World War II in Chronological Order
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- StarsPeter StormareFriedrich von ThunPeter O'TooleA profile of the life of Adolf Hitler with a unique slant, as a child and his rise through the ranks of the National Socialist German Workers Party prior to World War II.Begins 1914.
The Nazi leader gains power after World War I as his hatred of Jews becomes central to his political mission. - DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsHideaki AnnoHidetoshi NishijimaMiori TakimotoJiro Horikoshi studies assiduously to fulfill his aim of becoming an aeronautical engineer. As WWII begins, fighter aircraft designed by him end up getting used by the Japanese Empire against its foes.From 1918 to end of war.
A lifelong love of flight inspires Japanese aviation engineer Jiro Horikoshi (Hideaki Anno), whose storied career includes the creation of the A6M World War II fighter plane. - DirectorLeslie HowardStarsLeslie HowardDavid NivenRosamund JohnAircraft designer/patriot R. J. Mitchell, alarmed at growing German militarism, works to perfect a defense against the German Messerschmidt at the cost of his health.From 1922 to the Battle of Britain in 1940.
Several years after successfully designing a revolutionary high-speed monoplane, famed British aviator R.J. Mitchell (Leslie Howard) travels to early Nazi Germany for a vacation with his friend Geoffrey Crisp (David Niven), a test pilot. There, while watching a group of German gliders, Mitchell realizes that German air technology is rapidly advancing, and that the fate of Britain could hang in the balance. Despite serious illness, Mitchell sets out to develop a new warplane for Britain. - CreatorHenk HandloegtenTom TykwerAchim von BorriesStarsVolker BruchLiv Lisa FriesLars EidingerColognian commissioner Gereon Rath moves to Berlin, the epicenter of political and social changes in the Golden Twenties.Begins 1929.
Police commissioner Gereon Rath is transferred from Cologne to Berlin, the epicenter of political and social change in the Golden Twenties. Shellshocked from his service during World War I, he uncovers a dangerous web of intrigue while investigating one of Berlin's biggest pornography rings. There's an even bigger conspiracy unfolding, though, when Soviet rebels hijack a train as part of a mission hatched by Trotsky supporters in the city. - DirectorBob FosseStarsLiza MinnelliMichael YorkHelmut GriemA female girlie club entertainer in Weimar Republic era Berlin romances two men while the Nazi Party rises to power around them.Begins 1931.
In Berlin in 1931, American cabaret singer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) meets British academic Brian Roberts (Michael York), who is finishing his university studies. Despite Brian's confusion over his sexuality, the pair become lovers, but the arrival of the wealthy and decadent playboy Maximilian von Heune (Helmut Griem) complicates matters for them both. This love triangle plays out against the rise of the Nazi party and the collapse of the Weimar Republic. - DirectorFrank BorzageStarsMargaret SullavanJames StewartRobert YoungThe Roth family leads a quiet life in a small village in the German Alps during the early 1930s. After the Nazis come to power, the family is divided and Martin Breitner, a family friend, is caught up in the turmoil.Begins Jan 30, 1933 - the day Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany.
Professor Victor Roth (Frank Morgan) enjoys a tranquil life with his family in Germany. His daughter Freya (Margaret Sullavan) is courted both by Martin (James Stewart) and Fritz (Robert Young). However, when the Nazis take control of the country, all their lives are shaken. Martin must flee to Austria because of his political stance. Victor loses his job and is sent to a concentration camp when he speaks out against Hitler. Meanwhile, Fritz joins the Nazis and is obliged to hunt down Freya. - DirectorStanley KramerStarsVivien LeighSimone SignoretJosé FerrerA varied group of passengers boarding a ship bound for pre-WWII Germany represents a microcosm of early 1930s society.1933.
When an eclectic group of passengers boards a cruise ship bound for prewar Germany, they form a microcosm of 1930s society. One passenger, a mysterious countess (Simone Signoret), is headed for a German prison camp. The charming Dr. Schumann (Oskar Werner) harbors a debilitating heart condition. Then there's American divorcée Mary Treadwell (Vivien Leigh), who vainly attempts to outrun time itself. During their weeks at sea, the group forges bonds and rivalries, and unearths secrets. - DirectorLeni RiefenstahlStarsAdolf HitlerHermann GöringMax AmannThe infamous propaganda film of the 1934 Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg, Germany.1934.
Filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl's controversial masterwork is an artful work of propaganda showcasing German chancellor and Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler at the 1934 Nuremberg Rally. Edited from over 60 hours' worth of raw footage shot over the course of the rally's four days, the film is visually remarkable in the way it captures the event's enormous scale. Riefenstahl's portentous filming from low angles (to make the small-framed Hitler look imposing and majestic) is often copied and parodied. - DirectorRichard LoncraineStarsAlbert FinneyVanessa RedgraveJim BroadbentWinston Churchill's wilderness years prior to World War II, when only he could see the threat that Adolf Hitler and a rearmed Germany posed to Europe.1934 to September 3, 1939.
A view on Winston Churchill's pre-war years and the daring lengths to which he went to warn the British people of the threat posed by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime. The film explores Churchill's return from the brink of political obscurity after his exile from government, and the price he paid in his private life before re-emerging as the nation's leader during World War II. - DirectorKoldo SerraStarsJames D'ArcyMaría ValverdeJack DavenportThe fates of Henry - a cynical American correspondent who has lost his soul - and Teresa, one of the Republic's censors and in charge of overseeing the news that journalists can send abroad, cross in Gernika.April 26, 1937.
As the Spanish Civil War rages on, an American journalist falls for a woman in charge of censoring all news being sent out of the country. When German forces invade, the press becomes a more vital weapon than ever before. - DirectorJames IvoryStarsRalph FiennesNatasha RichardsonVanessa RedgraveIn 1930s Shanghai, a blind American diplomat develops a curious relationship with a young Russian refugee who works odd--and sometimes illicit--jobs to support members of her dead husband's aristocratic family.Culminates in August 1937 with the Japanese invasion of Shanghai.
In 1930s Shanghai, blind American ex-diplomat Todd Jackson (Ralph Fiennes) is a frequenter of the city's seamy underbelly of nightclubs and gambling houses. Todd is infatuated with Sofia (Natasha Richardson), a once-wealthy countess who has taken to dancing and prostitution in order to support herself. With earnings from a horse race, Todd opens an upscale nightclub to cater to Shanghai's wealthy elite, installing Sofia - "The White Countess" - as its hostess and spiritual muse. - DirectorHu GuanStarsZhizhong HuangJunyi ZhangHao OuIn 1937, 800 Chinese soldiers fight under siege from a warehouse in the middle of the Shanghai battlefield, completely surrounded by the Japanese army.October 1937.
In 1937 a group of Chinese soldiers and draft dodgers puts up a four-day defense of a Shanghai warehouse complex just as Japanese forces are overwhelming China. - DirectorFlorian GallenbergerStarsUlrich TukurDaniel BrühlSteve BuscemiA true-story account of a German businessman who saved more than 200,000 Chinese during the Nanjing massacre in 1937-38.November to December 1937.
The Nanjing Massacre/Rape of Nanking.
