Oh What A Lovely War! (1969 Richard Attenborough)

Increasingly bleak images accompany credits scene. Then high level talks between governments on Brighton Pier and the Great War begins. Extremely clever links between music hall and recruitment, a puppet show to the first battle, a shooting range to warfare, a merry-go-round, a train that leaves the pier and ends with a solitary mother on a deserted train station. A largely unknown cast makes a good point that it is the common man that is the war's great casualty.

Absolutely loved the travelling tracking shot that follows a horse from the French camp to the German (Ronnie Taylor's the operator); and the exchange between the troops on Christmas Day.

Sadly the ingenuity sags in the second half, and the film goes on rather, like the War itself. But the ironic songs continue* into a concluding awesome aerial shot of thousands of graves. And talking of which, there's an earlier great scene of a mass grave being dug... then it's been filled in, which says it all very simply and memorably.

Stars include John Mills, Michael Redgrave, Laurence Olivier, Juliet Mills (briefly), Ken Colley (briefly), Maggie Smith, Robert Flemyng, David Lodge, Guy Middleton, Nanette Newman, Cecil Parker, Edward Fox, Dirk Bogarde, Phyllis Calvert, Jean-Pierre Cassel, John Gielgud, Jack Hawkins, Vanessa Redgrave, Ralph Richardson, Susannah York.

With Wendy Allnutt, Colin Farrell, Malcolm McFee, John Rae, Corin Redgrave, Maurice Roeves, Paul Shelley, Kim Smith, Angela Thorne, Mary Wimbush. With Joe Melia as the linking photographer.

Written by Charles Chilton, based on Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop Production, and Ted Allan and Len Deighton. Interestingly, John Mills' book tells how he and Len had been working on the script for several weeks, he hoping to direct it, when he was summoned to Hollywood. He sent the script to Dickie Attenborough, who loved it, and on its release received raves from the critics - and the rest is history.

Well photographed by Gerry Turpin in Panavision.

* Interesting IMDB footnote that the French song "La Chanson de Craonne" (aka "Adieu La Vie") commemorates a mutiny by French soldiers in 1917, as a result of which 26 of the organisers were executed. The author of the song was never revealed and it was banned in France until 1974. Presumably then this scene was excised from the France release print.