Battle of the Bulge
Original movie poster
Directed by	Ken Annakin
Produced by	Sidney Harmon Milton Sperling Philip Yordan
Written by	Bernard Gordon John Melson Milton Sperling Philip Yordan
Starring	Henry Fonda Robert Shaw Robert Ryan
Music by	Benjamin Frankel
Cinematography	Jack Hildyard
Distributed by	Warner Brothers
Release date(s)	December 16, 1965
Running time	167 min.
Language	English
IMDb profile

Battle of the Bulge is a war film released in 1965. It was directed by Ken Annakin. It starred Henry Fonda, Robert Shaw, Telly Savalas, Robert Ryan, Dana Andrews and Charles Bronson. Axel Anderson plays a minor role in the film. Image File history File links Bulge_sheet_A.jpg‎ Battle of the Bulge original promo poster Source: moviegoods. ... Ken Annakin (born August 10, 1914) is a British film director. ... Sidney Harmon (April 30, 1907-February 29, 1988) was a film producer and screenwriter. ... Milton Sperling (6 July 1912 - 26 August 1988) was an American film producer and screenwriter for 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers where he had his own independent production unit United States Pictures. ... Philip Yordan (April 1, 1914 - March 24, 2003) was a popular and talented screenwriter of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. ... Bernard Gordon (born 1918) in New Britain, Connecticut is an American writer and producer. ... Milton Sperling (6 July 1912 - 26 August 1988) was an American film producer and screenwriter for 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers where he had his own independent production unit United States Pictures. ... Philip Yordan (April 1, 1914 - March 24, 2003) was a popular and talented screenwriter of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. ... Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was a highly acclaimed Academy Award-winning American film actor, best known for his roles as plain-speaking idealists. ... Robert Shaw as Quint in Jaws. ... Robert Ryan (November 11, 1909 – July 11, 1973) was an Irish-American Oscar and Bafta award-nominated actor born in Chicago, Illinois. ... Benjamin Frankel (January 31, 1906 – February 12, 1973) was a British composer. ... Jack Hildyard (1908-1990) was a British cinematographer who worked on more than 80 films during his career. ... Warner Bros. ... is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... The war film is a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. ... // Events Top grossing films North America Mary Poppins The Sound of Music, starring Julie Andrews Goldfinger My Fair Lady Whats New Pussycat? Shenandoah The Sandpiper Father Goose Academy Awards Best Picture: The Sound of Music - Argyle, Twentieth Century-Fox Best Actor: Lee Marvin - Cat Ballou Best Actress: Julie Christie... Ken Annakin (born August 10, 1914) is a British film director. ... Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was a highly acclaimed Academy Award-winning American film actor, best known for his roles as plain-speaking idealists. ... Robert Shaw as Quint in Jaws. ... Aristotelis Telly Savalas (January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was a prominent Emmy Award-winning American film and television actor whose career spanned four decades. ... Robert Ryan (November 11, 1909 – July 11, 1973) was an Irish-American Oscar and Bafta award-nominated actor born in Chicago, Illinois. ... Dana Andrews (January 1, 1909 - December 17, 1992) was an American film actor. ... For other persons named Charles Bronson, see Charles Bronson (disambiguation). ... Axel Anderson (born Axel Levy on December 11, 1929) is a German born Puerto Rican actor. ...

Battle of the Bulge had its world premiere on 16 December 1965 at the Pacific Cinerama Dome Theater in Hollywood, California. The feature was filmed in Ultra Panavision 70 and exhibited in 70 mm Cinerama. The Cinerama Dome, as decorated for Shrek 2 Pacific Theatres Cinerama Dome at 6360 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood of the United States has been a landmark movie theater since its opening on November 7, 1963. ... Greetings from Hollywood Hollywood is a district of the city of Los Angeles, California, U.S.A., that extends from Vermont Avenue on the east to just beyond Laurel Canyon Boulevard above Sunset and Crescent Heights Boulevards on the west; the north to south boundary east of La Brea Avenue... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with MGM Camera 65. ... Cinerama is the trademarked name for a widescreen process which works by simultaneously projecting images from three synchronized 35 mm projectors onto a huge, deeply-curved screen, subtending 146° of arc, and for the corporation which was formed to market it. ...