In 1937, the Japanese Army laid siege to the then capital of China, Nanking. John Rabe was a man who stood up and took action. Rabe lead thousands of innocent people to safety. - DirectorChuan LuStarsYe LiuWei FanHideo NakaizumiIn 1937, Japan occupied Nanjing, the Chinese capital. There was a battle and subsequent atrocities against the inhabitants, especially those who took refuge in the International Security Zone.December 1937 to January 1938.
The Nanjing Massacre/Rape of Nanking.
Japanese forces invaded Nanjing, the former capital of the Republic of China on December 9th 1937. Throughout the following six weeks, soldiers raped thousands of women and annihilated hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians - with mass executions, crowds mown down by firing squads and victims digging their own graves. - DirectorYimou ZhangStarsChristian BaleNi NiXinyi ZhangAn American finds refuge during the 1937 Japanese invasion of Nanking in a church with a group of women. Posing as a priest, he attempts to lead the women to safety.December 1937 to January 1938.
The Nanjing Massacre/Rape of Nanking.
An American (Christian Bale) tries to protect a group of Chinese students and prostitutes from Japanese soldiers in 1937 Nanjing. - DirectorRobert WiseStarsJulie AndrewsChristopher PlummerEleanor ParkerA young novice is sent by her convent in 1930s Austria to become a governess to the seven children of a widowed naval officer.Culminates with the March 1938 Anschluss, Nazi Germany's annexation of Austria.
A tuneful, heartwarming story, it is based on the real life story of the Von Trapp Family singers, one of the world's best-known concert groups in the era immediately preceding World War II. Julie Andrews plays the role of Maria, the tomboyish postulant at an Austrian abbey who becomes a governess in the home of a widowed naval captain with seven children, and brings a new love of life and music into the home. - DirectorEttore ScolaStarsSophia LorenMarcello MastroianniJohn VernonTwo neighbors, a persecuted journalist and a resigned housewife, meet during Hitler's visit to Italy in May 1938.May 8, 1938.
In Rome, fascist supporter Emanuele (John Vernon) attends a parade commemorating Adolf Hitler's historic meeting with Italian leader Benito Mussolini, leaving his apolitical wife, Antonietta (Sophia Loren), to tend to household duties. Antonietta encounters a man, Gabriele (Marcello Mastroianni), who appears surprisingly nonplussed by the political event. Over the course of the day, the two forge a close friendship that will forever change their perceptions of life, love and politics. - DirectorChristian SchwochowStarsGeorge MacKayJannis NiewöhnerJeremy IronsA British diplomat travels to Munich in the run-up to World War II, where a former classmate of his from Oxford is also en route, but is working for the German government.September 1938.
The Munich Agreement.
Set in the fall of 1938, Hitler prepares to invade Czechoslovakia, and the government of Neville Chamberlain desperately seeks a peaceful solution. A British civil servant and a German diplomat, former classmates, travel to Munich to discuss peace. - DirectorJuraj HerzStarsMark WaschkeKarel RodenBen BeckerA mill owner in the Sudetenland and his family's lives are changed as Europe heats up in 1938.Begins 1938.
A mill owner living in the Sudetenland has his life changed drastically as Europe heats up in 1938. - StarsJoseph BottomsTovah FeldshuhRosemary HarrisThe saga of a Jewish family's struggle to survive the horror of Nazi Germany's systematic marginalization and extermination of their community.Begins 1938.
- StarsRobert MitchumAli MacGrawJan-Michael VincentThe trials of the Henry and Jastrow families in the early years of World War II.April 1939 to Pearl Harbor, December 1941.
The ultimate epic miniseries. Spanning the earliest years of World War II, from the Nazi blitzkrieg of Poland in 1939 to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941. Starring Ralph Bellamy. - DirectorTom HooperStarsColin FirthGeoffrey RushHelena Bonham CarterThe story of King George VI, his unexpected ascension to the throne of the British Empire in 1936, and the speech therapist who helped the unsure monarch overcome his stammer.Culminates on September 3, 1939, the day Britain declares war.
England's Prince Albert (Colin Firth) must ascend the throne as King George VI, but he has a speech impediment. Knowing that the country needs her husband to be able to communicate effectively, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) hires Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), an Australian actor and speech therapist, to help him overcome his stammer. An extraordinary friendship develops between the two men, as Logue uses unconventional means to teach the monarch how to speak with confidence. - DirectorStanislaw RózewiczStarsZygmunt HübnerArkadiusz BazakTadeusz SchmidtDramatization of the first battle of World War II. The first target of German troops in the invasion of Poland is a small garrison at Westerplatte. Outnumbered and out-gunned, the Poles mount a fierce defense against an overwhelming enemy.Begins September 1, 1939.
On August 31, 1939, the Polish guard-post of Westerplatte at the mouth of the Vistula River, with just 182 civilians and infantry, stands ready to defend against the German battleship moored at port. - DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsAdrien BrodyThomas KretschmannFrank FinlayDuring WWII, acclaimed Polish musician Wladyslaw faces various struggles as he loses contact with his family. As the situation worsens, he hides in the ruins of Warsaw in order to survive.Begins September 3, 1939.
In this adaptation of the autobiography "The Pianist: The Extraordinary True Story of One Man's Survival in Warsaw, 1939-1945," Wladyslaw Szpilman (Adrien Brody), a Polish Jewish radio station pianist, sees Warsaw change gradually as World War II begins. Szpilman is forced into the Warsaw Ghetto, but is later separated from his family during Operation Reinhard. From this time until the concentration camp prisoners are released, Szpilman hides in various locations among the ruins of Warsaw. - DirectorAndrzej WajdaStarsAndrzej ChyraMaja OstaszewskaArtur ZmijewskiAn examination of the Soviet slaughter of thousands of Polish officers and citizens in the Katyn forest in 1940.Begins September 17, 1939 - the first day of the Soviet invasion of the eastern half of Poland.
In 1940, at the beginning of World War II, Soviet soldiers conduct a mass execution of captured Polish officers. With Hitler's forces rapidly advancing into Eastern Europe, a surviving Polish officer, Lt. Jerzy (Andrzej Chyra), at great risk to his own life, chooses to stay behind with his wife, Anna (Maja Ostaszewska). As the Germans round up Lt. Jerzy and other officers, propaganda efforts cover up the truth about the Soviet soldiers' shocking brutality. - DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsLiam NeesonRalph FiennesBen KingsleyIn German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.Begins 1939.
Businessman Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson) arrives in Krakow in 1939, ready to make his fortune from World War II, which has just started. After joining the Nazi party primarily for political expediency, he staffs his factory with Jewish workers for similarly pragmatic reasons. When the SS begins exterminating Jews in the Krakow ghetto, Schindler arranges to have his workers protected to keep his factory in operation, but soon realizes that in so doing, he is also saving innocent lives. - DirectorOliver HirschbiegelStarsChristian FriedelKatharina SchüttlerBurghart KlaußnerIn November 1939, Georg Elser's attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler fails, and he is arrested. During his confinement, he recalls the events leading up to his plot and his reasons for deciding to take such drastic action.November 8th, 1939.
