publicized with this pithy tag line. . . “If you liked World War II, you’ll love Hannibal Brooks.” Well, I can’t guarantee that if you liked World War II you will for sure love The Monuments Men, but I do not hesitate to recommend it to you.
We’ve all seen many, perhaps scores, of movies dealing with World War II. Some are based on actual incidents (The Longest Day), others are wholly fictional (The Guns of Navaronne). The Monuments Men is in the first category, a story of men assigned to rescue thousands of works of art stolen by the Nazis. The subject matter is unique among war movies, and therein lies its charm.
Now, if you are familiar with people such as Herman Goering, you will probably realize that many of them considered themselves to be connoisseurs of the arts. And, since the Third Reich was riding high, and furthermore, since their ethics were deficient, they saw no reason not to grab as many pieces of art as possible from subjugated populations, especially Jews.
Before seeing this movie I did know that art had been stolen by the Nazis. However, I did not realize that there was an organized effort by the western allies to track down and recover as many art objects as possible as the war was drawing to a close. Those men were, literally, known as The Monuments Men. This film makes it look as if there were only about 6 or 7 such persons assigned to the task. In reality over 300 men participated in the effort, mostly in Europe.
The Monuments Men was directed by and co-starred George Clooney. I have been somewhat lukewarm about him as an actor in the past, but he does a great job here. His fellow actors were also excellent, including, among others, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, and Cate Blanchet. If you have seen Downton Abbey, you will recognize Hugh Bonneville.
These art hunters were, according to this movie, at least, a varied lot. There were too old to fight in regular army roles, but their knowledge of art made them excellent choices for this project.
The story is episodic, opening with the recruitment of the team and its basic training. There is some humor there. We then follow the journeys of several groups of art hunters as they follow the advancing Allied forces across Europe in 1944 and 1945. But they don’t always exactly follow the U.S. and UK forces. In fact, they get a bit too close to the front, as you will see. And not without casualties.
Despite its episodic nature, the film will hold your attention. That is true especially near the end when the Monuments Men must beat the Soviets to a cache of stolen art. The Soviets were as eager to grab art treasures not their own as had been the Nazis earlier in the war.
If I were a history teacher, I could easily use this movie as the jumping off point for class discussions and projects dealing with many aspects of World War Two. On the other hand, if you are a mere movie-goer intent on enjoying a couple of hours, I think you will not be disappointed by The Monuments Men.
AztecWilliam
PS: A friend of mine, also a retired teacher, has read the book on which the movie was based. He saw the movie and liked it, declaring that it did a pretty good job of telling this little-known story from World War Two.
.
We’ve all seen many, perhaps scores, of movies dealing with World War II. Some are based on actual incidents (The Longest Day), others are wholly fictional (The Guns of Navaronne). The Monuments Men is in the first category, a story of men assigned to rescue thousands of works of art stolen by the Nazis. The subject matter is unique among war movies, and therein lies its charm.
Now, if you are familiar with people such as Herman Goering, you will probably realize that many of them considered themselves to be connoisseurs of the arts. And, since the Third Reich was riding high, and furthermore, since their ethics were deficient, they saw no reason not to grab as many pieces of art as possible from subjugated populations, especially Jews.
Before seeing this movie I did know that art had been stolen by the Nazis. However, I did not realize that there was an organized effort by the western allies to track down and recover as many art objects as possible as the war was drawing to a close. Those men were, literally, known as The Monuments Men. This film makes it look as if there were only about 6 or 7 such persons assigned to the task. In reality over 300 men participated in the effort, mostly in Europe.
The Monuments Men was directed by and co-starred George Clooney. I have been somewhat lukewarm about him as an actor in the past, but he does a great job here. His fellow actors were also excellent, including, among others, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, and Cate Blanchet. If you have seen Downton Abbey, you will recognize Hugh Bonneville.
These art hunters were, according to this movie, at least, a varied lot. There were too old to fight in regular army roles, but their knowledge of art made them excellent choices for this project.
The story is episodic, opening with the recruitment of the team and its basic training. There is some humor there. We then follow the journeys of several groups of art hunters as they follow the advancing Allied forces across Europe in 1944 and 1945. But they don’t always exactly follow the U.S. and UK forces. In fact, they get a bit too close to the front, as you will see. And not without casualties.
Despite its episodic nature, the film will hold your attention. That is true especially near the end when the Monuments Men must beat the Soviets to a cache of stolen art. The Soviets were as eager to grab art treasures not their own as had been the Nazis earlier in the war.
If I were a history teacher, I could easily use this movie as the jumping off point for class discussions and projects dealing with many aspects of World War Two. On the other hand, if you are a mere movie-goer intent on enjoying a couple of hours, I think you will not be disappointed by The Monuments Men.
AztecWilliam
PS: A friend of mine, also a retired teacher, has read the book on which the movie was based. He saw the movie and liked it, declaring that it did a pretty good job of telling this little-known story from World War Two.
.