Plot summary

A Hollywood film inspired by, but not very faithful to, the World War II Battle of the Bulge. A Panzer brigade, led by the fictional Colonel Hessler (played by Shaw), leads a German last-ditch secret counter-attack against the Allied front in the heavily wooded Ardennes Sector of Belgium/Luxembourg. An American Intelligence officer (played by Fonda) tries in vain to persuade his superiors of the German intentions. The Americans are surprised, with heavy casualties. Hessler's initial success ends as his unit runs out of gas. German commandos dressed as American soldiers (Operation Greif) are portrayed in the film, as well as the Malmedy massacre of American POWs. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... For the 1965 film, see Battle of the Bulge (film). ... Panzer IV Ausf. ... In military science a brigade is a military unit that is part of a division and includes regiments (where that level exists), or (in modern armies) is composed of several battalions (typically two to four) and directly attached supporting units. ... The Ardennes (IPA pronunciation: ) (Dutch: Ardennen) is a volcanic region of extensive forests and rolling hill country, primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into France (lending its name to the Ardennes département and the Champagne-Ardenne région). ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: The 1st SS Panzer Divisions Dash Westward, and Operation Greif Operation Greif was a special false flag operation commanded by the notorious Waffen-SS commando Otto Skorzeny during the Battle of the Bulge. ... United States soldiers discover the aftermath of the Malmedy Massacre. ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ...

Historical accuracy

Compared to more modern World War II dramatizations, such as Band of Brothers, the movie does not provide an accurate historical record of the battle. All the characters portrayed in the movie are fictional. Some, like Shaw's character, are based on a real individual, Joachim Peiper. Band of Brothers is an acclaimed 10-part television miniseries set during World War II, co-produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks. ... Joachim Peiper (January 30, 1915 - July 13, 1976) more often known as Jochen Peiper from the common German nickname for Joachim, was a senior Waffen-SS officer in World War II and a convicted war criminal. ...

The battle scenes—mostly set pieces between masses of armor—though exciting, are not accurate, except for showing how the German King Tiger tanks were superior to the American M4 Sherman tanks. But the Tigers are actually portrayed by American M47 Patton tanks, which weren't developed until the Korean War, and the Shermans are portrayed by M24 Chaffee Light Tanks, only two of which type ever appeared in the actual battle. Nonetheless, producer Milton Sperling, in a 1965 television interview (included as part of History Recreated, one of the special features on the 2005 Battle of the Bulge DVD from Warner Video), gives a different impression. When asked, "Where did you manage to find all the authentic equipment that you use in the film," Sperling answers: General characteristics Length: (hull) 7. ... The M4 Sherman was the primary tank produced by the United States for its own use and the use of its Allies during World War II. Production of the M4 Medium tank exceeded 50,000 units, and its chassis served as the basis for thousands of other armored vehicles such... The M47 Patton was the second tank of the Patton series, and one of the U.S armys principal main battle tanks of the Cold War, with models in service from the early 1950s to the late 1950s. ... Combatants United Nations:  Republic of Korea,  Australia,  Belgium,  Luxembourg,  Canada,  Colombia,  Ethiopia,  France,  Greece,  Luxembourg,  Netherlands,  New Zealand,  Philippines,  South Africa,  Thailand,  Turkey,  United Kingdom,  United States Medical staff:  Denmark,  Australia,  Italy,  Norway,  Sweden Communist states:  Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,  Peoples Republic of China,  Soviet Union Commanders... The Light Tank M24 was an American light tank used during World War II and in postwar conflicts including the Korean War. ...

Well, we had to scour Europe for this. There are places where such tanks do exist, you know—sometimes in junkyards, sometimes in existing armies, and sometimes just by chance one finds a cache of tanks, guns, old planes, and various other relics of World War II. We managed to assemble these great numbers of tanks you saw in the film after looking about for months and months. We found both the German tanks, still relics of World War II, and American tanks, which are sometimes still used by our own forces. So what you see on the screen are truly the tanks that were fought in the Battle of the Bulge and throughout the Western Front and on the Russian Front in World War II.

All "American" vehicles in the movie are painted in Spanish army camouflage schemes whereas U.S. vehicles in 1944 were generally painted in olive drab monotone schemes. "German" vehicles are painted in a light grey scheme, which was inaccurate for any period during World War II.