In 1939, Georg Elser planted a bomb behind a lectern to kill Hitler during a speech, but Hitler unexpectedly left 13 minutes early. The film follows the events in his village, under Nazi rule, which led him to attempt this act of resistance. - DirectorMichael PowellEmeric PressburgerStarsJohn GregsonAnthony QuaylePeter FinchIn the first major naval battle of World War II, the British Navy must find and destroy a powerful German warship.November - December 1939.
Allied forces chase the vessel all the way to South America, but after several failed attempts to sink the enemy ship, the Allies find themselves hatching a desperate and audacious plan. - DirectorPekka ParikkaStarsTaneli MäkeläVesa VierikkoTimo TorikkaIn 1939, two Finnish brothers are conscripted in the army to fight in the war between Finland and the Soviet Union.November 1939 to March 1940.
The Soviet Union's invasion of Finland.
Stalin orders an attack on Finland in November 1939, marking the beginning of the struggle for the small country. Two brothers join a regiment and travel to Karelia where they try to survive the Winter War. - DirectorRoni EzraStarsPilou AsbækLars MikkelsenJoachim FjelstrupOn April 9, 1940 Germany invaded Denmark. Based on real events - in Southern Jutland a military unit on bicycles was sent south to help hold back the Germans until reinforcement.April 9, 1940.
Germany's invasion of Denmark.
In the early morning of April 9 1940, the Danish army are alerted that the Germans have crossed the border. At the Southern border, the Danish Home Guard are ordered out to hold back the enemy until the Danish reinforcements can be mobilised. - DirectorErik PoppeStarsJesper ChristensenAnders BaasmoKarl MarkovicsApril 1940. Norway has been invaded by Germany and the royal family and government have fled into the interior. The German envoy to Norway tries to negotiate a peace. Ultimately, the decision on Norway's future will rest with the king.April 1940.
Germany's invasion of Norway.
The German war machine arrives in Oslo in April 1940, leaving Norway's king with a difficult choice that will change his country forever. - DirectorJoachim RønningEspen SandbergStarsAksel HennieAgnes KittelsenNicolai Cleve BrochThe true story about one of the most brilliant saboteurs during World War II and his battle to overcome his inner demons.An account of the life of Max Manus, leader of the Norwegian resistance, from the beginning of World War II until the summer of 1945. During this period, Max became one of the most important members of the resistance against Germany.
- CreatorPetter S. RosenlundStarsAndreas DöhlerMarc Ben PuchRobert Hunger-BühlerThe story behind Germany's attempt to develop an atomic bomb during World War II and the sabotage of the heavy water program in Rjukan, Norway from the points of view of the Germans, the Allies, the saboteurs, and the company.Based on real events, this Norwegian drama re-tells the Nazis' attempt to create an atomic bomb during World War II. A German scientist leads the secret project in Norway. When the scheme requires an enormous amount of water to create a nuclear chain reaction, the Nazis' endeavour to get the water from a factory in Rjukan. However the plans are discovered by the Allies, and they desperately work together to prevent the enemy from developing the destructive force.
- DirectorDavid LeveauxStarsLily JamesJai CourtneyChristopher PlummerA German soldier tries to determine if the Dutch resistance has planted a spy to infiltrate the home of Kaiser Wilhelm in Holland during the onset of World War II, but falls for a young Jewish Dutch woman during his investigation.May 1940.
Germany's invasion of the Netherlands.
German soldier Stefan Brandt goes on a mission to investigate exiled German Monarch Kaiser Wilhelm II. The Kaiser lives in a secluded mansion in the Netherlands, and as Germany is taking over Holland, the country's authorities are concerned that Dutch spies may be watching the Kaiser. As Brandt begins to infiltrate the Kaiser's life in search of clues, he finds himself drawn into an unexpected and passionate romance with Mieke, one of the Kaiser's maids. - DirectorPaul VerhoevenStarsRutger HauerJeroen KrabbéSusan PenhaligonDuring World War II, Dutch students join the resistance movement against the German occupation of the Netherlands.Soldier of Orange (Dutch: Soldaat van Oranje, IPA: [sɔlˈdaːt fɑn oˈrɑɲə]) is a 1977 Dutch romance-thriller film directed and co-written by Paul Verhoeven and produced by Rob Houwer, starring Rutger Hauer and Jeroen Krabbé. The film is set around the German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II, and shows how individual students have different roles in the war. The story is based on the autobiographical book Soldaat van Oranje by Erik Hazelhoff Roelfzema.
- DirectorJoe WrightStarsGary OldmanLily JamesKristin Scott ThomasIn May 1940, the fate of World War II hangs on Winston Churchill, who must decide whether to negotiate with Adolf Hitler, or fight on knowing that it could mean the end of the British Empire.May 1940.
Germany's invasion of Western Europe. Churchill's first month as Prime Minister.
The fate of Western Europe hangs on Winston Churchill in the early days of World War II. The newly appointed British prime minister must decide whether to negotiate with Hitler or fight on against incredible odds. During the next four weeks in 1940, Churchill cements his legacy as his courageous decisions and leadership help change the course of world history. - DirectorLeslie NormanStarsJohn MillsRichard AttenboroughBernard LeeA dramatization of the British Expeditionary Force's 1940 retreat to the beaches of France and the extraordinary seaborne evacuation that saved it from utter destruction by Nazi Germany.May 1940.
Dunkirk evacuation.
A group of soldiers lead by Corporal "Tubby" Bins (John Mills), stranded in France, must make their way to the shores of Dunkirk in hopes of a rescue. Back in Britain, Charles Foreman (Bernard Lee), a newspaper reporter, desperately tries to raise awareness among the public of the horrible reality of the war. When the British navy calls for all civilian ships to aid in a rescue, Foreman takes out his own small boat and attempts to bring Tubby and his men home safely. - DirectorChristopher NolanStarsFionn WhiteheadBarry KeoghanMark RylanceAllied soldiers from Belgium, the British Commonwealth and Empire, and France are surrounded by the German Army and evacuated during a fierce battle in World War II.Late May 1940.
Dunkirk evacuation.
In May 1940, Germany advanced into France, trapping Allied troops on the beaches of Dunkirk. Under air and ground cover from British and French forces, troops were slowly and methodically evacuated from the beach using every serviceable naval and civilian vessel that could be found. At the end of this heroic mission, 330,000 French, British, Belgian and Dutch soldiers were safely evacuated. - DirectorHenri VerneuilStarsJean-Paul BelmondoCatherine SpaakGeorges GéretIn June 1940, during the Dunkirk evacuation of Allied troops to England, French sergeant Julien Maillat and his men debate whether to evacuate to Britain or stay and fight the German troops that are closing-in from all directions.June 1 & 2, 1940.
Dunkirk evacuation.
In June 1940, French and English soldiers suffered from German bombardments in Dunkirk. Among them, French sergeant Julien Maillat meets Jeanne, a woman still living in the rubble that was her house. He manages to persuade her to escape with him. - DirectorJoe WrightStarsKeira KnightleyJames McAvoyBrenda BlethynThirteen-year-old fledgling writer Briony Tallis irrevocably changes the course of several lives when she accuses her older sister's lover of a crime he did not commit.May to June 1940.
This sweeping English drama, based on the book by Ian McEwan, follows the lives of young lovers Cecilia Tallis (Keira Knightley) and Robbie Turner (James McAvoy). When the couple are torn apart by a lie constructed by Cecilia's jealous younger sister, Briony (Saoirse Ronan), all three of them must deal with the consequences. Robbie is the hardest hit, since Briony's deception results in his imprisonment, but hope for Cecilia and her beau increases when their paths cross during World War II. - DirectorRené ClémentStarsGeorges PoujoulyBrigitte FosseyAmédéeA young French girl orphaned in a German air attack is befriended by the son of a poor farmer, and together they try to come to terms with the realities of death.June 1940.
The Fall of France.
Orphaned after a Nazi air raid, Paulette (Brigitte Fossey), a young Parisian girl, runs into Michel (Georges Poujouly), an older peasant boy, and the two quickly become close. Together, they try to make sense of the chaotic and crumbling world around them, attempting to cope with death as they create a burial ground for Paulette's deceased pet dog. Eventually, however, Paulette's stay with Michel's family is threatened by the harsh realities of wartime. - DirectorJean-Paul RappeneauStarsIsabelle AdjaniGérard DepardieuVirginie LedoyenAn actress, a writer, a student, and a government worker band together in an effort to escape Paris as the Germans move into the city.June 1940.
The Fall of France.
World War II has just begun, and it's clear that Paris will fall to the Germans. Actress Viviane (Isabelle Adjani) is celebrating her newest film and trying to avoid Jean-Étienne Beaufort (Gérard Depardieu), an admiring French government official. Her night takes a turn for the worse when her date has a heart attack, forcing her to ask an old boyfriend, Frédéric (Gregori Derangere), for help. Viviane later flees to Bordeaux, France, where she takes a new interest in Beaufort. - DirectorGabriel Le BominStarsLambert WilsonIsabelle CarréOlivier GourmetParis, June 1940. The de Gaulle couple is confronted with the military and political collapse of France. Charles de Gaulle joins London while Yvonne, his wife, finds herself with her three children on the road of the exodus.May to June 1940.
The Fall of France.
As World War II intensifies, the French army collapses and the Germans will soon be in Paris. The government panics and considers accepting defeat. Charles de Gaulle, newly promoted, wants to change the course of history. - DirectorSaul DibbStarsMichelle WilliamsKristin Scott ThomasMargot RobbieDuring the early years of German occupation of France in World War II, romance blooms between Lucile Angellier (Michelle Williams), a French villager, and Lieutenant Bruno von Falk (Matthias Schoenaerts), a German soldier.Summer to Fall 1940.
The Fall of France and the first months of German occupation.
Her husband away at war, a lonely Frenchwoman (Michelle Williams) begins a tentative romance with the refined German soldier (Matthias Schoenaerts) who has taken up residence in her mother-in-law's house. - DirectorHoward HawksStarsHumphrey BogartLauren BacallWalter BrennanDuring World War II, American expatriate Harry Morgan helps transport a French Resistance leader and his beautiful wife to Martinique while romancing a sensuous lounge singer.Summer 1940 in the Caribbean.
In Vichy France, fishing boat captain Harry (Humphrey Bogart) avoids getting involved in politics, refusing to smuggle French Resistance fighters into Martinique. But when a Resistance client is shot before he can pay, Harry agrees to help hotel owner Gerard (Marcel Dalio) smuggle two fighters to the island. Harry is further swayed by Slim (Lauren Bacall), a wandering American girl, and when the police take his friend Eddie (Walter Brennan) hostage, he is forced to fight for the Resistance. - DirectorGuy HamiltonStarsMichael CaineTrevor HowardHarry AndrewsIn 1940, the British Royal Air Force fights a desperate battle to prevent the Luftwaffe from gaining air superiority over the English Channel as a prelude to a possible Axis invasion of the U.K.May to September 1940.
Battle of Britain.
At a seminal moment in World War II, British Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding (Laurence Olivier) must rally his outnumbered pilots against Hitler's feared Luftwaffe. Besieged by German bombing runs, the Brits counter with an aggressive air campaign of their own. Within months, the Nazis find themselves on the run, thanks to Dowding's tactical genius and the work of talented squadron leaders (Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer) and other brave patriots. - DirectorGeorge More O'FerrallStarsJack HawkinsMichael DenisonAndrew OsbornThe story of an RAF fighter squadron at the height of the Battle of Britain.Summer 1940.
Battle of Britain.
The Battle of Britain as seen through the eyes of the operations room of a Kent fighter station during the summer of 1940. A young, inexperienced pilot has trouble settling into the routine of squadron life. - DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGreer GarsonWalter PidgeonTeresa WrightA British family struggles to survive the first months of World War II.Summer to Fall 1940 mostly.
Dunkirk, Battle of Britain, London Blitz.
A moving drama about a middle-class English family learning to cope with war, told in a series of dramatic vignettes. The family, headed by the lovely and gracious matriarch, endures the departure of the father for the beaches at Dunkirk, the discovery of a wounded Nazi pilot, the death of the daughter-in-law in an air raid, and the entry of the son into the Royal Air Force. - DirectorJohn BoormanStarsSarah MilesDavid HaymanSebastian Rice-EdwardsBill, a young boy living on the outskirts of London experiences the exhilaration of World War II. During this period, Bill learns about sex, death, love, hypocrisy, and the faults of adults as he prowls the ruins of bombed houses.Summer 1940 to Fall 1942 mostly.
London Blitz.
Director John Boorman drew from his own childhood experiences for this touching coming-of-age tale about a boy growing up in and around London during World War II. For young Billy Rowan (Sebastian Rice Edwards), the nightly bombings provide a frightening show, but they include opportunities to rummage through the rubble with friends in the mornings. As Billy plays, his family struggles to remain intact as they suffer through the anguish and losses of wartime. - DirectorJean-Pierre MelvilleStarsHoward VernonNicole StéphaneJean-Marie RobainIn occupied France, an elderly man and his niece are forced to give shelter to a German army lieutenant who seemingly loves their country and culture.Winter to Summer 1941.
An elderly Frenchman (Jean-Marie Robain) and his niece (Nicole Stéphane) are forced to give shelter to a Nazi soldier (Howard Vernon) who seemingly loves their country and culture. - DirectorRobert WiseStarsRichard BurtonJames MasonRobert NewtonRichard Burton plays a Scottish Army officer put in charge of a disparate band of ANZAC troops on the perimeter of Tobruk with the German Army doing their best to dislodge them.April to November 1941.
Siege of Tobruk.
In North Africa, German Field Marshal Rommel (James Mason) and his troops have successfully fended off British forces, and now intend to take Tobruk, an important port city. A ramshackle group of Australian reinforcements sent to combat the Germans is put under the command of British Captain MacRoberts (Richard Burton). The unruly Aussies immediately clash with MacRoberts, a gruff, strict disciplinarian, however this unorthodox team must band together to protect Tobruk from the German forces. - DirectorLewis GilbertStarsKenneth MoreDana WynterCarl MöhnerThe World War II story of the Royal Navy's effort to defeat Nazi Germany's most powerful warship.May 20-27, 1941.