Shaw's character seems to be inspired by Joachim Peiper, but is portrayed as a Heer officer. Peiper was an officer of the Waffen-SS. Likewise, while Shaw's character is shown near the beginning reviewing German tanks and crews from his tank, a scene based on a World War II German newsreel showing a German Panzer officer reviewing tanks and crewmen, the actual officer survived the war. Shaw's character may also have been influenced by one of the film's technical advisors, the Heer officer Major General Meinrad von Lauchert, who had been put in command of the German 2nd Panzer Division the day before the attack was launched. Joachim Peiper (January 30, 1915 - July 13, 1976) more often known as Jochen Peiper from the common German nickname for Joachim, was a senior Waffen-SS officer in World War II and a convicted war criminal. ... Wehrmacht   (armed forces, literally defence force(s)) was the name of the armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. ... Waffen-SS recruitment poster; Volunteer to the Waffen-SS The Waffen-SS was the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Major General Meinrad von Lauchert was a Heer officer put in command of the the German 2nd Panzer Division the day before the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. And one half hour prior to that battles launch, he received a personal phone call from Adolf Hitler... The 2nd Panzer Division () was created in 1935, and stationed in Austria after the Anschluss. ...

The film was made in Spain, and some of its battle scenes take place on open, rolling plains in bright sunshine. The historical battle, however, took place in poor weather in winter (December/January) in one of Europe's most dense forests, where roads liquefied under the tanks' tracks, and armored units were forced to march in vulnerable one-vehicle lanes which some of the opening battle scenes reflect.

Heroic stands by small platoons of American troops, and to a much larger extent, the holding of the strategic crossroads town of Bastogne by the U.S. 101st Airborne Division, greatly hindered the ultimate success of the German offensive. However, these events are only briefly shown in the movie. The coat of arms of the Bastogne municipality. ... The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault)—nicknamed the “Screaming Eagles”—is an airborne division of the United States Army primarily trained for air assault operations. ...

The original choice for director Richard Fleischer turned the film down and was replaced with the British director Ken Annakin who had directed the British and French sequences in The Longest Day (film) and several other action films. Annakin brings an interesting British view of the American soldiers. Ex-police detective Henry Fonda in a role echoing his "one decent man against everyone" persona in 12 Angry Men notices the long haired Major Charles Bronson "runs a pretty loose outfit". Tank Corps Sergeant Telly Savalas plays his role like a scheming Sergeant Bilko black marketeer. The staff Colonel Dana Andrews is officious and despises contrary opinions. Young Lieutenant James MacArthur is portrayed as callow and incompetent especially alongside his platoon sergeant George Montgomery who plays his drawling sharpshooter role like a cowboy. The Americans panic in fright at the first German assault (with the German tanks impervious to American tank and bazooka shells whilst the American tanks explode in flame), but as the film progresses each of the characters that survives or escapes captivity is transformed by the death of others into tough veterans who defeat the Germans without resort to air support or massive supplies. Richard Fleischer (born December 8, 1916) is an American film director. ... Ken Annakin (born August 10, 1914) is a British film director. ... The Longest Day is a 3-hour-long 1962 war film with a very large cast, based on the 1959 book The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan, about D-Day, the invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944, during World War II. // The movie was adapted by Romain Gary, James... Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was a highly acclaimed Academy Award-winning American film actor, best known for his roles as plain-speaking idealists. ... Persona literally means mask , although it does not usually refer to a literal mask but to the social masks all humans supposedly wear. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... For other persons named Charles Bronson, see Charles Bronson (disambiguation). ... Aristotelis Telly Savalas (January 21, 1922 – January 22, 1994) was a prominent Emmy Award-winning American film and television actor whose career spanned four decades. ... Opening Logo The Phil Silvers Show (also known as Youll Never Get Rich and Sergeant Bilko) was a comedy television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959. ... Dana Andrews (January 1, 1909 - December 17, 1992) was an American film actor. ... Lieutenant is a military, naval, paramilitary, fire service or police officer rank. ... James Gordon MacArthur (born December 8, 1937 in Los Angeles, California) is an American actor. ... In most armies, a Platoon Sergeant is the title and position given to the senior enlisted member of a platoon, who advises and supports the platoons commanding officer in leading the unit. ... George Montgomery (August 29, 1916 - December 12, 2000) was an American painter, sculptor, furniture craftsman, and stuntman who is best known as an actor in western style film and television. ... A marksman (also designated marksman) is a profession which is mostly to be found in military context. ... For other uses, see Bazooka (disambiguation). ... Former crewmembers of the battleship Missouri pose for photos shortly after the Anniversary of the End of World War II ceremony, held aboard the famous ship. ... Close air support (often abbreviated CAS) is the use of military aircraft in a ground attack role against targets in close proximity to friendly troops, in support of ground combat operations. ...