Sink the Bismarck! is a 1960 black-and-white CinemaScope British war film based on the 1959 book The Last Nine Days of the Bismarck by C. S. Forester. It stars Kenneth More and Dana Wynter and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. - DirectorErnst LubitschStarsCarole LombardJack BennyRobert StackDuring the German occupation of Poland, an acting troupe becomes embroiled in a Polish soldier's efforts to track down a German spy.Acting couple Joseph (Jack Benny) and Maria Tura (Carole Lombard) are managing a theatrical troupe when the Nazis invade Poland. Maria is having an affair with Lieutenant Sobinski (Robert Stack), who suspects Professor Siletsky (Stanley Ridges) is a Nazi spy. With Siletsky in possession of a list of members of the Polish resistance, the Turas' company takes action. Using their skill for impersonation, Joseph and company must confuse the Nazis and stop Siletsky from handing over the list.
- DirectorMartti HeldeStarsLaura Peterson-AardamTarmo SongMirt Preegel"Risttuules" is a very emotional, tragic movie about mass deportation to Siberia based on the memories of Erna. It all started on June 14, 1941, when trucks came for the innocent families with their children where they headed to the train station and later by animal wagons to Siberia. "How to survive hunger, cold, humiliation, losing friends and freedom, but still keep living on, when almost all hope is lost?"Begins June 14, 1941.
Stalin's mass deportations in Soviet-occupied Estonia.
On June 14, 1941, Soviet forces purge the populations of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia by executing the men and transporting the women and children to labour camps in Siberia. - DirectorViesturs KairissStarsSabine TimoteoEdvins MekssIvars KrastsBased on the true story of Melanija Vanaga, this film is a brutally realistic and terrifying account of the mass deportation of residents of Soviet-occupied Latvia that took place in June 1941.June 1941.
Stalin's mass deportations in Soviet-occupied Latvia.
A woman and her young son are forcefully moved from their home in Latvia to a slave camp in Siberia in 1941. For the next 16 years, the woman retains her will to live by writing letters to her husband, whose destiny she knows nothing about. - DirectorMarius A. MarkeviciusStarsBel PowleyLisa Loven KongsliMartin WallströmIn 1941, a 16-year-old aspiring artist and her family are deported to Siberia amidst Stalin's brutal dismantling of the Baltic region. One girl's passion for art and her never-ending hope will break the silence of history.June 1941.
Stalin's mass deportations in Soviet-occupied Lithuania.
During World War II, a 16-year-old artist and her family are deported to a labour camp in Siberia as Stalin brutally dismantles the Baltic region. - DirectorAleksandr KottStarsAleksey KopashovAndrey MerzlikinPavel DerevyankoA war drama set during the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, in which Soviet troops held on to a border stronghold for nine days.June 1941.
Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
Nazi soldiers carry out Operation Barbarossa and enter Russian territory and a group of Russian soldiers must protect the stronghold at all costs. - DirectorSergey MokritskiyStarsYuliya PeresildEvgeniy TsyganovOleg VasilkovA story of Lyudmila Pavlichenko, the most successful female sniper in history.Summer 1941 to Summer 1942.
Germany's invasion of Ukraine.
When war breaks out in 1941, Lyudmila joins the army. She turns out to be a natural sniper, and her impressive skills make her stand out. When wounds force her from the battlefield, she travels to the United States to press for a second front. - DirectorEdward ZwickStarsDaniel CraigLiev SchreiberJamie BellJewish brothers in German-occupied Eastern Europe escape into a Belorussian forest, where they join Russian resistance fighters, and endeavor to build a village, in order to protect themselves and about one thousand Jewish non-combatants.Summer 1941 to Summer 1942.
In 1941, Nazi soldiers are slaughtering Eastern European Jews by the thousands. Three brothers, Tuvia (Daniel Craig), Zus (Liev Schreiber) and Asael (Jamie Bell), manage to escape and take refuge in the forest where they played in childhood. Seeking a way to avenge the deaths of their loved ones, the brothers turn their daily struggle for survival into a battle against the Nazis. As news of their exploits spreads, others join the fray, willing to risk their lives for even brief freedom. - DirectorAku LouhimiesStarsEero AhoJohannes HolopainenJussi VatanenA film adaptation of Väinö Linna's best selling novel The Unknown Soldier (1954) and the novel's unedited manuscript version, Sotaromaani.June 1941 to September 1944.
In June 1941, a Finnish machine gun company is deployed from its barracks to prepare an invasion of the Soviet Union. Crossing the border, the band of men engage in guerilla tactics as their advance on Soviet positions spills into local cities. - DirectorMikhail KalatozovStarsTatyana SamoylovaAleksey BatalovVasiliy MerkurevVeronica plans a rendezvous with her lover, Boris, at the bank of river, only for him to be drafted into World War II shortly thereafter.June 1941 to end of war.
Veronika (Tatyana Samoylova) and Boris (Aleksey Batalov) come together in Moscow shortly before World War II. Walking along the river, they watch cranes fly overhead, and promise to rendezvous before Boris leaves to fight. Boris misses the meeting and is off to the front lines, while Veronika waits patiently, sending letters faithfully. After her house is bombed, Veronika moves in with Boris' family, into the company of a cousin with his own intentions. - DirectorGabriele SalvatoresStarsDiego AbatantuonoClaudio BigagliGiuseppe CedernaIn WW2, an Italian Army unit of misfits occupies an isolated non-strategic Greek island for the duration of the war.Begins Summer 1941.
When a group of Italian soldiers washes up on a Greek island after the Allies sink their ship, the men initially believe that the region is deserted. However, they discover that the islanders have been in hiding, and the soldiers, winning the trust of the locals, gradually become part of the community. As the Italians, including Lt. Raffaele Montini (Claudio Bigagli), ease into an idyllic existence, they begin to forget about war and pursue romance with the lovely women of the island. - DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsJürgen ProchnowHerbert GrönemeyerKlaus WennemannA German U-boat stalks the frigid waters of the North Atlantic as its young crew experience the sheer terror and claustrophobic life of a submariner in World War II.Fall 1941.
A German submarine patrols the Atlantic Ocean during World War II, manned by a crew that must contend with tense conflicts and long stretches of confined boredom. While war correspondent Werner (Herbert Grönemeyer) observes day-to-day life aboard the U-boat, the grizzled captain (Jürgen Prochnow) struggles to maintain his own motivation as he attempts to keep the ship's morale up in the face of fierce battles, intense storms and dwindling supplies. - DirectorAleksandr BuravskiyStarsMira SorvinoArmin Mueller-StahlOlga SutulovaWinter, 1941. World War II rages on as Nazi troops invade the Soviet Union and besiege the devastated city of Leningrad. Foreign journalists are quickly evacuated, but in the chaos that ensues, Kate Davies is left behind.September 1941 into Winter 1942.
In the winter of 1941, a British journalist finds herself stranded in Leningrad during the Nazi siege of the city. A young idealist helps her, and together they fight for their own survival and that of the city's residents. - DirectorVadim ShmelyovStarsArtyom GubinLubov KonstantinovaIgor YudinA film about the feat of the Podolsk cadets in October 1941 near Moscow. The cadets of the Podolsk artillery-infantry schools are ordered to take up defenses on the Ilyinsky line.October 1941.
Cadets from the Podolsk infantry and artillery schools were sent to the Ilyinsky line of defense, fighting alongside units from the Soviet 43rd Army to hold back the German advance until reinforcements arrived. - DirectorKim DruzhininAndrey ShalopaStarsMaksim AbrosimovSergey AgafonovPavel AseevIn November 1941, remaining squad of Soviet soldiers must stop a column of Nazi Germany tanks.November 1941.
In 1941, 28 soldiers of the Red Army's 316th Rifle Division stationed near Moscow stop 54 German tanks for several days. - DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsBurt LancasterMontgomery CliftDeborah KerrAt a U.S. Army base in 1941 Hawaii, a private is cruelly punished for not boxing on his unit's team, while his commanding officer's wife and top aide begin a tentative affair.Culminates on December 7, 1941.
At an Army barracks in Hawaii in the days preceding the attack on Pearl Harbor, lone-wolf soldier and boxing champion "Prew" Prewitt (Montgomery Clift) refuses to box, preferring to play the bugle instead. Hard-hearted Capt. Holmes (Philip Ober) subjects Prew to a grueling series of punishments while, unknown to Holmes, the gruff but fair Sgt. Warden (Burt Lancaster) engages in a clandestine affair with the captain's mistreated wife (Deborah Kerr). - DirectorMichael CurtizStarsHumphrey BogartIngrid BergmanPaul HenreidA cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.Early December 1941.
Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), who owns a nightclub in Casablanca, discovers his old flame Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) is in town with her husband, Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid). Laszlo is a famed rebel, and with Germans on his tail, Ilsa knows Rick can help them get out of the country. - DirectorRichard FleischerKinji FukasakuToshio MasudaStarsMartin BalsamSô YamamuraJason RobardsThe story of the 1941 Japanese air raid on Pearl Harbor, and the series of preceding American blunders that aggravated its effectiveness.December 7, 1941.
This dramatic retelling of the Pearl Harbor attack details everything in the days that led up to that tragic moment in American history. As United States and Japanese relations strain over the U.S. embargo of raw materials, Air Staff Officer Minoru Genda (Tatsuya Mihashi) plans the preemptive strike against the United States. Although American intelligence agencies intercept Japanese communications hinting at the attack, they are unwilling to believe such a strike could ever occur on U.S. soil. - DirectorDon TaylorStarsKirk DouglasMartin SheenKatharine RossA modern aircraft carrier is thrown back in time to 1941 near Hawaii, just hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.December 7, 1941 revisited. Literally.
A Pacific aircraft carrier enters a time warp and finds itself transported from 1980 to 1941 - just before the attack on Pearl Harbor. The captain is forced to decide whether to strike at the approaching Japanese fleet and change the entire course of the World War II. - DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsChristian BaleJohn MalkovichMiranda RichardsonA young English boy struggles to survive under Japanese occupation of China during World War II.December 8, 1941 to end of war.
Jamie Graham (Christian Bale), a privileged English boy, is living in Shanghai when the Japanese invade and force all foreigners into prison camps. Jamie is captured with an American sailor named Basie (John Malkovich), who looks out for him while they are in the camp together. Even though he is separated from his parents and in a hostile environment, Jamie maintains his dignity and youthful spirits, providing a beacon of hope for the others held captive with him. - DirectorJohn FordRobert MontgomeryStarsRobert MontgomeryJohn WayneDonna ReedA Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.December 1941 to May 1942.
After a demonstration of new PT boats, navy brass are still unconvinced of their viability in combat, leaving Lt. "Rusty" Ryan (John Wayne) frustrated. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, however, Ryan and his buddy Lt. Brickley (Robert Montgomery) are told they can finally take their squadron into battle. The PT boats quickly prove their worth, successfully shooting down Japanese planes, relaying messages between islands, and picking off a multitude of enemy ships. - DirectorMark SandrichStarsClaudette ColbertPaulette GoddardVeronica LakeA group of nurses returning from the war in the Philippines recall their experiences in combat and in love.December 1941 to May 1942.
During the start of the Pacific campaign in World War II, Lieutenant Janet Davidson (Claudette Colbert) is the head of a group of U.S. military nurses who are trapped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Davidson tries to keep up the spirits of her staff, which includes Lieutenants Joan O'Doul (Paulette Goddard) and Olivia D'Arcy (Veronica Lake). They all seek to maintain a sense of normal life, including dating, while under constant danger as they tend to wounded soldiers. - DirectorFrank PiersonStarsClare BullusStanley TucciSimon MarkeyAt the Wannsee Conference on January 20, 1942, senior Nazi officials meet to determine the manner in which the so-called "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" can be best implemented.January 20, 1942.
In January 1942, as the United States enters World War II, a conference assembles near Berlin. SS Gen. Heydrich (Kenneth Branagh) and his associate, Lt. Eichmann (Stanley Tucci) call the meeting to discuss the "evacuation" of Germany's Jews and other undesirables, a code word for their extermination in concentration camps. To begin this Final Solution, they must change the mind of a small group of men opposed to the idea, led by Chancellor Kritzinger (David Threlfall). - DirectorHeinz SchirkStarsDietrich MattauschGerd BöckmannFriedrich G. BeckhausAt the Wannsee Conference on January 20, 1942, senior Nazi officials meet to determine the manner in which the so-called "Final Solution to the Jewish Question" can be best implemented.January 20, 1942.
In this real-time re-enactment of the infamous Wannsee Conference, 15 members of the SS and Nazi regime gather in Wannsee, Germany in January 1942. SS Gen. Reinhard Heydrich (Dietrich Mattausch) tells those present of his new responsibility for finding the "Final solution to the Jewish question." Heydrich unveils his plans to deport the Jewish population of Europe and North Africa to German-occupied territories, after which they will be worked to death. - DirectorJörg MüllnerStarsPhilipp SchepmannMargot FriedländerPeter KleinIt was arguably the deadliest conference in human history. The topic: plans to murder 11 million Jews in Europe. The participants were not psychopaths, but educated men from the SS, police, administration and ministries. The invitation to the meeting at Wannsee came from Reinhard Heydrich, head of the Reich Security Main Office. The Wehrmacht's campaigns of conquest in Eastern Europe marked the beginning of the systematic murder of Jews in Poland and the Soviet Union. In mid-September 1941, Hitler made the decision to deport all Jews from Germany to the East. Although there had been transports before, Hitler's order represented a further escalation in the murderous decision-making process. Persecution and discrimination had been part of everyday life since 1933. But as a result, the living conditions for the Jews in the Third Reich became even more difficult, among them the Berlin Jew Margot Friedländer, born in 1921, and the Chotzen family.From Wikipedia:
Die Wannseekonferenz is a German TV docudrama, first aired January 24th 2022 by the ZDF broadcaster, about a conference held in Berlin-Wannsee in 1942 to organise the extermination of the Jews. - DirectorTay GarnettStarsRobert TaylorGeorge MurphyLloyd NolanIn 1942, in the Bataan peninsula of the Philippines, a ragtag American unit commanded by Sergeant Bill Dane attempts to blow-up a bridge in order to slow the Japanese advance.Early 1942.