Annakin and Bernard Gordon and Phillip Yordan's screenplay explains the German strategy in easily understandable dialogue and images. Robert Shaw (playing the role with his hair dyed blonde and in the same persona as his psychotic killer in From Russia With Love (film)) is shown around an underground headquarters beneath a demolished city that his guide, General Kohler (Werner Peters) explains is like Germany itself; visibly defeated but secretly producing war material and plans. Shaw (and the audience) are shown new German tanks, upcoming secret weapons, a unit of infiltrators in American uniform led by Ty Hardin, and a giant 50 hour clock set to the limit of the German assault's supplies. Shaw is given young boy soldiers "who have never tasted defeat" as his assault unit with the soldiers singing "Panzerlied" whilst stamping their boots to demonstrate their spirit. Kohler also explains the importance of the upcoming weather reports that will ground all Allied aircraft during the period of the assault. The goal of the battle is to capture the port of Antwerp splitting the Allied armies and delaying the war until the German wonder weapons of jet aircraft and atomic weapons are ready to use on the Alliles. Bernard Gordon (born 1918) in New Britain, Connecticut is an American writer and producer. ... Philip Yordan (April 1, 1914 - March 24, 2003) was a popular and talented screenwriter of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. ... Robert Shaw may mean: Robert Shaw (footballer) Robert Shaw (actor) This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Persona literally means mask , although it does not usually refer to a literal mask but to the social masks all humans supposedly wear. ... For the video game, see From Russia with Love (video game). ... Ty Hardin in Cheyenne Ty Hardin Ty Hardin was born in New York City on January 1, 1930. ... April 20, 1945. ... For other uses, see Antwerp (disambiguation). ... Wonder weapons is the term given to very advanced weaponry whose design, production or deployment in the field of battle is impractical or ill-timed. ... Jet aircraft are aircrafts with jet engines. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945 lifted nuclear fallout some 18km (60,000 feet) above the epicenter. ...

Shaw deviates from his orders and the timetable of the assault to lay siege to Americans holding the town of Amblève. Shaw explains to Kohler that he must show the Americans what defeat means. Shaw explains his view by showing Kohler a captured fresh chocolate cake air mailed to a private soldier from the USA. That America can use their resources to send a chocolate cake to a private soldier is taken as a symbol of America's wealth and not taking the war seriously in the view of the Germans (and the British director). Amblève may refer to a river in Belgium: Amblève (river), or the French name of a town in Belgium: Amblève (town) or Amel (in German) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... For other uses, see Chocolate (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Cake (disambiguation). ... Airmail (or air mail) is mail that is transported by aircraft. ...

The film simplifies the outcome of the battle to the Germans' desperate shortage of fuel, which was only partly responsible for the Germans ultimate demise. Absent from this movie's version of events are three rather significant facts that weighed heavily in the final outcome of the battle. The first is General Patton's U.S. Third Army relieving the encircled crossroads town of Bastogne, which would break the German supply line. The second being the weather greatly improved, which allowed the previously grounded (due to fog & snow) Allied air forces to attack anything that moved on the ground, and destroy or immobilize it, which they did to great effect. The third being the contribution of the British Army. The article on the Battle of the Bulge provides a more detailed account. General George Smith Patton Jr. ... Shoulder Sleeve Insignia of the U.S. Third Army. ... The coat of arms of the Bastogne municipality. ... Look up ally in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For the 1965 film, see Battle of the Bulge (film). ...

References in popular culture

John McClane references the film in Die Hard with a Vengeance. Simon Gruber's (Jeremy Irons) use of English-speaking Germans to steal gold parallels Hitler's Operation Greif, depicted in The Battle of the Bulge. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Die Hard with a Vengeance (also known as Die Hard 3), is the third film in the Die Hard series starring Bruce Willis as policeman John McClane, released in 1995. ... Simon Gruber, portrayed by Jeremy Irons, is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the film Die Hard: With a Vengeance. ...

External links

• Battle of the Bulge (1965) at the Internet Movie Database

• Marcus Wendel (14 May 2006), "Heer Units". Viewed December 26, 2006.