During Japan's invasion of the Philippines in 1942, Capt. Henry Lassiter (Lee Bowman), Sgt. Bill Dane (Robert Taylor) and a diverse group of American soldiers are ordered to destroy and hold a strategic bridge in order to delay the Japanese forces and allow Gen. MacArthur time to secure Bataan. When the Japanese soldiers begin to rebuild the bridge and advance, the group struggles with not only hunger, sickness and gunfire, but also the knowledge that there is likely no relief on the way. - DirectorJack LeeStarsVirginia McKennaPeter FinchKenji TakakiA newly wealthy English woman returns to Malaya to build a well for the villagers who helped her during war. Thinking back, she recalls the Australian man who made a great sacrifice to aid her and her fellow prisoners of war.Early 1942 to end of war.
This drama, based on the book by Nevil Shute, focuses on Jean Paget (Virginia McKenna), a British office worker captured by the Japanese in Malaysia during World War II. Kept with other women prisoners, Jean eventually meets Australian soldier Joe Harman (Peter Finch), who secretly aids the weary group by stealing food. When Joe's actions are discovered, he is punished, and Jean assumes him to be dead. However, years later, she finds out he may still be alive, and sets out in search of him. - DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsGlenn CloseFrances McDormandPauline CollinsA group of women who are imprisoned on the island of Sumatra by the Japanese during World War II use music to relieve their misery.February 1942 (the Fall of Singapore) to end of war.
A group of foreign women -- including an educated British musician (Glenn Close), an Australian nurse (Cate Blanchett) and an American socialite (Julianna Margulies) -- leave Singapore during World War II. When their boat is attacked, they wash up in Japanese-occupied Sumatra and end up in a POW camp. Conditions there are grim, with prisoners brutally punished for minor violations. But the captives soon decide to form a singing group that just may lift these very different women out of misery. - DirectorAaron SchneiderStarsTom HanksElisabeth ShueStephen GrahamSeveral months after the U.S. entry into World War II, an inexperienced U.S. Navy commander must lead an Allied convoy being stalked by a German submarine wolf pack.February 1942.
U.S. Navy Cmdr. Ernest Krause is assigned to lead an Allied convoy across the Atlantic during World War II. His convoy, however, is pursued by German U-boats. Although this is Krause's first wartime mission, he finds himself embroiled in what would come to be known as the longest, largest and most complex naval battle in history: The Battle of the Atlantic. - DirectorJonathan MostowStarsMatthew McConaugheyBill PaxtonHarvey KeitelA German submarine is boarded by disguised American submariners trying to capture their Enigma cipher machine.Spring 1942.
When a German U-571 submarine with a sophisticated encryption machine onboard is sunk during a World War II battle at sea, the Allies send an American Navy force led by Lieutenant Andrew Tyler (Matthew McConaughey) to retrieve it for study. Boarding the German ship, the Americans' cover as a rescue force is quickly blown. Forced to take the crew hostage, the Americans lay their explosives and prepare to destroy the German vessel before the Nazis can send naval backup. - DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsSpencer TracyVan JohnsonRobert WalkerIn the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Japanese homeland.Culminates on April 18, 1942.
During World War II, Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle (Spencer Tracy) leads the U.S. Air Force in a bombing mission over Japan. Doolittle and his men stage a successful attack on Tokyo, but most pilots run out of fuel while returning from the raid. Many are forced to land on Japanese soil, but Capt. Ted Lawson (Van Johnson), who has a pregnant wife at home, crash-lands in the sea off the coast of China. Stranded, Lawson must heroically endure a series of harrowing challenges to make it back home. - DirectorDelmer DavesStarsCary GrantJohn GarfieldAlan HaleIn order to provide information for the first air raid over Tokyo, a U.S. submarine sneaks into Tokyo Bay and places a spy team ashore.Culminates on April 18, 1942.
Captain Cassidy (Cary Grant) is in charge of a submarine on a mission so secret even he doesn't know what it is until his ship departs San Francisco and he opens his sealed orders. His task -- to pick up a meteorologist (John Ridgely) and travel to the coast of Japan to gather weather information for the Doolittle Raid, the first air strike on Tokyo. Along the way they fight to elude detection from Japanese ships and eventually face off against an enemy aircraft carrier. - DirectorAnn HuiStarsXun ZhouEddie PengWallace HuoIn Japanese-occupied Hong Kong, a school teacher and her would-be-fiancé link up with Chinese guerrilla fighters, forging their own path to freedom.Begins sometime in 1942.
Youths and resistance groups fight for freedom and independence in Hong Kong during the Japanese occupation. - DirectorSean EllisStarsJamie DornanCillian MurphyBrian CaspeBased on the extraordinary true story of Operation Anthropoid, the WWII mission to assassinate SS General Reinhard Heydrich, the main architect behind the Final Solution and the Reich's third in command after Hitler and Himmler.Culminates in May 1942.
Mission to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich.
In December 1941, two Czech soldiers (Cillian Murphy, Jamie Dornan) parachute into their occupied homeland to assassinate Nazi officer Reinhard Heydrich (Detlef Bothe). - DirectorLewis GilbertStarsTimothy BottomsMartin ShawJoss AcklandIn 1942, Britain sends a group of British-trained Czech commandos to Prague to assassinate SS-General Reinhard Heydrich, head of the Nazi security services.Culminates in May 1942.
Mission to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich.
In 1942 Czechoslovakia, SS-General Reinhard Heydrich is appointed to become the Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia. The terror and oppression that follow cause Allied authorities in London to authorise a secret mission to kill the man who has come to be known as `The Butcher of Prague'. The film explores shows the operation leading up to Heydrich's death as well as the massive German reprisals that followed it. - DirectorCédric JimenezStarsJason ClarkeRosamund PikeJack O'ConnellAs Germany expands its borders, scorching Europe from end to end, two brave Czechs of the Resistance prepare to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich, the mastermind behind the hideous "Final Solution" to the "Jewish Question".Culminates in May 1942.
Half biography of Reinhard Heydrich, half assassination mission.
In 1942, the Czech resistance in London sends two young recruits to Prague to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich, the most ruthless Nazi leader who is the Reich-protector, head of the SS and the Gestapo, and the architect of the Final Solution. - DirectorFritz LangStarsBrian DonlevyWalter BrennanAnna LeeAfter the German administrator of Czechoslovakia is shot, his assassin tries to elude the Gestapo and struggles with his impulse to give himself up as hostages are executed.May 1942.
Highly fictionalized version of Reinhard Heydrich assassination.
During the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovokia, insurgent Franticek Svoboda (Brian Donlevy) assassinates the brutal German leader Reinhard Heydrich (Hans Heinrich von Twardowski). Svoboda escapes with the aid of history professor Stephen Novotny (Walter Brennan), but Novotny is then captured, along with 400 other Czechs, through the machinations of Nazi sympathizer Emil Czaka (Gene Lockhart). The Czech prisoners are then told that if Svoboda does not surrender, they will all be executed. - DirectorPetr NikolaevStarsKarel RodenZuzana FialováZuzana BydzovskáThe burning of the village of Lidice by Nazi Germany is the only official genocide during the war. The film tells three interconnected stories that all have to do with burning down and the destruction of Lidice in 1942. The first story is about an unfortunate family where the father accidentally kills his son during a heated discussion, and is sentenced to a prison sentence . The second story is a letter that is the cause of the massacre. The third story is about fear, personal responsibility, and whether survival is a victory when you have to surrender your dignity and honor for it.May to June 1942.
Nazi reprisals for the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich.
A sequence of events leads to the razing of a Czech village by Nazis during World War II. - DirectorAlberto CavalcantiStarsLeslie BanksC.V. FranceValerie TaylorAn English village is occupied by disguised German paratroopers as an advance post for a planned invasion.May 1942, Whitsun weekend.
A small English village is so cut off that the arrival of a car is an event. When lorryloads of Royal Engineers led by Major Ortler turn up, the villagers have no reason to suspect that they are really disguised German paratroopers. - DirectorRoland EmmerichStarsEd SkreinPatrick WilsonWoody HarrelsonThe story of the Battle of Midway, told by the leaders and the sailors who fought it.Culminates in June 1942.
Pearl Harbor, Doolitte Raid, Battle of Midway.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese forces launch a devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. naval base in Hawaii. Six months later, the Battle of Midway commences on June 4, 1942, as the Japanese navy once again plans a strike against American ships in the Pacific. For the next three days, the U.S. Navy and a squad of brave fighter pilots engage the enemy in one of the most important and decisive battles of World War II. - DirectorJack SmightStarsCharlton HestonHenry FondaJames CoburnA dramatization of the battle that was widely heralded as a turning point of the Pacific Theatre of World War II.Late May to June 4, 1942.
Battle of Midway.
In this dramatization of the Battle of Midway during World War II, U.S. Navy Adm. Chester Nimitz (Henry Fonda) leads an outnumbered unit in the Pacific to break Japanese encryption codes. They soon discover that Adm. Yamamoto (Toshirô Mifune) plans an ambush of the U.S. base on the island of Midway. Capt. Matt Garth (Charlton Heston) helps devise the Navy's strategy, while his pilot son, Tom (Edward Albert), falls in love with a Japanese-American woman who is headed for an internment camp. - DirectorBrian Desmond HurstStarsAlec GuinnessJack HawkinsAnthony Steel1942 and the island of Malta is battling for survival. The threat of invasion by Axis forces is increasing as air raids wear down its defence. Entering this maelstrom is Flight Lieutenant Peter Ross, an RAF photo-reconnaissance pilot.Spring to Fall 1942.
During World War II, British photo-reconnaissance pilot Peter (Alec Guinness) discovers that the Italians are planning a secret invasion of Malta, a strategically important island nation critical to keeping the Allied supply lines open. Though they have few resources left, Peter and his commanding officer, Frank (Jack Hawkins), resolve to fight off the enemy and save the island. At the same time, Peter struggles to keep his relationship with a local girl from falling apart. - DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonStarsJohn MillsAnthony QuayleSylvia SymsDuring World War II in North Africa, a medical field unit must cross the desert in their ambulance in order to reach the British lines in Alexandria.June 1942.
Captain Anson (John Mills) is tired and thirsty. Forced to leave his North African post when it becomes clear it will be invaded, Anson is on his way to Alexandria, Egypt, and looking forward to a nice cold beer. Before he gets there, though, circumstances pressure him to take on several passengers. Sister Diana Murdoch (Sylvia Syms) and Captain van der Poel (Anthony Quayle) prove to be excellent traveling companions, but Anson soon realizes that one of them is a German spy. - DirectorBilly WilderStarsFranchot ToneAnne BaxterAkim TamiroffIn the North African campaign a British straggler manages to pass himself off as a waiter at the hotel commandeered as Rommel's headquarters. He has thoughts of assassinating Rommel but his cover may have an even better use.June 1942.
It's World War II, and British soldier John Bramble (Franchot Tone) is the lone survivor of a brutal battle in Egypt. After wandering through the desert, Bramble finds a remote hotel. There, in order to stay alive, he assumes a false identity. When the famed German general Rommel (Erich von Stroheim), aka the Desert Fox, arrives at the hotel, Bramble realizes he's being taken for a German spy. Can this lowly British soldier turn the tide in the war and foil Germany's plans in North Africa? - DirectorJán KadárElmar KlosStarsIda KaminskaJozef KronerFrantisek ZvaríkA carpenter in the Fascist Slovak State is appointed "Aryan controller" of a Jewish widow's store.Sometime in 1942.
In a small town in Nazi-occupied Slovakia during World War II, decent but timid carpenter Tono (Jozef Kroner) is named "Aryan comptroller" of a button store owned by an old Jewish widow, Rozalie (Ida Kaminska). Since the post comes with a salary and standing in the town's corrupt hierarchy, Tono wrestles with greed and guilt as he and Rozalie gradually befriend each other. When the authorities order all Jews in town to be rounded up, Tono faces a moral dilemma unlike any he's known before. - DirectorJoseph LoseyStarsAlain DelonJeanne MoreauFrancine BergéIn German-occupied Paris, an immoral art dealer, Robert Klein, leads a life of luxury, until a copy of a Jewish newspaper brings him to the attention of the police, linking him with a mysterious doppelgänger. Will Mr. Klein clear his name?Culminates in July 1942.
The mass arrest & deportation of Jews in Paris, known as the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup.
Robert Klein cannot find any fault with the state of affairs in German-occupied France. He has a well-furnished flat, a mistress, and business is booming. Jews facing discrimination because of laws depicted by the French government are desperate to sell valuable works of art - and it is easy for him to get them at bargain prices. His cosy life is disrupted when he realises that there is another Robert Klein in Paris. - DirectorGilles Paquet-BrennerStarsKristin Scott ThomasMélusine MayanceNiels ArestrupIn modern-day Paris, a journalist finds her life becoming entwined with a young girl whose family was torn apart during the notorious Vel' d'Hiv Roundup in 1942.Begins July 16-17, 1942.
The mass arrest & deportation of Jews in Paris, known as the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup.
An account of research by a journalist (Kristin Scott Thomas) into a shameful incident in French history intertwines with a story of a 10-year-old Jewish girl (Mélusine Mayance) from that time period. - DirectorAng LeeStarsTony Leung Chiu-waiTang WeiJoan ChenDuring World War II era, a young woman, Wang Jiazhi, gets swept up in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure, Mr. Yee.Culminates in Summer 1942.
Chinese Resistance in Japanese-occupied Shanghai.
During World War II a secret agent (Tang Wei) must seduce, then assassinate an official (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) who works for the Japanese puppet government in Shanghai. Her mission becomes clouded when she finds herself falling in love with the man she is assigned to kill. - DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsBrad PittMarion CotillardJared HarrisIn 1942, a Canadian intelligence officer in North Africa encounters a female French Resistance fighter on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. When they reunite in London, their relationship is tested by the pressures of war.Summer 1942 to Summer 1944.
Max Vatan (Brad Pitt) and Marianne Beauséjour (Marion Cotillard) are World War II operatives who never reveal their true identities. After falling in love during a risky mission, they hope to leave all that double-dealing behind them and start new lives. Instead, suspicion and danger envelop their marriage as both husband and wife become pitted against each other in an escalating, potentially lethal test that has global consequences.